Best For | Best for ecommerce with personalized pop-ups and targeting. | Best for advanced lead generation with robust customization options. |
Price | $19/mo | $7/mo |
Free Plan/Free Trial | Free Plan | No |
Features | Exit-intent popups & overlays | Drag-and-drop campaign builder |
Pros | Boosts ecommerce conversions. | Advanced lead capture. |
Cons | Limited advanced analytics. | No free tier. |
Pop-ups—love ‘em or hate ‘em, they’re everywhere in 2025, and I’ve been dying to figure out which tool’s the real deal for my site. OptiMonk and OptinMonster keep popping up (pun intended) as the big players, but they’re not the same beast.
One’s like a shopkeeper nudging you to buy; the other’s a lead-hungry marketer who won’t let you leave empty-handed.
I’ve dug into both to see what they’re about—how they work, what they cost, and who they’re best for.
So, grab a coffee, and let’s find the perfect fit for you!
Here’s what I am going to cover in this blog:
- How do OptiMonk and OptinMonster work?
- Key Features Comparison Between Optimonk Vs OptinMonster
- Guides and resources for improving campaigns
- Subscription prices
- Quick campaign setup
How do OptiMonk and OptinMonster work?
Ever wonder how tools like OptiMonk and OptinMonster help your website? Let’s break it down.
OptiMonk is like that friendly store assistant who knows just what you need—it pops up with personalized offers or messages to keep visitors shopping, especially for ecommerce sites.
You tweak a few settings, pick who sees what (like cart abandoners), and it nudges them to buy with slick pop-ups or bars. I’ve found it super easy to set up, almost like arranging a shop window.
OptinMonster, though, feels more like a clever marketer in your corner. It’s all about grabbing emails and leads with eye-catching pop-ups, spin-to-win wheels, or exit-intent tricks—stuff that stops people from leaving empty-handed.
You drag, drop, and play with designs, then target specific folks (like newbies or returners). It’s been a breeze for me to tweak and test what works. Both tools are like little helpers, just with different vibes—one’s your sales buddy, and the other’s your lead magnet!
Key Features Comparison: OptiMonk vs Optinmonster
OptiMonk:
- Core Purpose: It’s designed with ecommerce in mind—like a virtual shop assistant pushing sales. Think of it as a tool that helps keep people from ditching their carts or missing out on deals.
- Pop-up Types: You get a solid lineup—standard pop-ups, side messages (those little slide-ins), nano bars (tiny top or bottom bars), fullscreen takeovers, and even embedded forms. Plenty to play with!
- Customization: The drag-and-drop editor is super intuitive; no tech skills are needed. It comes with over 300 templates you can tweak—colors, fonts, images—to match your vibe. I’ve whipped up pop-ups in minutes with this.
- Targeting Options: This is where it shines for shops. You can target cart abandoners, returning visitors, or folks based on their location, time on site, or what they’ve clicked. It’s smart to nudge the right people at the right time.
- Special Features: Offers cool ecommerce tricks like product recommendation pop-ups (e.g., “Hey, check out this matching item!”), A/B testing is done to see what works, and mobile optimization is done so it looks good on phones. Plus, it’s got countdown timers for urgency.
- Analytics: You get basic tracking—views, clicks, conversions—which are helpful but not super detailed. It tells you what’s happening, though I wish it dug deeper sometimes.
- Integrations: Hooks up with big names like Shopify, Mailchimp, and Zapier, so it fits into your workflow without much hassle.
- Ease of Use: Feels beginner-friendly, especially if you’re running a store. It’s less about fancy lead tricks and more about boosting that checkout rate.
OptinMonster:
- Core Purpose: This one’s a lead-generation beast—like a marketer’s best friend for building email lists and grabbing attention. It’s less about selling products directly and more about growing your audience.
- Pop-up Types: Tons of variety here—lightbox pop-ups (those classic boxes), floating bars, slide-ins, gamified wheels (spin-to-win style), inline forms, and even full-page mats. It’s like a playground for creativity.
- Customization: The drag-and-drop builder is slick and flexible, with 50+ templates to start From. You can tweak every detail—animations, buttons, layouts—and make it look exactly how you want. I’ve had fun messing around with designs here.
- Targeting Options: It’s next-level smart. Think exit-intent (pop-ups when someone’s leaving), device targeting (phone vs. desktop), geolocation, referral source, or behavior (e.g., “They scrolled 50%!”). You can really zero in on who sees what.
- Special Features: Packed with goodies—content locking (e.g., “Sign up to read more”), yes/no forms to filter leads, dynamic countdowns, and A/B testing. It’s got exit-intent tech nailed down and even personalized based on visitor data.
