Shopify vs Klaviyo — discover key features, pricing, and best-use cases for e-commerce brands. Learn which platform aligns with your growth goals in this in-depth comparison.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: A Detailed Comparison
After comparing Klaviyo and Shopify, we found each platform excels in different areas, catering to specific business needs:
Klaviyo—Best for e-commerce brands (small to midmarket) that want powerful email and SMS marketing automation with deep segmentation. Klaviyo’s core strength is helping you send targeted email and text campaigns based on customer behavior and ecommerce data. However, it focuses mainly on communication channels (email, SMS, some push) and lacks built-in loyalty programs or on-site personalization features. As you grow, you might need to add other tools (for loyalty, reviews, etc.) to build a full marketing stack.
Shopify—Best for entrepreneurs and growing brands who want basic marketing tools integrated into their online store. Shopify is first and foremost an e-commerce platform, and it covers the basics every business needs. For everything else, there’s apps. It offers simple email automation and lets you run ad campaigns, but has no native loyalty or advanced personalization capabilities. You’ll likely rely on third-party apps for things like pop-ups, SMS marketing, referrals, or loyalty. This is fine when you’re small, but as you scale, juggling many apps can silo customer data and make it harder to deliver a unified experience.
Neither Klaviyo nor Shopify alone provides true omnichannel marketing orchestration with unified customer data across all touchpoints. They also offer only standard support (with Shopify’s general support being good, but not marketing-specific guidance, and Klaviyo reserving strategic help for higher tiers). Scaling midmarket brands often lack the in-house resources to manage a patchwork of tools for personalization, loyalty, email, SMS, ads, etc.
Maestra—Best for midmarket e-commerce brands with an established marketing team and steady traffic, looking for a unified marketing platform to drive growth through hyper-personalized promotions across all channels. Maestra is the most unified platform for e-commerce marketing, personalizing experiences across email, SMS, websites, apps, offline stores, and paid media. Instead of running separate campaigns in different tools, it enables omnichannel flows that tie every channel together. Key features include:
- Real-time Customer Data Platform (CDP)
- Email and SMS marketing
- Real-time site personalization (content and offers tailored per visitor)
- Product recommendations and merchandising
- Promotions, referrals, and loyalty programs (points & VIP tiers)
- Mobile and web push notifications
- Paid media audience optimization
With white-glove support and a dedicated Customer Success Manager, Maestra truly handles it all. It’s ideal for midmarket companies that want to personalize marketing across all channels, tailor promotions to each customer, and scale their marketing from a single cohesive platform.
If that sounds like what you need, book a demo with our team and see how Maestra can take your marketing to the next level!
In this in-depth comparison, we’ll evaluate Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra across key areas and present our verdict on which platform is the best fit for midmarket e-commerce and retail brands.
Let’s dive in.
Content:
Comparison Summary: Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra
Below is a quick overview of how Klaviyo, Shopify, and Maestra compare on key features, with a 5-star rating for each. We’ll explain each category in detail in the sections that follow.
Feature
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
Omnichannel Flows
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Email & SMS flows with a visual builder; limited to those channels (no native site or loyalty triggers).
Email & SMS flows with a visual builder; limited to those channels (no native site or loyalty triggers).
⭐⭐
Basic automations (welcome, cart recovery) for email; minimal multi-channel integration (SMS/push require external apps).
Basic automations (welcome, cart recovery) for email; minimal multi-channel integration (SMS/push require external apps).
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Unified flows across email, SMS, site, push, in-app, and ads via one platform—true omnichannel journey orchestration.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Unified flows across email, SMS, site, push, in-app, and ads via one platform—true omnichannel journey orchestration.
Customer Data & Segmentation
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Strong segmentation using ecommerce data and behaviors; near real-time updates; not a full CDP (data mostly from connected sources).
Strong segmentation using ecommerce data and behaviors; near real-time updates; not a full CDP (data mostly from connected sources).
⭐⭐
Basic customer segmentation (filter by tags, purchase history, etc.) in admin; limited data depth and no single customer view across all channels.
Basic customer segmentation (filter by tags, purchase history, etc.) in admin; limited data depth and no single customer view across all channels.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Real-time CDP unifying data from online/offline sources into one profile. Deep segmentation uses all behaviors for precise targeting.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Real-time CDP unifying data from online/offline sources into one profile. Deep segmentation uses all behaviors for precise targeting.
Site Personalization
⭐⭐
No built-in on-site content personalization—limited to pop-up forms or banners via integrations; cannot dynamically change site based on user data.
No built-in on-site content personalization—limited to pop-up forms or banners via integrations; cannot dynamically change site based on user data.
⭐
No native site personalization; you’d need apps or custom code for things like personalized banners or content. Shopify “covers the basics” and relies on apps for advanced features.
No native site personalization; you’d need apps or custom code for things like personalized banners or content. Shopify “covers the basics” and relies on apps for advanced features.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
AI-powered on-site personalization with in-session segmentation. Dynamic website content (banners, offers, product displays) that adapts to each visitor in real time.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
AI-powered on-site personalization with in-session segmentation. Dynamic website content (banners, offers, product displays) that adapts to each visitor in real time.
Email Marketing
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Robust email marketing platform with templates, A/B testing, and deliverability tools. A leading choice for automated emails (welcome series, cart recovery, etc.).
Robust email marketing platform with templates, A/B testing, and deliverability tools. A leading choice for automated emails (welcome series, cart recovery, etc.).
⭐⭐⭐
Built-in Shopify Email for simple campaigns and automations. Up to 10k emails/month free. Drag-and-drop editor and some templates, but fewer advanced features (no built-in A/B testing or complex flows).
Built-in Shopify Email for simple campaigns and automations. Up to 10k emails/month free. Drag-and-drop editor and some templates, but fewer advanced features (no built-in A/B testing or complex flows).
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Advanced email composer with AMP support and dynamic content blocks. Every email is hyper-personalized using data from the built-in CDP. Granular control over design and send-time optimization for high deliverability.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Advanced email composer with AMP support and dynamic content blocks. Every email is hyper-personalized using data from the built-in CDP. Granular control over design and send-time optimization for high deliverability.
SMS Marketing
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Integrated SMS marketing with automation and two-way messaging (in supported regions). Requires separate SMS credits; effective for abandoned cart texts, promo alerts, etc.
Integrated SMS marketing with automation and two-way messaging (in supported regions). Requires separate SMS credits; effective for abandoned cart texts, promo alerts, etc.
⭐
No native SMS marketing tool. Merchants must use a third-party SMS app (e.g. Postscript or Attentive). Basic text notifications exist only for order status updates.
No native SMS marketing tool. Merchants must use a third-party SMS app (e.g. Postscript or Attentive). Basic text notifications exist only for order status updates.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fully integrated SMS in the omnichannel flow. Send bulk or automated texts as part of multi-channel campaigns. Supports high-speed sending, A/B testing, link tracking, and cross-device customer recognition.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fully integrated SMS in the omnichannel flow. Send bulk or automated texts as part of multi-channel campaigns. Supports high-speed sending, A/B testing, link tracking, and cross-device customer recognition.
Product Recommendations (Website & Email)
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rules-based product recommendations in emails (e.g. “customers also bought”) that feel hand-picked. No native on-site recommendation engine (requires app or custom code on site).
Rules-based product recommendations in emails (e.g. “customers also bought”) that feel hand-picked. No native on-site recommendation engine (requires app or custom code on site).
⭐⭐⭐
Basic on-site product recommendations. Shopify can display “Related products” on product pages using its built-in algorithm, but it’s not personalized per individual. No email recommendation feature without an app.
Basic on-site product recommendations. Shopify can display “Related products” on product pages using its built-in algorithm, but it’s not personalized per individual. No email recommendation feature without an app.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
AI-driven product recommendations across website and email. Predicts best products for each customer based on real-time behavior and attributes. Offers cross-sell, upsell, and 14 pre-built AI algorithms for tailored suggestions. Rules can be manually fine-tuned as well.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
AI-driven product recommendations across website and email. Predicts best products for each customer based on real-time behavior and attributes. Offers cross-sell, upsell, and 14 pre-built AI algorithms for tailored suggestions. Rules can be manually fine-tuned as well.
Promotions & Referrals
⭐⭐⭐
Can distribute promo codes (unique coupon codes) via email or SMS. No built-in referral tracking program (would need integration with a referral app).
Can distribute promo codes (unique coupon codes) via email or SMS. No built-in referral tracking program (would need integration with a referral app).
⭐⭐⭐
Robust discount engine (Shopify allows % off, BOGO, free shipping codes with conditions). However, no referral program feature native to Shopify—you’d need an app for refer-a-friend incentives.
Robust discount engine (Shopify allows % off, BOGO, free shipping codes with conditions). However, no referral program feature native to Shopify—you’d need an app for refer-a-friend incentives.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Flexible promotion engine to create time-limited offers, conditional discounts by segment, and multi-channel promo campaigns. Can run referral programs out-of-the-box (reward customers for friend referrals with points or coupons). Promotions can be sequenced and personalized across all channels for maximum impact.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Flexible promotion engine to create time-limited offers, conditional discounts by segment, and multi-channel promo campaigns. Can run referral programs out-of-the-box (reward customers for friend referrals with points or coupons). Promotions can be sequenced and personalized across all channels for maximum impact.
Loyalty Programs
⭐
No built-in loyalty points or rewards system. You must integrate a separate loyalty app (like Smile.io) to run loyalty programs.
No built-in loyalty points or rewards system. You must integrate a separate loyalty app (like Smile.io) to run loyalty programs.
⭐
No native loyalty program features in Shopify. Loyalty (points, VIP tiers) requires a third-party app from the Shopify App Store.
No native loyalty program features in Shopify. Loyalty (points, VIP tiers) requires a third-party app from the Shopify App Store.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Integrated loyalty program with points, VIP tiers, and reward redemption. Tracks points in real time across online store and POS. Loyalty data ties into all marketing channels—e.g. send exclusive offers to VIPs automatically.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Integrated loyalty program with points, VIP tiers, and reward redemption. Tracks points in real time across online store and POS. Loyalty data ties into all marketing channels—e.g. send exclusive offers to VIPs automatically.
Mobile & Web Push Notifications
⭐⭐⭐
Mobile push: Klaviyo recently added built-in push notifications.
Web push: Not provided out-of-the-box.
Mobile push: Klaviyo recently added built-in push notifications.
Web push: Not provided out-of-the-box.
⭐
No native push notification capability. To send web push or mobile app push, merchants need an external service (e.g. PushOwl for web push) integrated with Shopify.
