Klaviyo vs Mautic: when each fits and what the decision turns on
A store team facing a Klaviyo renewal, a change to how Klaviyo bills by active profiles, or a data residency requirement usually needs one answer: can the customer data, consent records and store events stay in systems the organization controls without slowing marketing down? Klaviyo fits best when the marketing team wants e-commerce data and flows that work out of the box and no hosting work at all. Its strength is that store signals, product catalog data and prebuilt flow templates are native to the product, so a small team can launch abandoned cart, welcome and post-purchase sequences without building the plumbing first. The trade-off is that the data sits in a hosted service billed on the number of active profiles.
Self-hosted Mautic fits when the data must stay in the organization's own database, when the team can run PHP, a web server and cron jobs, and when the store integration is planned rather than assumed. Mautic is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 3 or any later version, and it is free to self-host, so software cost does not scale with profile count. The costs move to infrastructure, to the engineers or partner who run the stack, and to the store connector work. The project states that Mautic should not run on shared hosting and recommends a VPS or dedicated server. Mautic also depends on cron jobs for segment and campaign updates, so someone must own that schedule and its monitoring from day one.
The decision turns on three things. First, store integration effort: confirm which order, refund, product and event signals you need in Mautic, how they will arrive (API, webhook or import), and who maintains that connector after launch. Second, the SMS plan: Mautic campaigns can reach SMS through a provider such as Twilio, so confirm the carrier registration, sender IDs and opt-out handling for each market you serve. Third, cost as profiles grow: model the hosted subscription against the infrastructure, support and retainer costs of Mautic at your expected profile count, and ask any quote to state what it includes and what recurs each year.
Which option fits which store scenario
This table matches common store situations to the option that usually fits better, Klaviyo or self-hosted Mautic. Read each row as a condition: the advantage only matters when the stated condition is true for your store. The main takeaway is that Mautic suits teams that want data control and can staff the integration work, while Klaviyo suits stores that want e-commerce features working out of the box.
| Scenario | Better fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Small list and a non-technical marketing team | Klaviyo | Store-native flows, templates and Shopify-style setup need little engineering. Mautic's campaign builder is capable but needs hosting, cron jobs and an integration plan first. |
| Regulated retailer that must hold customer data in its own database | Mautic | Mautic is GPL-3.0 licensed and can be installed on your own database, so contacts and consent records stay under your control. Confirm your data residency rules with your compliance team. |
| Large profile base where profile-based pricing is the main concern | Mautic | Self-hosted software has no per-profile subscription, so cost shifts to hosting, database and staff time. Ask any Mautic partner for a quote built from your own profile counts and infrastructure. |
| In-house PHP and DevOps capability | Mautic | Mautic is written in PHP on Symfony and needs cron jobs, a messenger consumer and a supported PHP version. Teams with those skills can run and extend it without a vendor dependency. |
| Heavy reliance on Shopify-style event flows and built-in store data | Klaviyo | Klaviyo collects e-commerce events and product data natively. With Mautic you must design the event pipeline, store connector and product feed yourself before flows behave the same way. |
| Need for SMS through Twilio on a self-managed stack | Mautic | Mautic can send SMS through a provider you contract directly, which keeps message logs in your environment. Confirm the Twilio integration and carrier compliance steps before committing. |
What you get from each option, by team type
A marketing-led team mostly cares about flows, segments, forms and sends being usable without help from developers. Klaviyo gives this team a mature hosted interface built around store data, with the operating burden handled by the vendor. Self-hosted Mautic gives the same team a capable campaign builder, but the day-to-day experience depends on how well the platform is configured and how reliably background jobs run.
- Klaviyo: Ecommerce-oriented flows and segments are available without infrastructure work, and the vendor handles upgrades and uptime.
- Klaviyo cost exposure: Pricing follows active profiles, so list growth changes the bill without any change in how the team works.
- Mautic: Campaigns, segments, forms and landing pages are built in the same tool, and the team owns the contact database and its history.
- Mautic dependencies: Segment updates, campaign triggers and broadcasts depend on cron jobs and queue consumers, so marketers need someone who can confirm those jobs ran.
- Mautic store integration: Store events such as orders and carts are not built in, so the team should ask whether an engineering partner will feed them in.
Before committing, confirm with the team which Klaviyo flows and SMS sends must be reproduced, and test them in a non-production Mautic instance.
