SharpSpring vs. Pardot
SharpSpring launched in 2014 to deliver powerful and affordable marketing automation. It’s a flexible, open platform with a complete feature set, and it integrates easily with other tools. SharpSpring doesn’t require an annual contract and is a fraction of the cost of competitors.
Pardot launched in 2007, providing a full suite of tools that helps marketers engage leads and close more deals. It requires the Salesforce CRM which is priced separately. Pardot’s price point is on the high end of the spectrum, and an annual contract is required.
 20K Contact Plan |
 Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Features | Comparable | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Terms | Month to Month | Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
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| Annual Cost (Get Started) |
$10,500 ($2,675 Get Started) |
$36,000 ($39,000 Get Started) |
$24,000 ($27,000 Get Started) |
$12,000 ($15,000 Get Started) |
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SharpSpring provides several advantages over its competition, such as Pardot or Marketo. You can’t beat SharpSpring’s licensing value. Each license comes with unlimited users – this alone beats out the competition. SharpSpring also has an awesome integrated CRM, so you don’t have to go out and buy separate software licenses for the features you need. SharpSpring is a complete marketing automation system with true behavioral marketing capabilities.
Rafael Zabala, Interactive Marketing
Brytons Home Improvement offers home remodeling services across two states. It was looking for a platform to provide increased metrics and visibility into its marketing efforts. After implementing SharpSpring, the business saw a 10x ROI on all marketing campaigns and increased sales conversions by 35%.
FunnelBud is a marketing automation agency founded by former Pardot and HubSpot consultants. It now exclusively uses SharpSpring for its B2B clients. FunnelBud clients have achieved a 10x ROI and 90x greater lead gen with SharpSpring.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| PRICING | ||||
| Initial Commitment | $2,675 | $39,000(Year 1 + Onboarding) | $27,000(Year 1 + Onboarding) | $15,000(Year 1 + Onboarding) |
| Monthly Cost | $875/mo Paid monthly, no annual contract | $3,000/mo Paid monthly, annual contract | $2,000/mo Paid monthly, annual contract | $1,000/mo Paid monthly, annual contract |
| Annual Cost | $10,500 | $36,000 | $24,000 | $12,000 |
| Onboarding (One Time) | $1,800 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 |
| Contacts | 20K | 10K | 10K | 10K |
| Additional Contacts | $3 per1K/mo. | $100 per10k/mo. | $100 per10k/mo. | $100 per10k/mo. |
| Users | Unlimited | Limited to the number of Salesforce licenses | Limited to the number of Salesforce licenses | Limited to the number of Salesforce licenses |
| Emails Included Per Month | 25K | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
SharpSpring wins on cost and contract type.
SharpSpring comes in substantially lower than Pardot on cost. In addition, Pardot locks customers into a full-year contract, while SharpSpring customers only pay month to month and can cancel at any time
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 7/8 | 7/8 | 7/8 | 4/8 |
| Drag-and-Drop Designer | ||||
| WYSIWYG Interface | ||||
| Dynamic Email Content | ||||
| Responsive Templates | ||||
| After-the-Click Tracking | ||||
| Render Testing | ||||
| A/B Testing | ||||
| RSS Integration | 3rd party add-on | 3rd party add-on | 3rd party add-on |
$ = available for additional charge
Parity in email features.
Email marketing is at the core of all marketing automation platforms. SharpSpring and Pardot both excel in this area by offering all of the features that help marketers use email as an effective campaign tool. However, SharpSpring offers more built in the platform whereas Pardot’s offerings vary by package.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 11/11 | 9/11 | 9/11 | 9/11 |
| Visual Workflow Builder | ||||
| Workflows and Tasks | Unlimited | Limited to 150 | Limited to 100 | Limited to 50 |
| Triggers and Filters | ||||
| Branching Workflows | ||||
| Time-Based Automations | ||||
| Behavior-Based Automations | ||||
| Advanced Lead Scoring | ||||
| Dynamic Lists | ||||
| Advanced Segmentation | ||||
| Dynamic Landing Pages | ||||
| Personas |
Advantage to SharpSpring with Personas.
Automation is another area where SharpSpring and Pardot match up almost evenly in terms of features, with both platforms offering marketers the tools they need. There is a slight edge to SharpSpring due to its in-platform methodology of adding personas directly into the system and using with dynamic emails and landing pages for customized and personalized communication
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 12/12 | 12/12 | 12/12 | 11/12 |
| Drag-and-Drop Designer | Limited to 50 | |||
| Dynamic Forms | ||||
| Use CSS to Match Your Site | ||||
| Custom Calls to Action | ||||
| Auto-Complete | ||||
| Progressive Profiling | ||||
| Hidden Fields Supported | ||||
| Referral Forms/Fields | ||||
| Third-Party Forms Supported | ||||
| Third-Party Post-Back | ||||
| Native GoToWebinar Integration | ||||
| Native WebEx Integration |
$ = available for additional charge
An even match in form features, with no limits in SharpSpring.