No native push notification capability. To send web push or mobile app push, merchants need an external service (e.g. PushOwl for web push) integrated with Shopify.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Built-in web and mobile push notifications. You can trigger personalized push messages based on real-time user behavior across site or app. Supports rich push (images, buttons) and targeting by segment. Campaign performance tracking and A/B testing for push come standard.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Built-in web and mobile push notifications. You can trigger personalized push messages based on real-time user behavior across site or app. Supports rich push (images, buttons) and targeting by segment. Campaign performance tracking and A/B testing for push come standard.
User-Generated Content (UGC)
⭐⭐
No built-in UGC/review management. Klaviyo can send post-purchase review request emails, but it doesn’t host reviews or ratings.
No built-in UGC/review management. Klaviyo can send post-purchase review request emails, but it doesn’t host reviews or ratings.
⭐
No native reviews or UGC platform in Shopify (besides a basic free reviews app). Shopify stores typically install an app to collect/display product reviews.
No native reviews or UGC platform in Shopify (besides a basic free reviews app). Shopify stores typically install an app to collect/display product reviews.
⭐⭐
No native review/UGC collection module. Maestra incentivizes UGC through its loyalty system—e.g. awarding points for submitting reviews or sharing on social.
No native review/UGC collection module. Maestra incentivizes UGC through its loyalty system—e.g. awarding points for submitting reviews or sharing on social.
Ad Optimization
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Integrates with Facebook and Google Ads to sync audiences. You can automatically push Klaviyo segments to Facebook Custom Audiences for retargeting and lookalike campaigns.
Integrates with Facebook and Google Ads to sync audiences. You can automatically push Klaviyo segments to Facebook Custom Audiences for retargeting and lookalike campaigns.
⭐⭐⭐
No direct ad platform integrations beyond basic tracking. Shopify Plus offers Audiences, which allow sharing customer lists for lookalikes, but this is a separate feature and not available to most.
No direct ad platform integrations beyond basic tracking. Shopify Plus offers Audiences, which allow sharing customer lists for lookalikes, but this is a separate feature and not available to most.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Built-in paid media optimization: Maestra can automatically sync high-value customer segments to ad platforms (Facebook, Google, Instagram) and even trigger ad campaigns as part of an omnichannel flow. It continuously updates audiences based on real-time customer data to improve ad targeting and reduce acquisition costs.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Built-in paid media optimization: Maestra can automatically sync high-value customer segments to ad platforms (Facebook, Google, Instagram) and even trigger ad campaigns as part of an omnichannel flow. It continuously updates audiences based on real-time customer data to improve ad targeting and reduce acquisition costs.
Reporting & Attribution
⭐⭐⭐
Detailed email/SMS campaign metrics and revenue attribution for those channels.
Detailed email/SMS campaign metrics and revenue attribution for those channels.
⭐⭐
Dashboards for sales, site traffic, and marketing campaign performance (opens, clicks for Shopify Email, etc.). Shopify’s reports are useful for general store health. But there’s no built-in way to attribute a single sale across multiple channels/touches—you’d need external analytics for that.
Dashboards for sales, site traffic, and marketing campaign performance (opens, clicks for Shopify Email, etc.). Shopify’s reports are useful for general store health. But there’s no built-in way to attribute a single sale across multiple channels/touches—you’d need external analytics for that.
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Unified reporting across all channels and campaigns. Maestra can attribute revenue to entire omnichannel flow sequences (not just a single email or ad) and even measure changes in customer lifetime value due to campaigns. Multiple dashboards track business goals, campaign ROI, and cohort behavior. Advanced analytics include A/B testing with control groups and even an email health monitor comparing your engagement to industry benchmarks.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Unified reporting across all channels and campaigns. Maestra can attribute revenue to entire omnichannel flow sequences (not just a single email or ad) and even measure changes in customer lifetime value due to campaigns. Multiple dashboards track business goals, campaign ROI, and cohort behavior. Advanced analytics include A/B testing with control groups and even an email health monitor comparing your engagement to industry benchmarks.
Customer Support
⭐⭐⭐
Standard support: Klaviyo offers email support to all paying customers and live chat for higher-tier plans. No dedicated success manager unless you’re on an enterprise plan.
Standard support: Klaviyo offers email support to all paying customers and live chat for higher-tier plans. No dedicated success manager unless you’re on an enterprise plan.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
24/7 support for all Shopify plans via live chat, email, and phone. However, their team typically handles platform questions—you won’t get specialized marketing strategy advice. Shopify Plus merchants do get a Merchant Success Manager, but not focused on day-to-day marketing campaigns.)
24/7 support for all Shopify plans via live chat, email, and phone. However, their team typically handles platform questions—you won’t get specialized marketing strategy advice. Shopify Plus merchants do get a Merchant Success Manager, but not focused on day-to-day marketing campaigns.)
🏆
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
End-to-end white-glove support. Every Maestra client gets a dedicated Customer Success Manager who assists with onboarding, strategy, migration, and ongoing optimization. Support response is very fast (under 5 minutes via chat).
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
End-to-end white-glove support. Every Maestra client gets a dedicated Customer Success Manager who assists with onboarding, strategy, migration, and ongoing optimization. Support response is very fast (under 5 minutes via chat).
Integration Capabilities
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
350 pre-built integrations with other systems (Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Facebook Ads, Google Ads, reviews apps, etc.). Klaviyo easily plugs into most e-commerce tech stacks, centralizing data from various tools. Open APIs allow custom integrations if needed.
350 pre-built integrations with other systems (Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, Facebook Ads, Google Ads, reviews apps, etc.). Klaviyo easily plugs into most e-commerce tech stacks, centralizing data from various tools. Open APIs allow custom integrations if needed.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Extensive app ecosystem. Shopify has over 8,000 apps in its App Store for extending functionality—from email pop-ups to loyalty to analytics. Virtually any tool can connect to Shopify via an app or API. However, using many separate apps can silo customer data (each app holds its own data). Native data sharing between apps is limited without a unifying layer.
Extensive app ecosystem. Shopify has over 8,000 apps in its App Store for extending functionality—from email pop-ups to loyalty to analytics. Virtually any tool can connect to Shopify via an app or API. However, using many separate apps can silo customer data (each app holds its own data). Native data sharing between apps is limited without a unifying layer.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Ready-to-use integrations with major e-commerce and marketing solutions (ESP, ad networks, analytics, etc.). Additionally, Maestra’s team will build custom integrations on request via its API and webhooks. The platform monitors integration health and can troubleshoot any data sync issues proactively.
Ready-to-use integrations with major e-commerce and marketing solutions (ESP, ad networks, analytics, etc.). Additionally, Maestra’s team will build custom integrations on request via its API and webhooks. The platform monitors integration health and can troubleshoot any data sync issues proactively.
Educational Resources
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Extensive self-serve resources. Klaviyo offers a rich knowledge base, the Klaviyo Academy courses, community forums, and live training webinars. There’s also a wealth of third-party tutorials, given Klaviyo’s large user base. This makes it easier to learn and troubleshoot on your own.
Extensive self-serve resources. Klaviyo offers a rich knowledge base, the Klaviyo Academy courses, community forums, and live training webinars. There’s also a wealth of third-party tutorials, given Klaviyo’s large user base. This makes it easier to learn and troubleshoot on your own.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Massive documentation and community. Shopify provides an enormous help center, how-to guides, Shopify Learn courses, and an active community forum. They also produce blogs and webinars on e-commerce marketing. The content is generally geared to running a store (with marketing as a subset), but it’s very beginner-friendly and comprehensive.
Massive documentation and community. Shopify provides an enormous help center, how-to guides, Shopify Learn courses, and an active community forum. They also produce blogs and webinars on e-commerce marketing. The content is generally geared to running a store (with marketing as a subset), but it’s very beginner-friendly and comprehensive.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Growing library of resources. Maestra offers a marketing blog, how-to guides, and handy tools (e.g. A/B test calculator, UTM builder) to help educate users. Maestra’s dedicated CSM acts as a personal educator for your team—providing training, best practices, and answers on demand, effectively filling any gaps in written resources.
Growing library of resources. Maestra offers a marketing blog, how-to guides, and handy tools (e.g. A/B test calculator, UTM builder) to help educate users. Maestra’s dedicated CSM acts as a personal educator for your team—providing training, best practices, and answers on demand, effectively filling any gaps in written resources.
Pricing
💲💲💲
Subscription based on number of contacts for email (and usage for SMS). Starts free for up to 250 contacts, then scales with your list size. For example, ~10,000 contacts is about $150/month, and 50,000 contacts about $700/month. SMS is pay-as-you-go ($0.01 per message in the US). Klaviyo can become pricey as you scale (especially with a large email list and SMS usage), but it provides powerful capabilities for the cost.
Subscription based on number of contacts for email (and usage for SMS). Starts free for up to 250 contacts, then scales with your list size. For example, ~10,000 contacts is about $150/month, and 50,000 contacts about $700/month. SMS is pay-as-you-go ($0.01 per message in the US). Klaviyo can become pricey as you scale (especially with a large email list and SMS usage), but it provides powerful capabilities for the cost.
💲💲💲
Included with Shopify—there’s no extra charge for basic marketing features on Shopify (aside from your Shopify plan fee). Shopify Email allows 10,000 emails/month for free, with a low cost ($1 per 1,000 emails) beyond that. This makes Shopify’s built-in marketing very cost-effective for small volumes. However, keep in mind the hidden costs: to match the functionality of Klaviyo or Maestra, you’ll likely pay for multiple apps (email, SMS, loyalty, etc.), each with its own fees. Those can add up as you install more apps.
Included with Shopify—there’s no extra charge for basic marketing features on Shopify (aside from your Shopify plan fee). Shopify Email allows 10,000 emails/month for free, with a low cost ($1 per 1,000 emails) beyond that. This makes Shopify’s built-in marketing very cost-effective for small volumes. However, keep in mind the hidden costs: to match the functionality of Klaviyo or Maestra, you’ll likely pay for multiple apps (email, SMS, loyalty, etc.), each with its own fees. Those can add up as you install more apps.
💲💲💲
Subscription based on customer profiles, starting at $1,990/month for up to 80k customers. While the base price is higher, it includes all major features (no add-on fees for email sends) and the white-glove support service. SMS messages are charged at a low rate (~$0.0045 each). As your database grows, the cost per customer is often lower than paying for several separate tools. Plus, consolidating tools can save on operational overhead.