An engineering-led team usually wants control over hosting, data flows and integrations with the storefront, and is willing to run software to get it. Klaviyo asks this team to accept an external data processor and to build against its APIs and integrations, while removing server maintenance. Self-hosted Mautic asks the team to operate PHP, a relational database, web servers and scheduled jobs, in exchange for full access to the code and the data.
- Klaviyo: Integration with the store is handled through the vendor's connectors, and the team does not patch or scale the platform.
- Mautic runtime: The team runs PHP on the Symfony framework, a supported MySQL or MariaDB database, and a web server on a VPS or dedicated server, not shared hosting.
- Mautic jobs: Cron schedules for segments and campaigns need staggering, and a messenger consumer must run when emails are queued.
- Mautic code: The software is GPL-3.0 licensed, so the team can read, patch and fork it under that license.
- Upgrade path: Monthly patch releases, minor releases every three months and major releases every two years mean a standing upgrade routine.
Ask the team to check which Mautic release line it will run and its security support end date in the project's release table before planning the build.
A compliance or security owner cares about where personal data sits, who can access it, how consent is recorded and how the organization can prove all of that. Klaviyo places contact data and processing with a third-party provider under its terms, which shifts hosting controls to the vendor but leaves the organization dependent on vendor evidence. Self-hosted Mautic keeps data in the organization's database and makes the organization responsible for the controls around it.
- Data location: Mautic stores contacts in a database the organization controls, which simplifies residency and deletion questions.
- Access control: The owner must define administrator roles, log retention, backup encryption and network exposure for the Mautic instance.
- Vendor evidence: With Klaviyo, the owner relies on the vendor's documentation and contract terms for assurance.
- Assessment support: DeployOpen prepares systems, controls and evidence for compliance assessments, but independent auditors issue any audit reports.
- Licensing: The GPL-3.0 license permits internal review of the code, which helps supply chain questions about the marketing stack.
Ask for the vendor's current data processing terms and sub-processor list for Klaviyo, and map the Mautic controls to the organization's own framework before any decision.
A budget owner sees the subscription as a recurring line that grows with the contact list, and sees a self-hosted platform as a mix of labor, infrastructure and occasional services. Klaviyo converts most of the cost into a predictable subscription that scales with profiles and needs little internal staffing. Self-hosted Mautic moves cost into hosting, operations time and implementation, and that cost is largely one-time for the build and recurring for running it.
- Klaviyo recurring cost: The subscription recurs and rises with active profiles, so the forecast should model list growth.
- Mautic software cost: The software itself has no paid edition from the project, so the cost is infrastructure, operations and implementation.
- Mautic recurring cost: Hosting, backups, monitoring, upgrades and staff time recur every year.
- Mautic one-time cost: Migration of contacts, consent, forms and flows is usually a project with a fixed scope.
- Quote requests: Ask any implementation partner for a written scope covering build, migration, testing, backup and support, and compare that against the current Klaviyo invoice.
Before comparing totals, confirm with the marketing team which Klaviyo features they actually use, since unused features rarely justify the difference.
Klaviyo and Mautic capabilities side by side
This table compares how Klaviyo and self-hosted Mautic handle the capabilities store teams rely on most, from segmentation and flows to SMS and data import. Where Mautic support is not confirmed by the facts available here, the cell tells you what to verify in the version you run. Use it as a checklist for a proof of concept, not as a final feature inventory.
| Capability | Klaviyo | Open-source Mautic |
|---|---|---|
| Segmentation | Built-in segments on profile and e-commerce data, managed in the hosted interface | Contact segments are maintained by cron jobs. Confirm the rule types and performance at your profile volume in your version |
| Flows versus Mautic campaigns | Event-triggered flows, hosted and managed by Klaviyo | Campaigns with triggers run through cron. Confirm that your store events can start a campaign without custom development |
| SMS through Twilio | Native SMS channel with carrier and number management in the hosted product | Not confirmed by the facts here. Ask your implementation partner or check the SMS plugin status for your version and your Twilio account |
| Forms and landing pages | Signup forms and hosted pages in the Klaviyo interface | Built-in form and landing page builder. Confirm the consent capture and double opt-in options you need in your version |
| E-commerce data capture | Store integrations capture orders, carts and product events automatically | Not included as a store connector in the facts here. Plan an integration through the API or a store plugin and confirm it |
| Contact import and export | CSV import and export of profiles and lists from the hosted interface | CSV import with automatic column mapping. Large files run in batches of 100 rows through the mautic:import command |
| Integrations with CRM | Connectors to common store and CRM tools maintained by Klaviyo | Documented Salesforce and HubSpot plugins. Confirm the sync direction and field mapping for your CRM edition |
| Licensing | Proprietary hosted service billed by active profiles | GPL-3.0 licensed software, free to self-host. Hosting, email delivery and SMS carriers are separate costs |
Where your store data sits and who can reach it
Moving from Klaviyo to Mautic changes who operates the platform, where profiles and consent records live, and who holds the keys. The cards below set out the decisions that follow from that change and the checks to run before you commit.
