Quick outline
- My use case and set-up
- What ClickFunnels got right and wrong
- What Kartra nailed and where it tripped
- Real numbers from my launches
- Email, design, speed, and support
- Who I’d pick for what
- My current stack
Here’s the thing: I’ve built funnels for my own tiny shop and for clients. I’ve used both ClickFunnels and Kartra for live launches, evergreen sales, and simple lead magnets. I’ve broken pages at midnight. I’ve fixed them at 12:07. So this isn’t theory. It’s the stuff I learned the messy way.
Quick reality check: When you’re scrolling through glossy sales pages for funnel software, it feels a lot like swiping dating profiles—everything looks flawless until you realize you’ve been catfished. Catch the cautionary tale here and learn the subtle red-flag signals so your next SaaS “match” doesn’t burn your launch budget.
Want another quick lesson in how stripped-down pages can still drive decisive user action? Take a look at how a niche local directory structures its call-outs on Rubmaps Palm Bay — the walk-through shows how tight headline hierarchies and above-the-fold reviews nudge visitors to click, giving you swipe-worthy inspiration for simplifying your own high-conversion layouts.
My set-up (so you see the whole picture)
- Niche: online courses and a physical planner.
- Payments: Stripe + PayPal.
- Email: ConvertKit for ClickFunnels. Native email in Kartra.
- Extras: Facebook Pixel, Google Tag Manager, UTM tracking, and Zapier.
Now, the juicy parts.
ClickFunnels: Fast hands, fast build… with a few squeaks
The first weekend I used ClickFunnels 2.0, I built a three-step funnel for a $37 Instagram Reels mini-course. I used a clean template, dropped in a short demo video, and set up one order bump ($9 captions pack) and a one-time offer ($67 content vault).
What went great
- Speed to build: I made the core funnel in two hours. No joke. Drag, drop, done.
- A/B test: I tested two headlines. “Make Reels in 10 Minutes” beat “Reels That Sell” by 18%. The tool made it simple.
- Checkout magic: Order bump took 23% of buyers. The one-time offer took 12%. That extra cash felt like free money.
- Templates: The pre-built layouts looked clean. Less tinkering. More selling.
What bugged me
- Email: The native email felt thin for me. I moved to ConvertKit after one week so I could tag people by product and clicks.
- Mobile quirks: My hero image looked great on desktop but crushed on iPhone. I had to stack rows and add custom spacing. Not hard, just fussy.
- Script weight: My pages looked fast in the editor. But real load time on 4G? Meh. When I trimmed countdown timers and social proof widgets, mobile bounce dropped by 7%.
For ClickFunnels’ own point-of-view on where they shine (and where Kartra doesn’t), you can skim their in-depth comparison for extra context.
Real numbers from that weekend launch
- Page views: 2,412
- Sign-ups on the free training page: 41%
- Sales page conversion: 4.9%
- Average order value: $58.30 (thanks to the order bump + offer)
- Refunds: 1.6%
I ran traffic from Instagram Stories and one small email blast. Tracking UTM links inside ClickFunnels was fine, though I leaned on Google Analytics to be sure.
Kartra: One roof, many rooms
Two months later, I ran a 5-day “Email Bootcamp” and used Kartra for everything. If you’d like to see Kartra’s own head-to-head feature checklist, they publish an official comparison against ClickFunnels you can browse.
What went great
- Email and tags: I built a 9-email path with tags like “Bootcamp Day 3 Watched” and “Did Not Click.” If someone skipped Day 2, they got a gentle nudge. Open rates stayed near 36%.
- Membership area: I made a simple members portal for the replays and worksheets. Drip by day. No plugin chase.
- Video hosting with actions: When folks watched 75% of a lesson, Kartra tagged them. Day 5 buyers were mostly those 75% watchers. Handy for retargeting later.
- Helpdesk: One page for FAQs, tickets, and a chat window. I set rules so billing tickets hit my inbox first.