Subscription based on customer profiles, starting at $1,990/month for up to 80k customers. While the base price is higher, it includes all major features (no add-on fees for email sends) and the white-glove support service. SMS messages are charged at a low rate (~$0.0045 each). As your database grows, the cost per customer is often lower than paying for several separate tools. Plus, consolidating tools can save on operational overhead.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Omnichannel Flows
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
⭐⭐⭐⭐
⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Maestra’s unified platform offers true omnichannel marketing automation with advanced segmentation and personalization options.
With Maestra, you don’t manage your loyalty program, emails, texts, push notifications, and pop-ups as separate campaigns. Instead, you create seamless, omnichannel flows that span all your channels. These automated workflows are interconnected and responsive to real-time customer behavior, ensuring consistent messaging across every touchpoint. All channels work together to tell the same story. And the scale of automations you can build is unmatched—many companies run 30 to 90 simultaneous automation flows in Maestra with no performance degradation.
Maestra’s omnichannel flow builder
In contrast, Klaviyo offers powerful automation but within a more limited scope. Klaviyo has an excellent visual flow builder for email and SMS campaigns. You can set up sophisticated branching sequences—for example, send a welcome email, then a follow-up SMS to those who didn’t open the email, etc. These flows can get quite complex with conditional splits and delays, covering the customer journey from cart abandonment reminders to post-purchase follow-ups.
However, Klaviyo’s flows are essentially confined to messaging channels (email, text, and recently web push). It doesn’t natively include on-site actions or loyalty triggers in its flow builder. You might integrate Klaviyo with other apps (loyalty, reviews) to trigger external events, but the flow’s actions are still just emails, SMS, or updating properties in Klaviyo. In short, Klaviyo achieves multi-channel messaging (email + SMS, plus some push) very well, but not full omnichannel journey orchestration across all touchpoints like Maestra does.
Klaviyo flow builder
Meanwhile, Shopify has only basic marketing automation features. Shopify recently introduced a Marketing Automations tool that lets merchants create simple workflows for emails (and SMS/push in conjunction with apps). For example, you can set up a welcome email series or an abandoned checkout email within Shopify. However, the options are quite limited compared to Klaviyo. You might get a few templates (welcome, first purchase thank-you, cart recovery), and the triggers/conditions are rudimentary. There’s no visual builder for complex branching logic—it’s mostly linear flows.
Moreover, beyond email, Shopify relies on apps: to send SMS or push notifications as part of an automation, you need an integrated app like SMSBump or PushOwl. Essentially, Shopify’s native automations cover one channel at a time. They can’t yet coordinate a cohesive campaign that involves, say, emailing, then texting, then showing a site message. So for omnichannel needs, Shopify by itself falls short.
Winner: Maestra leads in omnichannel flow orchestration—it’s built to coordinate all channels in one workflow, powered by real-time data. Klaviyo comes second, great for email/SMS flows but not omnichannel beyond those. Shopify trails here, offering only the basics unless you augment it with several apps (which still won’t be as unified as Maestra’s single platform).
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Customer Data Management & Segmentation
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
⭐⭐⭐⭐
⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Effective marketing depends on customer data—how it’s collected, stored, and segmented for targeting. Here’s how the three compare:
Shopify provides a basic customer database as part of the online store. Every customer who places an order or signs up is listed in the Shopify admin “Customers” section. You can view basic info like name, contact, total orders, and tags.
Shopify has recently introduced customer segments in the admin, which let you filter customers by certain criteria (e.g. “repeat customers from New York” or “subscribed to newsletter”). These are somewhat useful for simple campaigns via Shopify Email. However, Shopify is not a full Customer Data Platform—it doesn’t automatically unify data from outside sources (like in-store purchases or other channels), and its segmentation rules are limited to data Shopify itself tracks (purchases, location, etc.). There’s no concept of real-time updating segments based on live behavior on the site, for example.
In summary, Shopify’s customer data management is limited: each app you use might hold its own detailed data (loyalty points in a loyalty app, email engagement in an email app), and Shopify only knows what’s in its silo.
Klaviyo takes data management further. When you integrate Klaviyo with Shopify (or another ecom platform), Klaviyo pulls in a wealth of customer data: past orders, products viewed, coupons used, etc. It acts as a centralized database for your marketing. Klaviyo isn’t a pure CDP, but it behaves like one for marketing purposes—it collects first-party data from your store and some other integrations. Klaviyo then excels at segmentation. You can create segments based on almost any combination of behaviors and attributes: for example, “Customers who bought at least $500 in the last 6 months AND haven’t visited the site in 30 days AND are in the VIP loyalty tier.”
Klaviyo’s segment builder is very powerful (albeit complex). Segments can update dynamically (not exactly in real-time second-by-second, but frequently). This allows highly targeted campaigns. The limitation is that Klaviyo’s data is largely what you feed into it—if you have data in another tool that isn’t integrated, Klaviyo won’t have it. It doesn’t automatically ingest offline sales or, say, customer support interactions unless connected. Also, without a true CDP, you might lack some deeper analysis capabilities. Still, for most midmarket needs, Klaviyo’s customer data management is quite strong, and certainly beyond Shopify’s basic offering.
Klaviyo’s segment builder
Also, without a true CDP, you might lack some deeper analysis capabilities. Still, for most midmarket needs, Klaviyo’s customer data management is quite strong, and certainly beyond Shopify’s basic offering.
Maestra is built around a real-time CDP (Customer Data Platform) at its core. This means Maestra aggregates all customer data across online and offline touchpoints into one unified profile. It’s not limited to ecommerce transactions; it can include in-store purchases, loyalty points balance, email clicks, SMS responses, web session behavior—everything. The data is updated in real time as customers interact. This unified data model (designed specifically for commerce) becomes the foundation for all segmentation and personalization.
Maestra’s segment builder
Maestra’s segmentation capabilities are accordingly very advanced. Marketers can create segments using any combination of attributes and events across any channel. For example, you could segment “customers who viewed product X on the website, clicked an email about category Y, but haven’t purchased yet and have >100 loyalty points”.
Because Maestra’s CDP tracks even on-site browsing events and in-app behaviors, you get extremely granular targeting. It supports RFM segmentation (recency, frequency, monetary). And these segments update instantly as new data comes in. In short, Maestra offers an enterprise-grade, single source of truth for customer data, which midmarket brands can leverage without needing a separate expensive CDP system.
In terms of data utilization, Maestra’s approach ensures that every campaign or flow can draw on the full customer context. Klaviyo leverages data well for personalization, but only the data it has (mostly ecommerce and email/SMS events). Shopify has the narrowest view of the customer, which can hamper personalization or targeting sophistication.
Winner: Maestra—its real-time CDP and powerful segmentation give it a clear edge for customer data management. Klaviyo comes next with strong segmentation on ecom data. Shopify is adequate for simple list cuts, but anything advanced will require exporting data or adding a dedicated CRM/CDP tool.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Site Personalization
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Site personalization means tailoring the on-site experience (homepage, product recommendations, content, offers) to each visitor or customer. Let’s compare capabilities:
Shopify itself has no built-in site personalization engine. Every visitor essentially sees the same store pages (aside from Shopify’s basic recommendation algorithm on product pages, which is not per individual but per product). To personalize content by customer segment (e.g. show a special banner to loyalty VIPs, or different homepage products for men vs women), you would need third-party apps or custom code.
Klaviyo is primarily off-site (email/SMS), so it’s on-site options than are limited to forms to collect email addresses or pop-ups to announce promotions across your website. These forms can be targeted based on Klaviyo segments or visitor behaviors, such as showing specific offers to customers who have spent over $100 or displaying exit-intent messages to visitors about to leave your site.
While Klaviyo excels at email marketing and signup form capabilities, it’s important to note that Klaviyo does not offer web personalization widgets as a native feature. Unlike some competing platforms that provide built-in product recommendation blocks or dynamic content modules for websites, Klaviyo’s personalization capabilities are primarily focused on its email and SMS channels.
While Klaviyo excels at email marketing and signup form capabilities, it’s important to note that Klaviyo does not offer web personalization widgets as a native feature. Unlike some competing platforms that provide built-in product recommendation blocks or dynamic content modules for websites, Klaviyo’s personalization capabilities are primarily focused on its email and SMS channels.
Klaviyo’s lead form builder
Maestra has AI-powered site personalization built in. This means Maestra can dynamically alter the content on your website or mobile app based on each visitor’s data and behavior. For example, the homepage could automatically feature different products for a customer who often buys shoes versus one who buys shirts. It can show personalized banners, notifications, or product carousels to different segments—all without the merchant manually creating dozens of page variants.
Maestra uses in-session segmentation: as soon as a visitor starts browsing, it can classify them (new vs returning customer, interest in category X, etc.) and adjust on-site elements in real time. It also leverages the CDP data—if a returning customer comes to the site, the site can greet them with a loyalty point balance or a relevant offer (“Welcome back, Alice! Use your 50 points for a discount on your next purchase”). None of that is possible with Shopify or Klaviyo alone. Essentially, Maestra turns your website into another personalized channel, just like email or SMS, ensuring customers get a tailored experience on-site.
Additionally, Maestra’s site personalization isn’t limited to product recommendations (that’s another category we cover). It includes things like personalized content blocks and targeted pop-ups (e.g. a quiz or survey shown only to certain segments). This level of personalization can significantly improve conversion rates and engagement, because the site adapts to what the customer is likely to want.
Maestra’s pop-up creation page
Winner: Maestra—It is far ahead on site personalization—it’s designed to serve personalized content on your store in real time. Klaviyo and Shopify basically don’t provide this capability natively; you’d have to patch in third-party solutions. So if on-site experience personalization is a priority, Maestra is the clear choice in this trio.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Email Marketing
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Email marketing is a core component for any e-commerce brand. Here’s how our three contenders handle it:
Shopify: Shopify offers a built-in email marketing tool called Shopify Email, which is available to merchants on any paid Shopify plan. It’s straightforward and easy to use, especially if you’re already comfortable with Shopify’s interface. You can choose from a set of simple email templates (like a product showcase, a discount announcement, etc.), customize them with your branding, and send to segments of your customer list. Shopify Email is great for basic newsletters or announcements. It also supports some automation templates—for example, a welcome series for new subscribers or a post-purchase follow-up email. The big advantage is cost: Shopify Email lets you send up to 10,000 emails per month for free, and then charges only $1 per additional 1,000 emails.