SharpSpring and Pardot both have powerful form features to allow agencies to bring in leads with ease, but Pardot has limits based on the user’s plan. With both platforms, forms can be designed to match the look and feel of your website.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 6/6 | 5/6 | 5/6 | 5/6 |
| Identify Anonymous Site Visitors | ||||
| Contact Info from Anonymous Site Visitors (ZoomInfo) |
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| Track Behavior History of Known Leads |
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| Timeline of Lead Interaction | ||||
| Daily Email of Site Visitors | ||||
| Important Page Visit Tracking |
$ = available for additional charge
SharpSpring wins on contact tracking.
Both platforms track information on anonymous site visitors and then tie those histories to their respective leads upon form fill-out. But only SharpSpring includes reverse IP lookup to reveal visitors’ company names and even offer potential lead names based upon those look-ups.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 7/7 | 7/7 | 6/7 | 6/7 |
| Point-and-Click Designer | ||||
| WYSIWYG Interface | ||||
| Dynamic Content | ||||
| Library of Responsive Templates | ||||
| Optimize for Mobile | ||||
| Build Single Landing Pages | ||||
| Build Landing Page Funnels |
$ = available for additional charge
Included in SharpSpring, premium in Pardot.
Both SharpSpring and Pardot stack up evenly with their respective landing page builders, but that’s only if you’re paying for the premium package from Pardot or paying additional fees to raise the bar for a lower level bundle.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 7/7 | 0/7 | 0/7 | 0/7 |
| Point-and-Click Editor | ||||
| WYSIWYG Interface | ||||
| Dynamic Content | ||||
| Library of Responsive Templates | ||||
| RSS Email Syndication | ||||
| Advance Post Scheduling | ||||
| Social Sharing Widget |
Included in SharpSpring, premium in Pardot.
Both SharpSpring and Pardot stack up evenly with their respective landing page builders, but that’s only if you’re paying for the premium package from Pardot or paying additional fees to raise the bar for a lower level bundle.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
|
| Total | 6/6 | 4/6 | 4/6 | 0/6 |
| Social – CRM Integration | ||||
| Social Profiling | ||||
| Social Listening/Monitoring | ||||
| Social Media Publishing | ||||
| Social Monitoring Conversions | ||||
| Content Calendar |
$ = available for additional charge
Edge to SharpSpring in social features.
Both platforms offer a variety of social media features, providing users with the ability to track conversions to and from social. SharpSpring edges out Pardot with its content calendar, which allows users to get a holistic view of all their scheduled emails, blog posts and social content.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 5/6 | 4/6 | 4/6 | 4/6 |
| Custom Notifications | ||||
| Report Scheduling | ||||
| Built-In CRM | ||||
| Advanced Lead Scoring | ||||
| Native Salesforce Integration | ||||
| Shopping Cart Integration | 3rd party | 3rd party |
$ = available for additional charge
SharpSpring wins on flexibility.
Pardot is seamlessly integrated with Salesforce since they are part of the same company. If Salesforce is already your CRM, that’s fine. SharpSpring offers a built-in CRM (no additional charge) and also integrates with countless others, including Salesforce.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 7/8 | 6/8 | 6/8 | 3/8 |
| Universal CMS Compatibility | ||||
| Open API | ||||
| Zapier Integration | ||||
| PieSync Integration | ||||
| Multiple Device Tracking | ||||
| Third-Party/Native Form Compatibility | ||||
| Native Salesforce Integration | ||||
| Advanced Reporting |
$ = available for additional charge
Parity in platform features.
The platforms stack up well here, with both offering key integrations that are of value to marketers. Pardot users buying in at the lowest level will still need the Salesforce CRM license that starts at $75/user per month. If you want the advanced reporting features offered by Pardot, expect another upcharge.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Total | 5/5 | 5/5 | 4/5 | 4/5 |
| Phone Support | ||||
| Email Support | ||||
| In-App Contextual Support Videos | ||||
| Ongoing Training | ||||
| Platform Migration Support |
$ = available for additional charge
Parity in platform features.
The platforms stack up well here, with both offering key integrations that are of value to marketers. Pardot users buying in at the lowest level will still need the Salesforce CRM license that starts at $75/user per month. If you want the advanced reporting features offered by Pardot, expect another upcharge.
| 20K Contact Plan |
Ultimate |
Pro |
Standard |
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| Features | Comparable | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reviews |
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| Terms | Month to Month | Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
Annual Contract Billed Monthly |
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| Annual Cost (Get Started) |
$10,500 ($2,675 Get Started) |
$36,000 ($39,000 Get Started) |
$24,000 ($27,000 Get Started) |
$12,000 ($15,000 Get Started) |
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