Data location and residency
Klaviyo stores your profiles, events and message history in its hosted environment, and you rely on its documented data location terms. With self-hosted Mautic, the database holding contacts, consent, campaign history and tracking data sits wherever you deploy it, such as your own cloud account, a data center or an air-gapped network. Confirm which regions hold backups and replicas, and whether your store's order and payment data will also sit in that location, since those are outside Mautic.
Hosting model options
There are three ways to run Mautic: a hosted Klaviyo account, a self-hosted Mautic instance on a VPS or dedicated server you control, or managed Mautic hosting offered by a third party. The Mautic project states that it should not be installed on shared hosting, so budget for a VPS or dedicated server from the start. Managed Mautic hosting moves operations to a provider, so ask it for the same data location, backup and access answers you would need from your own team.
Identity and administrator access
Klaviyo manages user roles and access inside its own account. In Mautic, you control administrator accounts, user roles and the authentication method on your server, so define who can export contacts, edit segments, change consent fields and reach the database before go-live. Restrict server SSH access, keep the database off the public internet, and remove accounts for departed staff. Confirm how the Mautic version you deploy handles single sign-on and multi-factor authentication, because that depends on the release and configuration.
Audit trails and change history
Your logs for profile changes, segment edits, campaign launches and consent updates become your responsibility. Mautic records activity in its own database and on your web and cron servers, so you must decide how long those logs are kept, where they are shipped and who can read them. Klaviyo's event and message history is not carried over in a standard profile export, so plan how you will keep records of past sends and opt-outs before you cancel. Verify that the audit data you need is retained in your chosen setup.
Cron jobs and operational dependencies
Mautic does not process segments, campaigns and triggers on its own. It relies on cron jobs for segment updates, campaign updates and campaign triggers, which should be staggered, plus a broadcasts command for segment emails and a messenger consumer when email is queued. If these jobs stop, flows silently stop sending, so monitor them and document who responds. Klaviyo carries this operational load for you, so treat this as a new control to own rather than a detail.
Compliance evidence and independent attestation
DeployOpen can plan and document the controls for access, hosting, backups and change management, and prepare the evidence those controls produce. DeployOpen does not issue audit reports, attestations or certifications. Independent auditors and certification bodies make those determinations, so agree the assessment scope and the evidence they expect with them before implementation. Ask Klaviyo for its own current compliance documentation, and ask any managed Mautic provider for its evidence, since neither replaces your own assessment.
How the cost of each option changes as profiles grow
The core cost question is how each side scales. Klaviyo's subscription is priced by active profiles, so the bill rises as the count of profiles it treats as active grows. Before comparing, get the current pricing and the vendor's written definition of an active profile, including how profiles are counted across lists and segments and whether SMS subscribers are included. Ask whether overage rules, minimum tiers and annual commitments apply, because those terms change the real cost at a given size more than the headline tier does.
Mautic's software has no license fee, since it is GPL-3.0 and the project offers the download free of charge. Its costs are instead a set of components you pay for directly: a VPS or dedicated server (Mautic's requirements page advises against shared hosting), a database, backups, monitoring, email sending infrastructure, and staff time for setup, the Shopify or store integration, and upgrades. Setup and integration are largely one-time costs. Operations, hosting capacity, mail delivery and SMS are recurring. Hosting and database costs rise with contact count and send volume, and the cron jobs for segment updates, campaign triggers and broadcasts need more headroom as lists grow. Mautic's release cadence of monthly patches, quarterly minor releases and two-year majors means upgrade effort recurs, and you should confirm which version your support window covers, such as the security support dates in the Mautic releases page.