Shopify email templates
However, Shopify Email’s functionality is limited. It lacks advanced features that dedicated platforms have. For instance, there is no built-in A/B testing for subject lines or send times. There’s no sophisticated segmentation inside the email tool (you rely on Shopify’s customer segments, which are basic). The automation is limited to a few preset flows (welcome, win-back, etc.) and doesn’t allow complex branching logic or multi-step sequences easily. Reporting is also fairly simple—you can see opens, clicks, and maybe attributed sales if the email contained a Shopify discount code, but not much more.
In short, Shopify Email is best for merchants with very simple needs or those just starting out with email marketing. It’s nicely integrated (you can create campaigns right from your Shopify admin and use your product info in emails easily), and it’s cheap/free. But as your strategy grows, you might outgrow its capabilities.
Klaviyo Email: Email is Klaviyo’s bread and butter. Klaviyo as a platform was built initially around email marketing for ecommerce. It offers a rich set of email marketing features: a drag-and-drop email designer, a large library of templates, advanced personalization (you can insert dynamic content like the customer’s first name, recommended products, unique coupon codes, etc.), and A/B testing tools. Klaviyo also gives fine control over sending (e.g., smart sending to avoid over-emailing people, automatic exclusion of recent purchasers if you want, etc.).
Klaviyo’s email composer
One of Klaviyo’s strengths is its collection of 60 pre-built automation templates (flows) for common scenarios. These include basics like welcome series, abandoned cart, and win-back, but also more advanced ones like birthday emails, product replenishment reminders, VIP nurturing, sunset unengaged subscribers, etc. You can use these templates as a starting point and customize them. This means even if you’re not an expert, Klaviyo guides you on best-practice email automations beyond what Shopify offers.
On the scalability and reliability side: Klaviyo’s infrastructure handles large volumes (send speed, inbox deliverability tools, etc.). It gives you features like domain authentication (to help your emails not go to spam) and an email deliverability dashboard.
The downside to Klaviyo email might be the cost at high volumes and the complexity—it has so many features that there’s a learning curve. But in this group, Klaviyo is the most battle-tested email platform. Many midmarket and even enterprise brands use Klaviyo solely for its email capabilities, because it’s that robust.
Maestra Email: Maestra includes its own email marketing module, aiming to combine the power of Klaviyo’s emailing with additional unique perks of its unified platform. Maestra’s email builder is a proprietary drag-and-drop editor, similar in ease to Klaviyo’s, but with some special advantages:
- Dynamic content & personalization: Because Maestra has the CDP, it can use any customer data point in email personalization. You can insert conditional content blocks that show different content based on segment membership or past behavior. For example, a single email campaign can contain a block that will display a women’s clothing promo to customers who bought women’s products before, and a men’s promo to others—all in one send, using dynamic content rules. Klaviyo also has dynamic content blocks, but Maestra’s are very tightly integrated with its segmentation and AI recommendations. Essentially, every Maestra email can be as personalized as a one-to-one message.
- AMP for Email: Maestra supports AMP emails, which allow interactive elements in the email (like carousels, accordions, even forms) without the reader leaving their inbox. This is cutting-edge and not widely offered. It can increase engagement by making emails more app-like.
- Granular control & testing: Maestra provides A/B testing for emails and detailed performance analytics. It also offers a feature to automatically optimize send times or content variations based on engagement, leveraging AI (similar to some of Klaviyo’s AI, but Maestra’s is applied across channels).
- Clean code output: Emails sent through Maestra are optimized to have lean HTML/CSS, which helps avoid Gmail clipping the message (Gmail clips emails that exceed 102KB). This improves deliverability and ensures your entire email is seen.
One notable aspect: Maestra can ensure consistency between email and onsite experience. For example, if an email offers a 10% off coupon and highlights certain products, Maestra can automatically personalize the site for that visitor to match (like auto-apply the coupon, or show those products first on the landing page). This is the benefit of one platform handling both email and site personalization—the handoff from email to site is smoother.
Maestra’s visual email composer
In summary, for Email: Klaviyo and Maestra both provide top-tier email marketing capabilities, with Maestra having an edge in personalization due to its unified data and some innovative features (AMP, etc.). Shopify Email is solid for basic needs but nowhere near as sophisticated.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: SMS Marketing
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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SMS marketing (text message campaigns) can directly reach customers with timely offers or alerts. Here’s how each platform approaches SMS:
Shopify: Shopify does not have a built-in SMS marketing solution for promotional texts. The only SMS Shopify itself sends are order-related notifications (like shipping confirmation texts to customers who opt in at checkout).
For marketing SMS such as flash sale alerts or abandoned cart texts, merchants must install a third-party app from Shopify’s ecosystem (e.g. SMSBump/Yotpo SMS, Postscript, Attentive, etc.). These apps integrate with Shopify to pull customer phone numbers and send messages, but again that’s an additional tool (with its own monthly fees and interface).
Thus, natively, Shopify offers no interface to create or automate SMS campaigns targeting customer segments. You also can’t include SMS in Shopify’s marketing automation workflows without such an app.
Klaviyo SMS (Klaviyo Phone): With Klaviyo, you can capture SMS consent from customers (for example, via Klaviyo’s signup forms you can have a phone number field with proper opt-in language). Then you can send campaigns or flows via text.
Klaviyo’s flow builder supports SMS steps right alongside emails. For instance, an abandoned cart flow could send an email, then if the person doesn’t purchase in 2 hours, send an SMS reminder, etc. This tight integration is very valuable—it keeps your customer messaging in sync and prevents over-messaging (Klaviyo has smart features to avoid texting someone who already bought, etc.).
Features of Klaviyo SMS include: personalization (you can use merge tags to include the customer’s name or other info in the text), link tracking, and two-way messaging. Two-way means if a customer replies “STOP”, Klaviyo handles opt-out automatically, or you can set up keywords like if they reply “HELP” or any custom keyword, you can respond or trigger flows. It’s not a full customer support SMS solution, but it can capture responses (and you can see and reply manually if needed).
Keep in mind SMS in Klaviyo is usage-based: you pay per text (around $0.007-$0.01 per SMS in the US), either via topping up credits or it deducts from a pool if you’re on a plan. Klaviyo provides basic SMS analytics (delivered, clicked if link, replied, etc.).
Overall, Klaviyo’s SMS feature is robust for marketing needs.
Maestra SMS: Maestra also includes SMS as a native channel in its omnichannel platform. Much like Klaviyo, you can build SMS into any automated flow or send one-off batch campaigns. However, Maestra’s SMS goes a step further in integration with other channels. Because Maestra’s flows are omnichannel, SMS can be orchestrated with even more context. For example, a Maestra flow could be: if a customer is browsing the site and adds to cart but doesn’t check out, send a push notification (if they have the app) or an email immediately, then an SMS after 1 hour if still no purchase. All that is managed in one place. The idea is SMS isn’t siloed; it’s part of the “conversation” with the customer orchestrated by Maestra.
Maestra supports high-volume SMS sends with deliverability features (using short codes or long codes as needed, handling carrier regulations, etc.). It also offers cross-device recognition—say a customer signs up with an email on desktop and later gives their phone number in-store, Maestra knows it’s the same profile and will not message them twice under different identities. That unified profile ensures your SMS targeting is accurate.
Advanced features: Maestra can do A/B testing on SMS timing or content within flows. It can also automatically shorten URLs for SMS (important to save characters and track clicks). Reporting will tie any SMS-driven conversions back into the overall revenue attribution.
Additionally, Maestra has support for conversational SMS (if a customer replies). And because you have a dedicated CSM, they can even help you with SMS compliance and strategy (like what time of day to send, etc., which is a more hands-on guidance than Klaviyo’s self-serve docs).
In terms of cost, as noted, Maestra’s per-SMS fee is lower than Klaviyo’s (roughly half), which can matter if you send a lot of texts.
Summary: Klaviyo and Maestra both shine in SMS marketing by integrating it with their platforms. Klaviyo gives a proven, easy-to-use SMS tool for ecomm, but Maestra offers deeper omnichannel integration (treating SMS as one thread in a holistic customer journey). Shopify unfortunately doesn’t offer its own SMS marketing at all, requiring apps—which is a disadvantage if you want a unified solution.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Website & Email Product Recommendations
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Recommending relevant products to customers—on your website or within emails—can significantly boost upsells and cross-sells. Here’s how each platform supports product recommendations:
Shopify (Native Recommendations): Out of the box, Shopify can display a “Related products” or “You may also like” section on product pages. The logic behind this is Shopify’s own algorithm that usually looks at products in the same collection or past purchasing patterns across customers. It’s relatively rudimentary—for example, if a lot of people who bought Product A also bought Product B, Shopify might recommend Product B when someone views A. Shopify also has a Search & Discovery app (by Shopify) that lets you manually fine-tune which products to recommend for a given product (in case you want to override the algorithm).
However, Shopify’s recommendation engine is not personalized to the individual customer. It’s more of a general “people who viewed this also viewed that” style. Every visitor to a product page sees the same recommended items (given the same product context), regardless of their own history. And outside of the product page context, Shopify doesn’t automatically insert recommendations. For example, on the homepage or cart page, you’d need an app or custom code to show a personalized product carousel.
For email, Shopify Email does not have a native product recommendation block. You could perhaps export some product data and plug it manually, but it won’t automatically personalize per recipient.
So Shopify’s capabilities here are quite limited: basic on-site related items, no individualized email recs.
Klaviyo Recommendations: Klaviyo provides a feature for personalized product recommendations in emails. Essentially, Klaviyo lets you create dynamic product feeds—e.g., “Best Sellers for Category X” or “Recommendations for each user based on past purchases.” In an email template, you can drag in a product block tied to one of these feeds, and Klaviyo will populate it differently for each recipient. One common usage is an abandoned cart email that not only shows the item left in cart but also “You might also like…” products derived from the customer’s browsing history or similar items. Another is a post-purchase email recommending complementary products to what the customer just bought.
Klaviyo’s recommendation system primarily uses rules-based algorithms. For example, collaborative filtering (“customers who bought X also bought Y”), top sellers in a category, or products most similar to what the customer interacted with. It’s not AI in the deep learning sense, but it’s effective and configurable. A marketer can set up: “Recommend 4 products from collection ‘New Arrivals’ that the recipient has not purchased yet, ordered by popularity.” And Klaviyo will fill that for each person.
On the website side, Klaviyo itself does not inject recommendations (it’s not controlling the site content). But what some do is use Klaviyo’s data to feed into a separate on-site recommender if needed.
Enlightened Equipment Achieves 15% Website Conversion Growth with AI-Powered Product Recommendations
Maestra Recommendations: Maestra offers AI-powered product recommendations both on-site and in emails.