Where it tripped me up
- Page builder lag: The editor felt heavier. Saving took a few seconds. Not a deal breaker, but I felt it.
- Design freedom: I could make pretty pages. But ClickFunnels gave me more “snap.” Kartra felt… boxy unless I fussed with spacing.
- Checkout styling: Solid and safe, but less “wow.” My designer brain wanted one more font weight and a bolder button state.
Real numbers from the bootcamp
- Sign-up page conversion: 38% from a similar warm list
- Show-up rate on Day 1 live: 29%
- Sales page conversion on the last day: 3.6%
- Average order value: $72.40 (lower base price, stronger bundle)
- Support tickets resolved inside Kartra: 57 in the first 48 hours
Email: where each one shines
- ClickFunnels + ConvertKit: Best for me when I want fancy rules, link triggers, and pretty broadcasts. I loved creating “clicked but didn’t buy” groups.
- Kartra Email: Not as flashy, but plenty strong. Tags, sequences, split sends, and goal steps. My deliverability held steady. Warm list. Clean domain.
Design and build feel
- ClickFunnels: Feels like quick Lego bricks. I can test a new hero in minutes. Great for rapid-fire offers, upsells, and holiday flash sales.
- Kartra: Feels like building a house with rooms. Slower, but everything fits—pages, email, courses, helpdesk, calendar. Less glue, fewer zaps.
Speed and stability
I ran a Black Friday promo on both in different years.
- ClickFunnels: One countdown script went wild and slowed mobile. I turned it off mid-campaign and the page snapped back. Sales recovered.
- Kartra: Traffic spike was fine, but the editor had a five-second delay while saving changes during peak time. Front-end for shoppers stayed stable.
Money talk (what I actually felt on my bill)
With ClickFunnels, I paid more for the builder and used extra tools for email and video. With Kartra, I paid one bill that covered most of my stack. When my contact list grew, Kartra’s plan jumped faster. With ClickFunnels, the jump came when I needed the higher features (like the full affiliate center). So costs evened out for me over a few months.
Support and help
- ClickFunnels: Chat was fast during U.S. hours. The Facebook group threw quick answers too, though hit or miss.
- Kartra: Tickets were steady and clear. Not fast-fast, but I got human replies that fixed my issue.
For readers who want another layer of nitty-gritty comparisons—across pricing tiers, feature roll-outs, and load speeds—I keep a living spreadsheet over at WebsiteBuilderTools that you can browse before making the leap. For a blow-by-blow narrative—including the features that surprised me, screenshots, and updated performance numbers—you can check out my full ClickFunnels vs Kartra deep-dive anytime.
Little things I loved
- ClickFunnels: A/B tests were brain-dead simple. Order bumps looked sharp. Cloning funnels for client work saved me hours.
- Kartra: The helpdesk + membership combo cut chaos. I also liked the video call-to-action pop-ups at the 4:10 mark.
Odd contradictions (that still make sense)
ClickFunnels felt faster to build, yet sometimes loaded slower for visitors if I stacked on scripts. Kartra felt slower to build, yet the visitor side stayed smooth, even when I piled on tags and video triggers. Funny how that works.
Who should pick what
- Pick ClickFunnels if: You move fast, love split tests, and live on upsells and order bumps. You’re cool pairing it with a strong email tool like ConvertKit or ActiveCampaign.
- Pick Kartra if: You want one home for pages, email, membership, video, calendar, and support. Your brain likes tidy systems more than heavy design tricks.
Still on the fence and wondering how ClickFunnels stacks up against a classic WordPress setup? I ran both side by side and summed up the wins, fails, and final numbers in this ClickFunnels vs WordPress case study.
My current stack (today, not forever)
I run ClickFunnels for quick sales pages and limited-time offers. I pair it with ConvertKit for email. For bigger course launches with replays, tags, and a helpdesk, I use Kartra. Two tools. Fewer headaches than you’d think.
Tiny setup recipes you can steal