SMS is the cost line most likely to surprise on both sides. With Klaviyo, SMS is generally billed in addition to the profile subscription, so ask for the SMS rate, the credit or message model and any carrier surcharges in writing. With Mautic, SMS runs through a provider you contract with directly, typically Twilio in this migration, so the per-message fees and any short-code or number rental fees are yours to model. Ask your provider for their volume tiers and compare them against your monthly send counts. Use one quote template for both sides: profile count at 12 and 36 months, sends per month, SMS per month, number of integrations, and the staff or partner hours for setup, upgrades and support. Request an itemized quote from DeployOpen for setup, hardening and support, based on the written scope rather than a list price.
Moving from a Klaviyo setup to Mautic at a high level
This sequence turns a Klaviyo account into a self-hosted Mautic instance with the profiles, consent records, sending domains and store connections your team needs before it cancels the old service. It is an outline, and the dedicated migration and export pages carry the detail for each phase.
Confirm scope and the data to keep
Your marketing lead and the person who owns store integrations agree which lists, segments, flows, forms and SMS numbers must survive the move, and which can be retired. Write this down as a short inventory, because it sets the export scope and tells you what must be rebuilt by hand. Done means a signed-off list that names each asset and its owner, and a decision on whether historical event and message data needs to be archived somewhere outside Mautic.
Export profiles and consent records from Klaviyo
Export list and segment CSVs from Klaviyo, including the consent fields that show when and how each person opted in to email and SMS. Keep the exported files in a restricted location on your own systems, since they contain personal data. Confirm that column names and consent statuses are preserved in the files before you rely on them. Done means a complete set of files, checked against the counts in the inventory, with consent status captured for every record you plan to import. The export limits and column details are covered on the Klaviyo export page.
Record what cannot be exported
Identify the data that Klaviyo's standard exports do not carry over, such as detailed event history and past message records. Decide whether you need that history for reporting, suppression logic or audit, and if so, store a copy in your warehouse or archive before cancelling. Confirm each gap with Klaviyo's current documentation, since export options can change. Done means a written list of data that will not move, with an owner and a decision for each item.
Stand up Mautic on a VPS or dedicated server
Deploy Mautic on a VPS or dedicated server, not shared hosting, following the project's requirements for PHP, the database and the web server. Configure the cron jobs for segment updates, campaign updates and campaign triggers, staggered as the documentation advises, and run the broadcasts command and a messenger consumer for queued email. Your platform team does this work, and it is complete when a test contact moves through a test campaign on schedule and the cron logs show no failures.
Import contacts and rebuild segments and forms
Import the profile files with the mautic:import console command run in the background, so large files process in batches rather than through the interface. Map columns to Mautic fields, then recreate segments, campaigns, forms and landing pages from your inventory. Check imported counts and consent flags against the Klaviyo export before anyone sends. Done means the contact totals match, suppressed contacts stay suppressed, and each rebuilt segment returns the expected audience size on a sample check.
Reconnect store data and port SMS numbers
Reconnect your storefront, order and product feeds to Mautic through your integration layer, since Klaviyo's store connection does not move with the contacts. In parallel, start the SMS number port or re-registration with your messaging provider, because carrier timelines depend on the provider and cannot be set by this plan. Confirm with the provider what they need from you, including any sender registration. Done means test order and browse events reach the right contact records and the SMS path has a confirmed provider route.
Run parallel sending and verify results
Send the same messages from both platforms to small, controlled audiences for a period you set with your team, and compare deliverability, click data, unsubscribe handling and suppression behavior. Investigate any gap before it reaches the full list. Done means the two systems agree on the audience, the suppression outcome and the message rendering for every flow you plan to keep.
Cut over and cancel the old service
Move your sending domain and production flows to Mautic, pause Klaviyo sends, and keep the account readable until your archive and exports are verified. Cancel only after the data you chose to keep is stored and the SMS route is live. Done means a dated cutover record, a verified archive, and written confirmation that Klaviyo sending has stopped and the subscription is closed.
Questions buyers ask before choosing Mautic over Klaviyo
What does a move from Klaviyo to self-hosted Mautic cost, and what drives it?
The cost is mostly labor and infrastructure, not licenses, because the Mautic software itself is free under GPL-3.0. Costs fall into a few groups: a server for the application and database, staff or a partner to install and configure it, the work to rebuild flows, forms and segments, the integration of store data, SMS provider charges through Twilio, and ongoing operations. Setup costs are one-time, while hosting, patching, backups and monitoring recur. Your profile count, number of sends, and how many store events you need to replay all push effort up. Ask any implementation partner for a written scope that lists each of these components separately so you can compare it against your current Klaviyo invoice.
How long does it take to move from Klaviyo to Mautic?