On the website, Maestra can display personalized product carousels (“Recommended for you”) on various pages: homepage, product detail, cart, etc. Because Maestra’s CDP tracks real-time behavior, the recommendations update instantly based on what the customer is looking at. For example, if a customer keeps looking at running shoes, Maestra can start recommending running apparel or accessories that pair with shoes. If they always buy from a certain brand, the recommendations can favor that brand. It’s truly personalized per visitor.
In email, Maestra can inject recommended products just like Klaviyo—but with the advantage of potentially more data and algorithms. The snippet we have suggests Maestra uses 14 pre-built AI algorithms for recommendations. These can include things like: similar items, frequently bought together, trending products for that segment, recently viewed but not purchased, etc., and even rule-based + AI hybrids. Marketers can choose an algorithm or let Maestra’s AI decide the best one.
Moreover, Maestra allows manual rule fine-tuning. For instance, you can set a rule like “if the customer has viewed Category A at least 3 times, prioritize showing Category A products in recommendations.” This level of control means you get both AI smarts and marketer input.
Another plus: Because Maestra integrates across channels, the recommendations a user sees in an email can be consistent with what they see on the site. For example, an email shows 3 items “picked for you”; when the user clicks to the site, the homepage could greet them with those same items. This consistency can reinforce purchase likelihood.
Maestra’s product recommendation creation page
Maestra’s personal recommendations
Winner: Maestra offers the most advanced product recommendation capabilities (AI-driven, cross-channel). Klaviyo offers powerful email product recommendations which are a close second in that channel, though it doesn’t affect on-site recs. Shopify’s built-in recs are basic and not individually personalized.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Promotions and Referrals
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Promotional campaigns (sales, coupon codes, etc.) and referral programs (rewarding customers for referring new customers) are key tactics for many brands. Here’s how each platform supports these:
Shopify Promotions: Shopify has a solid system for creating discount codes and automatic discounts. Through the Shopify admin, you can generate unique or generic promo codes with various conditions (percentage off, fixed amount off, buy X get Y free, free shipping, minimum purchase requirements, usage limits, etc.). These work well and integrate with the checkout. For promotions like “Summer Sale 20% off”, Shopify covers the backend needs. However, Shopify doesn’t provide tooling to target or distribute those promotions beyond just creating the code. You would still need to email it out (via Shopify Email or another tool), or advertise it on your site.
Shopify also lacks a scheduling or campaign management interface — you can set start/end dates on automatic discounts, but there’s no centralized promo calendar or segmentation of offers by customer group natively.
For referrals: Shopify does not have a built-in referral program (where a customer gets a referral link or code to share with friends for rewards). You’d implement that via an app like ReferralCandy, Yotpo Referral, etc. Shopify’s infrastructure can handle if you create a unique coupon code per referrer, but it won’t track referrals or give credit automatically without an app.
Klaviyo Promotions & Referrals: Klaviyo itself doesn’t generate discount codes (that’s done in Shopify or your ecom platform), but Klaviyo can import and distribute unique codes. There’s a feature where you can upload a batch of unique codes from Shopify into Klaviyo and then have Klaviyo insert a unique code into each email for a given campaign. This is great for one-time use coupons, ensuring each customer gets a different code (to prevent sharing). So Klaviyo facilitates distribution of promo codes effectively.
For promotion targeting, Klaviyo’s segmentation shines—you can send promos specifically to lapsed customers, or VIPs, etc., making promotions more strategic than a one-blast-for-all.
However, Klaviyo doesn’t run promotions on your site; it only communicates them. And it doesn’t have a referral system. What some do: integrate a referral app with Klaviyo so that when a referral is completed, Klaviyo can trigger an email to the referrer with their reward, etc., but that requires the external referral app to do tracking.
So, Klaviyo helps with promotions via personalized messaging, but you still rely on your e-commerce platform (Shopify) to create the discount and maybe an app for referrals. It has no built-in UI for managing a referral program end-to-end.
Maestra Promotions: Maestra includes a promotion engine that’s far more flexible. It allows marketers to create all kinds of promotional offers within Maestra and target them precisely. For example, you could set up: “Spend $100, get a $10 coupon” campaigns, “Happy Birthday—20% off one item” offers, or flash sales that only show to certain segments (like a private sale for loyalty members). Maestra can generate unique codes or apply promotions automatically for eligible customers (because it can integrate with Shopify or your store backend to apply discounts for the right person).
One standout feature: Maestra can trigger promotions based on real-time behavior. Imagine a customer is browsing and has looked at a product multiple times—Maestra can pop up a “Limited time 10% off that product—checkout in the next 10 minutes!” That’s a reactive, personalized promo. Or if someone hasn’t bought after 3 site visits, Maestra might email a slightly bigger discount to entice them (gradually increasing offer). This sophistication is something neither Shopify nor Klaviyo does on their own. It blends promotion logic with behavioral targeting.
Additionally, Maestra’s promotions module ties in with loyalty: e.g., “double points events” or “redeem points for discount” are handled seamlessly.
Maestra’s promotions rule engine
Referrals in Maestra: It has a built-in Refer-a-Friend program capability. You can set up a referral offer (e.g., give $10 get $10 type referral). Maestra will generate referral links or codes for each customer and track when a new friend comes and makes a purchase. It can then automatically reward the referrer (with points, or a coupon, or whatever you choose). Since it’s part of one system, these referral events can also trigger flows (like when someone gets referred, you could enter them into a special welcome series, etc.).
So, Maestra essentially replaces the need for a separate referral app and provides a unified view: you can see referrals alongside other customer activity, and even segment on it (like target “customers who referred 3+ friends” with a special promo).
Summary: Maestra is the clear leader for running promotions and referral campaigns due to its integrated, automated approach. Shopify provides the basic tools for promotions (discount codes) but no referral system. Klaviyo helps deliver promotions to the right people but doesn’t create or manage the promo mechanics itself, and it has no native referral management. So Maestra wins for marketers who want to get creative and strategic with promotions without a tangle of separate apps.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Loyalty Programs
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Customer loyalty programs (points, rewards, VIP tiers) are proven methods for increasing repeat purchases. This is an area where the differences between our three platforms are stark:
Shopify: Shopify does not include a loyalty or rewards program feature in its core product. If you want to start a points-based loyalty program (where customers earn points for purchases and redeem for rewards) or a VIP tier system, you must use an app from the Shopify App Store (e.g., Smile.io, LoyaltyLion, etc.). These apps integrate with Shopify’s orders to award points, and often add a widget to your storefront for customers to see their points. While some of these apps are excellent, the key point is that Shopify itself doesn’t have this out-of-the-box. Shopify will store basic customer data like tags or note metafields if an app sets them (like a tag “VIP” could be added by an app), but Shopify doesn’t natively calculate or use those for anything.
Klaviyo: Similarly, Klaviyo doesn’t run loyalty programs. However, Klaviyo can integrate with loyalty program providers to make use of loyalty data in communications. For example, Klaviyo has integrations with Smile.io and others so it can pull in data like loyalty points balance or tier status into a customer profile. This allows you to segment or personalize emails based on loyalty info (like “Send this campaign only to Gold tier members” or “Include a sentence in the email: ‘You have 50 points available’”). But, Klaviyo is not managing the loyalty program—it’s just reading the data those specialized apps provide.
So Klaviyo itself has no loyalty program feature, and no ability to award points, etc.
Maestra: Maestra includes a fully-fledged integrated loyalty program module. This means you can set up points rules (e.g., 1 point per $1 spent, maybe 2x points during holidays, etc.), define VIP tiers (Silver, Gold, Platinum for instance, based on point thresholds or spend), and manage reward redemption options (like customers can redeem 100 points for $5 off, or for a free product). All of this is handled within Maestra.
Because Maestra’s loyalty is integrated with its CDP and channels, it offers some major benefits:
- Loyalty data is unified with everything else. So you have a single customer profile that shows their points balance, tier, rewards redeemed, alongside their purchase and engagement history.
- You can automate engagement around loyalty: Maestra can send an email when a customer is, say, 10 points away from the next tier (“Only 10 points until Gold status!”). Or push a notification when they have earned a reward. It can also personalize the website (show “Hello Gold Member!” in the header, for example).
- Omnichannel loyalty: Many loyalty apps struggle to connect offline and online behavior. Since Maestra can ingest offline purchase data, if you have brick-and-mortar stores, points can be updated in real time when someone buys in-store, and then the next email they get reflects the new balance. If your POS is integrated, a customer could even redeem an offer in-store that Maestra delivered via SMS.
- Maestra supports unique loyalty features like combining promotions with loyalty (e.g., “Double points on this new collection for the first week”), referral integration (referrals could reward points too), and even non-purchase actions (awarding points for things like leaving a review).
Maestra’s loyalty covers points, VIP tiers, referrals, and promotion offers based on time, location, segments, site actions, etc. That is extremely comprehensive and sounds even more flexible than some standard loyalty systems. The mention of “real-time mobile apps and POS support” reinforces the omnichannel aspect—points update instantly no matter where the customer shops, and your marketing can follow up across multiple channels to build deeper engagement.
Maestra’s Loyalty program dashboard
For a midmarket brand, having loyalty in Maestra means you don’t need to pay for a separate loyalty SaaS and attempt to integrate it with your email and site—it’s already unified. This can save money and definitely save complexity, plus it can drive more effective loyalty marketing (because data flows freely).
Summary: Maestra clearly wins on loyalty programs, as it has an integrated system ready to deploy. Shopify and Klaviyo themselves provide no loyalty capabilities (you’d have to add external solutions). So if a robust loyalty program is part of your strategy, Maestra offers a one-stop solution, whereas with Shopify/Klaviyo you’d be stitching pieces together.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Mobile & Web Push Notifications
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Push notifications (both web browser push and mobile app push) can re-engage customers instantly. Let’s see where each platform stands:
Shopify: Shopify doesn’t send push notifications for marketing by itself. Merchants who want to send web push (notifications that pop up on a customer’s desktop or phone from the browser) will need an app like PushOwl or FirePush. Those apps integrate a script on the store to ask visitors to subscribe to notifications, and then handle sending pushes when you create campaigns in the app.
Shopify also has the “Shop” mobile app (for customers to track orders and shop), and there is a feature where merchants can send promotions via the Shop App to their followers, but that’s somewhat separate from a merchant-controlled push system.
So natively, Shopify doesn’t cover push—one star.