- Analytics: It goes deeper than OptiMonk—it has detailed stats on impressions, conversions, and more. Plus, it plugs into Google Analytics for a full view. I love how it shows me exactly what’s clicking with my audience.
- Integrations: Connects to pretty much everything—Mailchimp, HubSpot, CRMs, WordPress, you name it. It’s built to slot into any setup seamlessly.
- Ease of Use: Simple enough for newbies but loaded with advanced options. It’s a bit more complex than OptiMonk because of all the extras, but once you get it, it’s a powerhouse.
The Breakdown
- OptiMonk is your go-to if you run an online store. It’s all about personalizing offers, recovering carts, and boosting sales with easy, shop-focused tools. It’s lighter on lead-gen bells and whistles but nails the ecommerce game.
- OptinMonster is the champ for growing your audience. It’s stacked with advanced lead-capture features, creative flexibility, and killer targeting—perfect if emails and subscribers are your goal over straight-up sales.
How are OptiMonk and OptinMonster different?
OptiMonk and OptinMonster support all websites, content management systems (CMS), and major eCommerce platforms. But here’s where the two solutions start to differ.
OptinMonster caters heavily to WordPress (WP) users, including eCommerce stores using WooCommerce.
They also have a collection of sister companies that cover other areas of WordPress like creating forms and landing pages for sites that run on WP.
In other words, OptinMonster specializes in helping WordPress clients grow their brands.
OptiMonk is a little different in this regard. They don’t prioritize one platform over the other.
OptiMonk seamlessly integrates with Shopify and other eCommerce platforms––including WooCommerce. Hence, It’s an eCommerce solution that supports businesses of all sizes across all popular platforms.
OptiMonk’s approach to customers is different than OptinMonster’s. Next, we’ll look at how OptiMonk provides a complete customer journey from the first hello to completing a sale and beyond.
Conversion Rate Optimization vs Customer Value Optimization
While both OptiMonk and OptinMonster use similar techniques to achieve conversions, the companies differ in methodology.
OptinMonster helps customers reach their goals through Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).
This approach uses elements like timed deals, exclusive offers, and limited stock to increase sales. While it’s very effective at getting an immediate lift in sales, it doesn’t typically lead to long-term improvement.
OptiMonk is a little different here.
They promote Customer Value Optimization (CVO) instead.
What’s the difference?
CVO is the complete form of CRO.
It recognizes that tactics like countdown timers and exclusive deals work, but they’re not the only tools you have available. You can also create a personalized customer journey that shoppers love so they keep coming back to your site.
And that’s the full game plan for improving your sales, conversions, and customer lifetime value.
OptiMonk creates a delightful onsite journey that speaks to the needs and interests of every individual customer.
Because the best way to improve sales and conversions is through personalization, customers don’t want to see generic popups. They want relevant product recommendations and messages that speak directly to their needs.
Now that we’ve covered the biggest differences between the two, let’s compare other features that both platforms offer.
Guides and resources for improving campaigns
Learning how to use new business tools can be tough––especially when you’re busy running a company. Quick and easy product tutorials can be a lifesaver when you’re building campaigns.
And both platforms make it easy for customers to learn how to create effective onsite messages.
OptinMonster offers OptinMonster University
It’s a series of training videos and ebooks that walk customers through the types of campaigns they can set up and how they can improve conversions. This feature is available to all users who buy an OptinMonster subscription.
OptinMonster also has a comprehensive instruction manual that users can refer to any time they need help with something.
This database covers everything you need to know about how to use OptinMonster. You can learn how to do simple tasks like setting up your first campaign or more advanced topics like integrating with other marketing tools.
It’s free for the public to browse, but OptinMonster doesn’t offer free plans so it’s only relevant for paying customers.
OptiMonk has several resources to help users maximize their campaigns
Best of all, most of their materials are completely free for everyone to use!
OptiMonk provides informative live webinars with experts that walk users through the process of creating and personalizing their onsite messages.
OptiMonk also has an extensive library of ebooks for improving your sales and marketing campaigns.
They even offer a free ebook on how to improve sales through CVO.
OptiMonk’s Knowledge Database gives step-by-step instructions for setting up campaigns, integrating with popular eCommerce tools, and customizing templates.
Also, OptiMonk has a team of Customer Success and CVO experts who will meet with you if you need personalized help setting up campaigns or problem-solving.
This is great for when you want to ask specific questions about your campaigns.
Now, what about the cost for each platform?
Pricing: OptiMonk vs OptinMonster
OptiMonk Pricing
OptiMonk’s pricing depends on your site’s monthly pageviews.
You can pay monthly or go yearly to save (it’s like getting 3 months free).
Every plan has all features included—nice and simple!
- Free Plan: $0/month (monthly or yearly)—1 site, 10,000 pageviews. It’s a great way to test it out!