The timeline depends on the scope you agree, not on a standard duration, so confirm it in writing before work starts. The main drivers are how many flows, forms and segments need rebuilding, how cleanly your profile and consent data exports, whether store and order data must be reconnected, and how many SMS numbers need porting. Mautic also needs its server, cron jobs and message queue running reliably before any campaign can be tested, so infrastructure readiness often sets the pace. Ask for a plan that sequences parallel tracks and names the cutover checks.
What does our internal team need to provide during the migration?
Your team needs to supply decisions and access rather than most of the build effort. Expect to name owners for consent and suppression rules, sign off on segment logic and message content, provide access to the Klaviyo account and store platform, and approve the hosting environment and security controls. Engineering staff will need to support server provisioning, database backups, and the cron and messenger processes Mautic relies on. Marketing staff should plan time to review rebuilt flows and test forms before launch.
Can our own team migrate from Klaviyo to Mautic without outside help?
A capable team can do it without outside help if it has someone comfortable running a PHP application on Linux, managing a MySQL or MariaDB database and maintaining scheduled jobs. The harder parts are usually reconnecting store data, rebuilding event-driven logic and validating consent carry-over, not the installation itself. Mautic's documentation covers CSV import with automatic field mapping and a console import command for large files, which helps with profiles. Be realistic about ongoing ownership: someone must keep the platform patched and monitored after cutover.
How do Mautic's release cadence and support windows affect planning?
Mautic publishes monthly patch releases, minor releases every three months and major releases every two years, so your upgrade calendar must be planned rather than ad hoc. Mautic 7.2 (Absolunto) has active and security support until 30 September 2026, and Mautic 7.3 is planned as the long-term support release with security support through 31 December 2027. Mautic 6.0 (Tabit) and 5.2 (Capella) have earlier end dates, so pick the version you install against these windows. Confirm current dates on the Mautic releases page before you commit to a version.
How does SMS work in Mautic compared with Klaviyo, and what does Twilio add?
Mautic does not replace Klaviyo's SMS service on its own, so SMS requires a messaging provider connected to the platform, and Twilio is a common choice. Your team must set up the sender numbers, carry over opt-in records for each subscriber, and confirm which countries and carrier rules apply to your messages. Twilio charges are separate from any Mautic cost and vary by destination and message type, so request current rates directly from Twilio. Plan to port or re-register numbers early, since that step often depends on the carrier.
What should we ask an implementation partner for in a written scope?
Ask for a fixed scope that lists each deliverable and what is out of scope. It should cover the hosting architecture and who operates it, the data migration method and what cannot be exported such as event and message history, the rebuilt flows and forms with a test plan, the Twilio and store integrations, backup and restore testing, handover documentation, and post-launch support terms. Ask how acceptance is decided and which items require your sign-off. DeployOpen plans, implements, integrates, hardens, backs up, upgrades and documents self-hosted platforms in your own infrastructure, and most engagements are fixed-scope, with the scope agreed in writing before work starts.
How DeployOpen helps evaluate, implement or migrate
DeployOpen plans, implements, integrates and documents self-hosted Mautic inside your own cloud account, data center or air-gapped network. We start with a written scope that matches your store data, consent rules and send volumes, so the Klaviyo comparison becomes a concrete build plan rather than a general evaluation.
How we scope
- Engagements are fixed-scope, with scope, deliverables and timelines agreed in writing before work starts.
- We map which Klaviyo flows, segments, forms and SMS sends your store depends on, and which need rebuilding in Mautic campaigns.
- We confirm the e-commerce event sources, such as order and cart data, that must feed Mautic from your store platform.
How we build
- We install Mautic on a VPS or dedicated server in your environment, not on shared hosting, following the project requirements.
- We configure the cron jobs for segment updates, campaign triggers and broadcasts, staggered as the Mautic documentation advises.
- We connect SMS through your Twilio account and set up forms, landing pages and consent capture under your review.
How we hand over
- You receive documentation of the architecture, configuration, cron schedule, integrations and rebuilt flows and segments.
- We test imports, sends and consent handling against an agreed checklist, and record the results for your own review.
- Runbooks cover backups, PHP and database upgrades, and the Mautic release cadence so your team can maintain the platform.
How we support
- Ongoing support, upgrades and continuous testing are available as a retainer after handover.
- A retainer can cover Mautic version upgrades as supported releases change, with timing agreed against your change windows.
- Ask any quote to itemize setup, integration, SMS configuration and retainer work separately so you can compare the options.