Klaviyo: Historically, Klaviyo did not support push, but recently Klaviyo introduced mobile push notifications as a new channel. You can launched coordinated push/email/SMS campaigns through Klaviyo’s flow builder, enabling scenarios like “Abandoned cart reminders via push → Follow-up discount via email”.
Web push notifications are not supported by Klaviyo out-of-the-box.
All in all, Klaviyo provides multi-channel messaging including push now, which is a step ahead of Shopify.
Maestra: Maestra offers fully integrated web and mobile push notifications. This means:
- You can capture web push subscribers via your site (similar to Klaviyo, but it’s part of Maestra’s toolkit).
- If you have a mobile app, Maestra can send push to that app as well (with proper integration).
- Crucially, push is part of Maestra’s omnichannel flows. For example, Maestra can send a push notification to someone in the middle of a flow if that’s the best channel at that moment (say they didn’t open an email, try a push next).
Maestra gives a GUI to design push messages with custom text, images, and call-to-action buttons. It supports segmentation for push just like any channel (so you could send a push only to VIP customers about a private sale, etc.).
Maestra’s mobile push builder
Moreover, Maestra’s push can be triggered by behavior: for instance, when someone abandons their cart, Maestra can send a web push like “Your cart is waiting—complete your purchase now!” perhaps even sooner than an email would go out.
Push notifications through Maestra come with performance tracking (deliveries, clicks) and can be A/B tested (test two different messages to see which re-engages better).
Having push in the same platform as email/SMS means customers won’t get bombarded from different systems—Maestra can coordinate that if a user got the push, maybe they shouldn’t get the SMS, etc., ensuring a coherent customer experience.
Overall, Maestra’s push notification capability is comprehensive, covering both web and mobile in one. That’s something neither Klaviyo nor Shopify alone do (Klaviyo doesn’t do mobile push out-of-the-box for most, Shopify does neither).
Summary: Maestra wins by providing a single solution for all push notifications as part of your marketing mix. Klaviyo is decent if you want to add mobile push to your repertoire. Shopify offers no native push functions for marketing.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: User-Generated Content (UGC)
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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⭐
⭐⭐
User-Generated Content—like customer reviews, ratings, photos, and Q&A—can build trust and community. However, managing UGC typically requires specialized tools. Here’s the situation for our platforms:
Shopify: Shopify does include a free app called Product Reviews (made by Shopify) which allows basic star ratings and text reviews on product pages. But Shopify doesn’t have a built-in system for collecting those reviews via emails or showcasing them in marketing; you handle that manually or through an app. Many merchants opt for more advanced UGC apps (like Yotpo, Okendo, Judge.me) which can send post-purchase review request emails, host photo reviews, etc., because Shopify’s free app is bare-bones (no review reminder emails, no incentives, etc.).
Outside of product reviews, any other UGC (like customer Instagram photos, or video testimonials) have no native support in Shopify. You’d leverage social media or an app widget to display Instagram galleries, for example. Essentially, Shopify doesn’t manage UGC content beyond storing review data from an app in your store database.
Klaviyo: Klaviyo is not a UGC platform either. What Klaviyo can do is facilitate the collection of UGC by integrating with review apps. For instance, if you use Okendo for reviews, Klaviyo can trigger emails after purchase to ask for a review (Okendo might actually send the email, or Klaviyo might if integrated). Klaviyo can also ingest review data (like star rating given, or a tag if someone is a “reviewer”) to segment communications.
But on its own, Klaviyo cannot display reviews on your site or moderate content. It can send follow-up emails or texts asking for UGC (“Share your photo with us!”) but storing that content and publishing it isn’t what Klaviyo does.
One thing Klaviyo can do: if integrated, it could email a customer with a special coupon as a thank-you for leaving a review (since Klaviyo could catch the “left a review” event from the review app). This is useful for automating UGC incentives, but again requires that external system to manage the review submission itself.
So Klaviyo has no direct UGC management; it just plays nicely with UGC tools.
Maestra: Maestra does not have its own review-submission system— it doesn’t host UGC content like reviews or customer photos itself. It does, however, incentivize and integrate UGC across channels.
For example, Maestra’s loyalty program can reward points to customers for leaving a review or posting on social media. That incentivization is built-in, which is something standalone review platforms sometimes do but having it in Maestra is convenient. Maestra can track if a customer completed a review (through integration with your review app or through a simple webhook) and then immediately issue loyalty points or trigger an email with a thank-you coupon, etc.
Also, Maestra can incorporate UGC into its marketing flows indirectly. If you use a reviews app that has an API, your Maestra success manager could set up an integration so that, say, high-rated reviews get pushed to Maestra and then Maestra can automatically feature that testimonial in an email or on-site for other users.
Summary: Honestly, none of the three are dedicated UGC management tools. If UGC (reviews, etc.) is a focus, you’ll use another service. However:
- Shopify at least can display reviews via its app, but offers no marketing around it.
- Klaviyo can help solicit UGC via messages but doesn’t display it.
- Maestra can encourage UGC via its loyalty/incentive system and use UGC data in marketing content but doesn’t collect it directly either.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Ad Optimization
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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⭐⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
When it comes to optimizing paid advertising (Facebook, Google, etc.) using customer data, the platforms have very different offerings:
Shopify: Shopify’s core focus isn’t running or optimizing ads, but it does have some basic integrations. In your Shopify admin, there are Marketing sections where you can connect a Facebook Ads or Google Ads account and create campaigns (usually via Shopify’s interface which forwards to those platforms). This is more of a convenience for merchants to launch simple ads (like dynamic product ads) without leaving Shopify. But it’s not doing any smart optimization itself. Shopify doesn’t, for example, automatically sync segments of customers to Facebook Audiences or Google Customer Match lists—at least not on standard plans.
One exception is Shopify Audiences, a feature available to Shopify Plus merchants. Shopify Audiences allows a Plus merchant to generate an audience list (of high-intent buyers) based on their data combined with Shopify-wide data, which can then be exported to Facebook or Google for lookalike targeting. It’s essentially Shopify leveraging its network of stores’ data to help with acquisition targeting. That’s powerful, but only on Plus and still a one-way push of data.
For the majority of Shopify users, ad optimization is outside of Shopify: you’d manually export customer lists or rely on an app to do fancy stuff.
So we give Shopify a low score here because it lacks direct ad optimization tools for marketing campaigns. It’s mostly manual or requires third-party tools.
Klaviyo: Klaviyo integrates with major ad platforms like Facebook/Instagram (Meta) and Google. A key feature is Audience Sync. With Klaviyo, you can take any segment (say, “Churned customers” or “High spenders”) and automatically sync that to Facebook as a Custom Audience for retargeting. This means you don’t have to export a CSV and upload to Facebook Ads Manager; Klaviyo will keep the audience updated. You can then run retargeting ads or lookalike campaigns off that audience. Similarly, for Google Ads Customer Match, you can sync email lists to Google for use in Search or YouTube ads.
This is very useful—for example, creating a segment in Klaviyo of people who showed high intent but didn’t purchase, and syncing to Facebook to run ads to them, closing a loop.
However, Klaviyo itself doesn’t manage the ads. You still create and optimize the ad campaigns on Facebook/Google. Klaviyo’s role is feeding the right data to those platforms. In effect, it helps you target better and potentially spend your ad budget more efficiently by focusing on the right people (or excluding certain customers from ads to save budget).
Additionally, Klaviyo’s integration can capture leads from Facebook Lead Ads forms straight into Klaviyo, simplifying list growth from ads.
So, Klaviyo significantly contributes to ad optimization by bridging data to ad platforms. Many marketers find this saves a ton of time and allows more granular audience strategies.
Maestra: Maestra appears to take a more automated approach to paid media. It automates audience segmentation, integrates with ad platforms, and supports real-time customer data collection through social media lead forms.
It helps to reduce ad costs by utilizing precise customer segments to increase conversion rates. Maestra helps you spend smarter—e.g., not showing ads to customers who just purchased (because Maestra knows that in real-time), or focusing ads on those who are most likely to convert.
Also, because Maestra runs campaigns across channels, it can coordinate ads as part of an omnichannel campaign. For instance, if a customer hasn’t responded to email or SMS, Maestra can add them to a Facebook Ad audience automatically as another touchpoint. Or if someone clicked an email and bought, Maestra could remove them from the ad audience to not waste impressions. This level of cross-channel coordination is beyond Klaviyo’s typical use (which is more one-way sync).
Maestra’s ad optimization
Maestra can capture leads from social (like Facebook Lead Ads integration) and immediately use that data. For example, someone fills a lead form for a discount, Maestra gets it, triggers an email or SMS with the coupon instantly, and adds them to nurture flows and ad retargeting. That holistic flow would improve ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) of lead gen campaigns significantly.
Summary: Maestra offers the most hands-off “smart” ad optimization, making it easier to ensure your ads target the right people at the right time using your first-party data. Klaviyo offers great data sync but relies on manual ad management beyond that. Shopify offers almost nothing in this realm to standard users.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Reporting & Attribution
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Detailed reporting and attribution tools can tell you which campaigns or channels drive sales and how your customers behave. Here’s a breakdown:
Shopify Analytics: Shopify provides a suite of reports in the admin dashboard, especially if you’re on higher-tier plans (Basic has limited reports, Advanced/Plus have more). You get sales reports (sales over time, by product, by channel, etc.), customer reports (like returning vs new customer rate), and some marketing reports (like conversion funnel from sessions to sales, top referrers). Shopify even has a Live View to monitor activity in real time.
Shopify’s reporting
However, Shopify’s attribution is quite simplistic: it will attribute sales to a source based on either last click or last interaction (for example, an order might be attributed to “Direct” or “Facebook” based on the last click before purchase). There isn’t a multi-touch attribution model built in where you can see how email and ads perhaps both contributed.
For marketing campaigns done through Shopify (like Shopify Email or the native Facebook integration), you’ll see some metrics like how many orders were attributed to that email (meaning someone clicked from the email and bought). But it won’t catch if someone opened an email, didn’t click, but later came directly and bought—Klaviyo might catch that in its own attribution, Shopify wouldn’t attribute that to the email.
Shopify recently introduced a Marketing Attribution beta where you can choose different attribution models (first click, last click, linear) for your reports, but this is still simpler compared to dedicated analytics tools.
So, Shopify’s reporting is good for overall business health and basic channel analysis, but limited for detailed campaign attribution or understanding combined effects.
Klaviyo Reporting: Klaviyo has dashboards for campaigns and flows that show open rates, click rates, conversion rates, and importantly, revenue attributed. Klaviyo typically uses a last-touch attribution within a lookback window (e.g., if someone clicks an email and purchases within X days, that revenue is attributed to the email). It will sum up how much $$ each flow or campaign brought in. This is great for an email/SMS marketer to justify their programs.