- Essential Plan: $29/month or $19/month ($228/year)—20,000 pageviews, 2 domains. Perfect for new brands starting to sell.
- Growth Plan: $99/month or $69/month ($828/year)—100,000 pageviews, 4 domains. Awesome for growing sales and subscribers.
- Premium Plan: $249/month or $179/month ($2,148/year)—500,000 pageviews, 10 domains. Built for big, busy sites.
- Master Plan: Custom pricing—unlimited domains and pageviews.
OptinMonster Pricing
OptinMonster offers four plans, all billed annually, with up to 7 months free:
1. Basic – $7/month (Normally $18)
For beginners: 2,500 pageviews, unlimited popups & forms, basic targeting & analytics.
2. Plus – $19/month (Normally $48)
For small businesses: 10,000 pageviews, A/B testing, device targeting, content locking.
3. Pro – $29/month (Normally $73)
For eCommerce & marketers: 25,000 pageviews, Exit Intent®, countdown timers, cart abandonment.
4. Growth – $49/month (Normally $123)
For large businesses: 100,000 pageviews, geolocation targeting, OnSite Retargeting®, premium support.
- All plans include 1 free campaign setup & OptinMonster University ($1,997 value) also, OptinMonster provides 14 days money-back guarantee.
Quick campaign setup
Both OptiMonk and OptinMonster offer templates for onsite messages, such as:
- Cart abandonment popups.
- Stickybar announcements.
- Timed discounts, and more.
Templates are great because they dramatically reduce the time it takes to create and launch a popup campaign.
All you have to do is add your company name or change the wording to reflect your products.
Here is an example of OptinMonster’s template library. You can choose which theme and type of message you want to use, like a popup or floating bar.
While OptinMonster’s template library is helpful, it doesn’t compete with OptiMonk’s Inspiration Library.
What makes OptiMonk’s Inspiration Library so great?
They offer more than 370 templates (and counting).
You can browse templates by their:
- Theme.
- Campaign goal (e.g., stop cart abandonment, grow mailing list).
- Type of onsite message (popup, sticky bar, side message, etc.).
OptiMonk has more than 20 types of themes, including themed popups for all major holidays. If you’re searching for a solution that removes the time and effort it takes to create beautifully designed campaigns, OptiMonk is the clear winner.
Their broader range of templates means you can find beautiful popups, sidemessages, or sticky bars for any occasion!
FAQs: OptiMonk vs OptinMonster
Which is better, OptiMonk or OptinMonster?
It depends on your needs. OptiMonk is best for eCommerce stores with Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce integrations, while OptinMonster offers more advanced targeting, A/B testing, and CRM integrations for broader marketing use.
Does OptiMonk or OptinMonster offer a free plan?
OptiMonk has a free plan with basic features. OptinMonster does not offer a free plan, but it has a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Which tool has better targeting options?
OptinMonster has more advanced targeting, including Exit Intent®, geolocation, adblock detection, and inactivity tracking. OptiMonk specializes in eCommerce-friendly targeting like cart abandonment and personalized messaging.
Can I use OptiMonk and OptinMonster on multiple websites?
Yes, both allow multi-site usage, depending on the plan. OptinMonster’s higher-tier plans support more websites, while OptiMonk’s plans also scale based on pageviews.
Which tool is easier to use?
Both offer drag-and-drop editors, but OptiMonk is more beginner-friendly, while OptinMonster has more customization options, requiring a slight learning curve.
Do both platforms integrate with email marketing tools?
Yes, both support popular email marketing services like Mailchimp, Klaviyo, ActiveCampaign, and more. OptinMonster has broader CRM integrations like HubSpot, Marketo, and Salesforce.
Quick Links
- Getsitecontrol Review
- Which Is The Top Best WordPress Popup Plugin?
- OptiMonk Review
- Best OptinMonster Alternatives
What’s the verdict?- OptiMonk vs OptinMonster 2025
OptiMonk and OptinMonster are both effective popup tools. But if you had to choose between the two, which solution is right for you?
Both products work with eCommerce platforms and custom websites, but OptinMonster does offer other WordPress plugins. This can be helpful for customers who want to stick with the same vendor.
If you need an e-commerce solution that’s both powerful and easy-to-use, OptiMonk is the winner.
Why? Because of their CVO approach.
OptiMonk helps customers double their conversions when compared to other popup tools.
OptiMonk works seamlessly with:
- Popular eCommerce and marketing tools.
- All types of other websites and eCommerce platforms.
Also, OptiMonk users have access to endless resources to enhance their campaigns. Between the expansive template library, ebooks, and helpful staff, you’ll always have help improving conversions and increasing customer lifetime revenue.
This should supply you with the facts to decide which company would best serve your business needs. We hope that this comparison was helpful and we wish you increased sales and happy customers!