Klaviyo also provides cohort analysis to some extent (like seeing how different signup cohorts behave over time), and segmentation-based reporting (e.g., performance metrics for VIP customers vs others).
What Klaviyo lacks is cross-channel attribution outside of what it controls. It won’t credit Facebook ads or other channels—it only knows about email/SMS pushes it did. So, in a multi-channel sense, Klaviyo can tell you “our emails led to $X and texts led to $Y”, but it won’t easily tell you how emails and texts might together influence, or how one customer’s journey that included both an ad click and an email click should be split.
It does allow comparing engagement over time, and you can export data to analyze further.
Maestra Reporting & Attribution: Because Maestra runs all these channels and tracks all customer touchpoints, it can do multi-channel attribution more effectively. Maestra’s analytics include:
- Flow performance: You can see how each omnichannel flow contributes to conversions or loyalty. For example, a Welcome Flow might have email, SMS, push—Maestra can attribute the cumulative effect of that flow on first purchase rate.
- Business KPIs: Dashboards for revenue, AOV, repeat purchase rate, etc. with the ability to filter by segment or campaign exposure. Since it has a CDP, it can slice data very flexibl
- A/B testing results: Maestra supports A/B tests and even control groups (holdout groups) for flows. It can therefore report incremental lift—e.g., “this win-back flow resulted in 15% more revenue compared to not sending anything, with 95% confidence”. That level of insight is gold for marketers and is something individual point solutions can’t easily do (because they don’t control a global holdout).
- Email Health Monitoring: Report compares performance to industry standards and helps identify if you’re doing well or need improvement
Maestra’s Campaign dashboard
Maestra’s A/B testing reporting
Thus, Maestra provides advanced, centralized reporting that ties everything together. This is extremely valuable for midmarket brands who might otherwise have to manually pull reports from Shopify, Google Analytics, Facebook, Klaviyo, etc., and try to connect the dots.
Summary:
- Maestra gives a complete picture of marketing performance across channels and likely does the best job at attribution.
- Klaviyo gives strong insight into email/SMS channel performance and direct attribution for those (good but channel-limited).
- Shopify gives broad commerce analytics but limited marketing attribution clarity.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Customer Support
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
⭐⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
When issues arise or you need help achieving something, support quality matters. Here’s what to expect from each:
Shopify Support: Shopify is known for its 24/7 support available to all merchants (even on the lowest plan). You can reach them via live chat, email, and often even phone. Their support team is quite large and generally well-regarded for handling store-related issues (like technical problems with your shop, billing questions, how to do X in Shopify, etc.). They also have an extensive help center and community forums if you prefer self-help.
For marketing-specific help, Shopify’s support might not advise on strategy (they won’t plan your email campaign for you), but they can help you troubleshoot, say, why your Shopify Email isn’t sending or if a discount code isn’t working.
On higher plans or Shopify Plus, you get some additional support resources: Plus merchants have a dedicated Merchant Success Manager who can assist with higher-level questions and connect you to Shopify’s resources, but even that is more about your overall business with Shopify, not hands-on building campaigns.
So, Shopify provides strong general support and quick assistance, but not specialized marketing consulting.
Klaviyo Support: Klaviyo offers email support to all paying customers and live chat support once you’re on a certain tier. They do not offer phone support.
Klaviyo also has an extensive knowledge base, Klaviyo Academy courses, and a community forum where many common questions are answered (plus lots of content on their blog, YouTube, etc.). This wealth of self-serve resources often helps users find answers without contacting support.
For onboarding, Klaviyo provides guides, and in some cases, if you’re a big account, you might get some onboarding specialist help (or via their partner agencies).
They do not typically assign you a dedicated success manager unless you are a very large enterprise client paying for that level.
So, support is standard: you submit a ticket or chat, they help with technical issues (e.g., troubleshooting why an email isn’t rendering correctly, or why an integration isn’t syncing). They can also answer “how-to” questions about Klaviyo features. They generally won’t advise on your marketing strategy (like what subject line to use or what flows you should build—for that they have best-practice articles or you hire a consultant).
Users often find Klaviyo’s support helpful for product-related issues, but one may need external guidance for deeper strategy or complex implementation (unless you pay for Klaviyo’s professional services).
We give Klaviyo 3 stars—decent, but with some limits (especially no hand-holding for strategy unless you engage their paid consultants or read docs).
Maestra Support: Maestra offers white-glove support. Every Maestra client gets a dedicated Customer Success Manager (CSM) who is basically like an extension of your marketing team. This person helps from day one: understanding your business, helping migrate data from other tools, setting up initial campaigns and flows, and providing ongoing strategic advice.
They’ll schedule regular calls (weekly or bi-weekly) to discuss performance, new ideas, and any help needed. If you’re too busy to build a complex flow, they’ll assist or do it for you. If you’re unsure how to segment for an upcoming promotion, they’ll provide suggestions.
Maestra’s support also includes technical help (ensuring integrations are working, debugging any issues proactively). And they monitor your usage—for example, if a flow’s performance dips, they might proactively reach out to suggest tweaks (that level of proactive help is implied by their positioning).
Furthermore, Maestra promises very fast response times (under 5 minutes on chat), which is rare for B2B software.
This kind of support is invaluable for midmarket brands that may not have a large marketing ops team. It de-risks adopting a new platform and ensures you actually get the value out of it (one common issue with fancy tools is not using them fully—Maestra’s team makes sure you do).
Summary: Maestra is 5 stars for support, providing concierge-level, personalized service that neither Shopify nor Klaviyo (at typical customer levels) provide.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Integration Capabilities
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Integration capabilities measure how well a platform connects with other tools and systems in your tech stack.
Shopify Integrations: Shopify itself is the core of an e-commerce stack, and it has an entire App Store with over 8,000 apps covering everything from marketing to logistics. Virtually every e-commerce-related software makes a Shopify integration because of Shopify’s popularity. This means if you want to connect Shopify to a CRM, an ERP, a shipping software, a reviews app, etc., there is likely a pre-built integration or app for it.
Shopify also has robust APIs, so custom integrations can be built by developers for any bespoke needs. Data like orders, customers, products can be accessed via API easily (with proper authentication).
However, the caveat is integration is not unified. Installing many apps can lead to data silos or duplicated functionalities. Each app might integrate with Shopify, but they might not integrate with each other. For example, your loyalty app and your email app both plug into Shopify, but they don’t talk to each other unless built to or via additional work. This can create fragmentation—your data is spread across apps with Shopify as the hub, but Shopify doesn’t consolidate all that data meaningfully (that’s where something like a CDP or Maestra would help).
Also, more apps mean more points of failure or maintenance. So while Shopify can integrate with anything (which is fantastic and hence 4 stars), the onus is on the merchant to manage those and maintain a coherent stack.
Klaviyo Integrations: Klaviyo integrates with over +350 tools out-of-the-box, particularly focusing on e-commerce platforms (Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, BigCommerce), advertising platforms (Facebook, Google), analytics (Google Analytics), customer support (Zendesk, Gorgias), loyalty programs (Smile, LoyaltyLion), review apps, subscription apps (Recharge), etc. This breadth ensures Klaviyo can sit at the center of your marketing data flow. When connected, Klaviyo imports data from these systems (e.g. pulls orders from Shopify, tickets from Zendesk, etc.) to enrich customer profiles, and can export data or trigger things in them (like sending an email when a Recharge subscription is about to renew, etc.).
It’s largely plug-and-play: connecting Shopify to Klaviyo is a matter of copying an API key; connecting Facebook is an OAuth process.
Klaviyo also has an API to allow custom dev work. Many brands use the API to push custom events (like “store visit” or “quiz result”) into Klaviyo for segmentation.
Klaviyo is integrates with most of the common components a midmarket brand would use, often with one-click ease. It’s a strength of Klaviyo to be an open system in that regard.
Maestra Integrations: Maestra being newer, doesn’t have as many pre-built third-party integrations as Klaviyo yet. However, it is designed to connect with e-commerce platforms (Shopify, etc.) and other marketing channels (like ad networks).
But the best part: Maestra offers to create custom integrations on request. If Maestra doesn’t have a formal integration with a tool you use, their team can build it for you (or you can use their APIs/webhooks to build it). This means even if the number of native integrations is fewer, practically you can integrate Maestra with anything important, with Maestra’s team smoothing the process. That level of support in integration is rare—usually you’d have to hire a developer; Maestra offering it as part of service is a big plus.
Maestra also can act as a consolidation point. Instead of many apps connecting loosely via Shopify, they can all feed into Maestra’s CDP. For example, if you keep a review app separate, Maestra can ingest the review data. If you have a data warehouse, Maestra can export data to it via API or vice versa.
Given that integration flexibility and support, we rated Maestra 5 as well. It ensures you won’t be stuck unable to connect a system.
Summary:
- Shopify is extremely integratable via apps/APIs, but the integrations are piecemeal—great ecosystem though.
- Klaviyo is highly integratable, with a wide library of direct integrations focusing on marketing data flows.
- Maestra is integratable with custom help, anything can be connected thanks to its API and the team’s assistance, plus it then unifies those connections in one platform.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Educational Resources
Klaviyo
Shopify
Maestra
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Educational resources help users learn and make the most of a platform. This includes documentation, tutorials, community, etc.
Shopify Resources: Being one of the largest commerce platforms, Shopify offers a vast array of resources:
- Help Center: Detailed guides on every feature of Shopify, often with step-by-step instructions and screenshots.
- Shopify Learn (Academy): Free courses and webinars on e-commerce topics (not just using Shopify, but also marketing, store design, etc.). Shopify often brings in experts for webinars.
- Community Forums: Very active forums where merchants and Shopify staff discuss issues and share tips. One can find answers to many common questions archived here.
- Blog and Guides: Shopify’s blog is well-known in e-commerce circles, providing advice on marketing, selling, trends, etc. They also publish case studies and how-to guides (like “How to do Instagram marketing for your store”).
- YouTube channel: Tons of tutorial videos and recorded webinars.
- Partner ecosystem content: Many Shopify Experts and Partners create content (blogs, videos) about Shopify best practices, further enriching the knowledge base beyond Shopify’s own materials.
For a new merchant, there’s almost an overload of information on how to succeed with Shopify. SEO often surfaces Shopify’s guides when you search any ecom question.
So, Shopify gets 5 stars—it’s top-notch for learning resources, community, and overall support content for users.
Klaviyo Resources: Klaviyo also excels here:
- Klaviyo Help Center: Covers all product features, with articles and troubleshooting tips.
- Klaviyo Academy: They offer on-demand courses that take you from beginner to advanced in email marketing with Klaviyo. They also have periodic live trainings or virtual events.
- Community Forum (Klaviyo Community): A forum where users ask questions and Klaviyo experts or other users answer. It’s relatively active, and many solutions can be found by searching existing threads.
- Blog & Webinars: Klaviyo’s blog discusses email marketing strategies, new feature announcements, and has case studies of brands using Klaviyo successfully. They also host webinars around big seasons (e.g., Black Friday prep) and topics like deliverability.
- Third-party content: Because Klaviyo is widely used, a lot of agencies and consultants produce “how-to” content, YouTube tutorials, etc., for Klaviyo. A simple search yields a plethora of guides (how to set up flows, how to improve open rates, etc.).
Additionally, Klaviyo holds an annual conference “Klaviyo: BOS” which generates a lot of thought leadership content.
All this means that if you’re willing to learn, Klaviyo provides a wealth of knowledge resources (even beyond just using the tool—they often cover email marketing best practices in general).
Maestra Resources: Being newer, Maestra has a smaller library so far, but they are clearly investing in content:
- Maestra has a marketing blog aimed at educating on marketing topics, not just promoting Maestra.
- They offer tools to help marketers (A/B test calculator, QR code generator, UTM builder).
- They have a knowledge base for using Maestra.
- Since each customer gets a CSM, a lot of education happens one-on-one rather than via public articles. The CSM provides personalized training
We gave Maestra 4 stars: they have some great content (especially comparative and thought leadership pieces), and they provide personalized education via the CSM (effectively a live teacher for your team). As their user base grows, their documentation and community content will naturally expand too.
Summary:
- Shopify and Klaviyo both excel in providing users with extensive self-serve learning materials and communities.
- Maestra provides a more concierge-style education (the CSM), and while it has fewer published resources at the moment, it’s rapidly adding more and ensures you’re never left without an answer—you have a human to turn to.
Klaviyo vs Shopify vs Maestra: Pricing
Finally, let’s compare the pricing models and cost considerations for each platform:
Shopify Pricing: Shopify’s pricing is straightforward for its core platform—tiers like Basic, Shopify, Advanced, and Plus for enterprise, ranging from ~$39 to $299 (and custom for Plus) per month. Marketing features like Shopify Email, basic automations, discount codes, etc., are included in those plans (no extra charge except usage-based costs for email as mentioned).
So if you only use Shopify’s built-in marketing, you aren’t paying extra beyond perhaps a few dollars for email overages. This makes Shopify’s marketing tools extremely cost-effective for what they are (albeit limited in capability).
However, to fill the gaps, most brands will subscribe to multiple apps:
- An email/SMS platform (like Klaviyo or others)—often costing hundreds or thousands per month depending on list size.
- A loyalty/rewards app—often $50-$500/month depending on program size.
- Reviews/UGC app—maybe $0-$200/month.
- Push notifications app—$0-$100/month.
- Perhaps an advanced analytics app or a landing page builder, etc.
These app costs accumulate. A midmarket brand could easily spend $1000-$2000/month on apps to augment Shopify’s marketing capabilities.
So, the true cost of using Shopify as your marketing hub is the sum of all those specialized tools.
On the flip side, with Shopify you can start cheap/free and add as needed, which is great for smaller businesses.
Klaviyo Pricing: Klaviyo’s pricing is based on your number of contacts (for email) and number of SMS messages (for SMS). It has a free tier (up to 250 contacts & 500 email sends). After that, pricing grows in tiers:
- For example, around 10,000 contacts, Klaviyo Email is roughly $150/month.
- At 50,000 contacts, around $700/month.
- If you have 100,000 contacts, you’re looking at over $1000/month for email.
SMS is charged per message; Klaviyo might have packages or just charge usage. It can add a few hundred or more depending on volume (e.g., 10k SMS might cost ~$70 at $0.007 each).
So a brand with, say, 80k contacts might pay ~$700-$800 for Klaviyo email + some SMS spend on top. This likely includes all the segmentation, emails, support, etc., but not things outside Klaviyo’s scope (loyalty, etc).
Compared to the revenue these emails can generate, many find it worth it, but Klaviyo can become one of the larger SaaS expenses for a store as it scales. There were some pricing changes in 2024 that increased costs for some tiers (switching to all contacts-based pricing vs active profiles).
Klaviyo doesn’t have contracts for standard plans—it’s month-to-month (enterprise accounts might negotiate contracts). You can cancel anytime, which is flexibility.
Maestra Pricing: Maestra has a higher entry point but includes much more. Their pricing is based on the number of customer profiles (like a CDP count) starting at $1,990/month for up to 80k customer profiles
That $1,990 includes all modules—you’re not paying separately for email sends (unlimited email sends are included). You only pay separately for SMS and maybe other message costs. They note SMS is $0.0045 each, which is cheaper than Klaviyo’s typical ~$0.007-0.01. Over large volumes, that saves money.
So, if you compare apples to apples: a brand with 80k contacts on Klaviyo might pay ~$700 for Klaviyo, $200 for a loyalty app, $200 for a reviews app, $100 for push, etc.—could total around $1200/month (rough estimate). Maestra at $1990 is more, but it also is providing services (the CSM) which would cost extra if outsourced, and more capabilities in one.
As profile counts grow, Klaviyo gets very expensive. For instance, 200k contacts on Klaviyo might be ~$2,500/mo just for email. Add other tools, and you might exceed Maestra’s cost, without the unified benefits.
With Maestra, as you grow, cost per profile is lower—meaning if you double your profiles, you don’t double cost; they have scaling that’s efficient. Plus consider the time saved and potentially one less headcount needed because Maestra’s team helps run it—that’s a cost factor too.
All three have “no long-term commitment” in their standard offerings. Shopify, Klaviyo, and Maestra are month-to-month, Maestra allows to cancel anytime + 100% refund if cancel before first flows launched.
Summary:
- Shopify—Base cost low, but expect to pay for apps as you expand functionality. Good value for basic use; costs ramp up when you augment it.
- Klaviyo—Medium cost that grows with your list; can get pricey at scale but provides a lot of value via revenue it drives. Pay-as-you-grow model, no big upfront.
- Maestra—High base cost but flat includes tons of functionality and service. For a midmarket brand with a decent customer base, it could consolidate and possibly replace the combined costs of Klaviyo + loyalty app + others + maybe a part of a salary for marketing ops. You pay more upfront but potentially save overall if you fully utilize it.
Each can be justified value-wise in different scenarios: Shopify is cheapest for starting out (which is great), Klaviyo is reasonably priced for the ROI it yields until very large scale, and Maestra though costly delivers a lot (especially in comparison to assembling an equivalent stack). In other words, none is “cheap/free” for what midmarket needs, but none is outrageously priced for the audience they serve—they each align with different stages and approaches.
Final Verdict
Choosing between Klaviyo, Shopify, and Maestra ultimately comes down to your brand’s size, resources, and marketing ambitions:
- Shopify (with native features) is an excellent starting point for small businesses due to its low cost and simplicity. If your needs are basic—a newsletter here, a discount code there—Shopify’s built-in marketing tools will get the job done without additional expense. However, as you grow into a midmarket brand, you’ll likely find these basic tools limiting. You’ll end up installing multiple apps to fill gaps, which introduces complexity and fragmented data. In short, Shopify alone is not a one-stop marketing solution for a scaling business; it’s the foundation upon which you’ll stack other tools.
- Klaviyo is the gold standard for email and SMS marketing in e-commerce. For a brand that has outgrown Shopify Email and wants to get serious about lifecycle marketing, Klaviyo is a proven choice. It offers powerful automation, segmentation, and integrations—significantly boosting your ability to personalize and drive revenue from email/SMS. Many midmarket brands will use Shopify + Klaviyo (and perhaps a loyalty app alongside). This combo can take you far. The downside is you still have separate systems for loyalty, reviews, site personalization, etc., which means some siloed data and manual effort to tie campaigns together. Additionally, Klaviyo’s costs rise with your list size, and managing multiple platforms requires marketing team bandwidth.
- Maestra is the comprehensive solution built for midmarket brands that are ready to unify and elevate their marketing across all channels. It’s like getting a finely tuned “marketing machine” plus a strategist (the CSM) to run it with you. If your brand has an established customer base and you’re using 3-5 different tools to engage them (and maybe not doing so as coherently as you’d like), Maestra will replace that patchwork with a single, integrated platform. The advantage isn’t just consolidation; it’s the advanced capabilities and efficiencies that consolidation unlocks—true omnichannel campaigns, a 360° customer view, and expert guidance at every step. The investment is higher, but so is the return in both results and time saved.
Final recommendation:
- For a growing midmarket e-commerce or retail brand that wants to seriously accelerate customer engagement and loyalty, Maestra offers the most value. It will future-proof your marketing by centralizing it and adding AI-driven personalization and robust loyalty features that neither Shopify nor Klaviyo alone can match. Importantly, it brings strategy and hands-on help, which can be transformative if your team is stretched thin. Maestra is best if you’re at a stage where you’re looking for exponential growth and have the volume to justify an all-in-one platform.
- If you’re not quite ready for that level of platform (e.g., you’re still building your customer list or budget is a concern), a combination of Shopify + Klaviyo is a tried-and-true path. You’ll get industry-leading capabilities in the crucial channels of email and SMS, and you can augment other areas gradually (loyalty, etc., via apps) as needed. Just be prepared for the operational overhead of managing those disparate systems, and keep an eye on ensuring your customer experience remains cohesive.
In the end, all three solutions can play a role in a successful e-commerce marketing tech stack—they just occupy different niches:
- Shopify is the storefront and basic toolkit,
- Klaviyo is the specialized messenger,
- Maestra is the conductor of the entire orchestra.
For mid-sized brands aiming to build lasting customer relationships and maximize lifetime value through personalized, data-driven engagement, Maestra stands out as the comprehensive platform to drive that vision forward. It combines the functionalities of many tools—and backs it with expert support—which can propel your marketing from siloed to seamless.
If you see your brand in need of that unified, personalized approach to reach the next level of growth, it’s worth exploring what Maestra can do for you.
Book a demo with Maestra to witness firsthand how an all-in-one platform, paired with dedicated expertise, can transform your e-commerce marketing and help you build the customer loyalty you’ve been striving for.