What is A/B testing and why should you do it?
In a nutshell, A/B testing is the process of comparing two (or more) different versions of the same page to see which one works best.
First, you create a new version of your web page containing a single change that you think might improve its conversion rate. This could be a change to any element on the page, such as a different font, a new hero image, or an altered placement for your call-to-action (CTA) button.
Try Leadpages free for 14 days
Easily create your website and landing pages with the only platform engineered by marketing nerds.
Then you randomly direct half of your page visitors to the original page and the other half to the new version. Once you’ve collected enough data, you can analyze your visitor behavior to see whether the original page (A) or the modified page (B) performed best.
If you’re lucky, your new page will have a better conversion rate and you’ll know that your hypothesis was right. But sometimes you won’t find any significant difference between both pages, and other times your modified page may even have worse conversion rates. In any case, every result is informative, since discovering what doesn’t work will help you craft a better test next time around.
By providing a systematic and data-driven framework for testing your assumptions, A/B testing lets you continually fine-tune your web pages for increasingly better results. This means you can design ever-better user experiences that result in more leads and sales.
What’s more, A/B testing offers significant upside with minimal downside. Since the process involves changing just a single variable at a time, you can easily pinpoint and reverse any changes that yield a negative result. On the other hand, you can keep any changes that lead to a positive result and use that discovery as a springboard for your next experiment. What's not to love?
So, now that you know how A/B testing works, what tools should you use to incorporate the practice into your own business?
Every tool covered in our list lets you conduct A/B tests as we’ve described above, but they also differ in terms of pricing, feature ranges, and ease of use. The clearer you are about your specific business goals and team capabilities, the easier it is to hone in on the right option for you.
With that in mind, let’s dive into the list.
1. Leadpages
Unlimited A/B testing is included with Leadpages Pro and Advanced plans. The advantage here is that you don’t need to pay for both a landing page builder and an A/B testing solution. Everything you need is included in one subscription. Plus, you’ll also get access to other conversion tools including real-time optimization tips, analytics, exit-intent pop-ups, and alert bars.
Creating and running a landing page A/B test within the Leadpages dashboard couldn’t be easier. Simply select an existing page as your control, create a new variation of the page, specify the percentage of traffic each page will receive, and then launch the test.
While the test is running, you can track how it’s performing by heading to the analytics page. To end the test, select the page variation that “won”. The winning page will then become the default version of your landing page.
How much does Leadpages cost?
Our A/B testing tool isn’t a standalone product, but one of many features available to our Pro and Advanced users. Our Pro plan is $74/month when billed annually, or $99/month when billed monthly. To learn more about Advanced plans, please contact us.
Great for…
Small and medium-sized businesses deploying landing page-based marketing campaigns.
2. Google Optimize
Optimize is an A/B testing tool from Google that’s fully integrated with Google Analytics. This native integration makes it easy to access a wide range of user insights, as well as giving you the ability to run tests that target specific user segments.
Plus, Google Optimize’s feature list extends beyond just A/B testing. It also allows you to run multivariate tests, split URL tests, and server-side experiments. But while the versatility of this A/B testing tool is as good as any other on this list, you’ll definitely need technical expertise to make good use of its more advanced features.
How much does Google Optimize cost?
Google Optimize is free. A more advanced, paid-for version called Optimize 360 is available for larger enterprises upon request.
Great for…
Businesses looking for a free, well-rounded tool with full integration into the Google ecosystem.
3. Freshmarketer
Freshmarketer is an all-in-one marketing automation and conversion rate optimization (CRO) tool from Freshworks.
The platform makes it easy to create landing page variations with its visual builder and provides audience segment analysis and revenue tracking to help with page optimization. Freshmarketer’s integrated heat maps and session replays also give you an additional layer of insight into what problems your visitors encounter when viewing your web pages.
While the platform is easy to use and offers all the features you’d need to start running a variety of A/B tests, you can’t use Freshmarketer’s CRO system without also signing up for the rest of its marketing automation tools.
How much does Freshmarketer cost?
You’ll need to buy Freshmarketer’s CRO package as an add-on to either the Growth, Pro, or Enterprise plan. This add-on starts at $219/month for 10,000 monthly unique visitors.
Great for…
Companies in the market for a solid A/B testing toolkit as well as a broader marketing automation platform.
4. VWO
VWO is one of the world’s leading enterprise-level experimentation platforms, offering five different plans (Testing, Insights, Engage, Fullstack, and Services) with three tiers to choose from (Growth, Pro, and Enterprise).
The VWO platform lets you run many types of experiments, from good old-fashioned A/B tests to more sophisticated experiments like multivariate tests and tests that only target specific user segments.
The platform’s point-and-click visual editor works well for less techy marketers who want to get a test up-and-running quickly, while the code editor lets developers make fine-tuned adjustments without any distractions. VWO also offers a comprehensive reporting dashboard for making sense of your experimental results, as well as heatmaps and recordings to help you understand how visitors are interacting with your pages.
Some standout features include the AI copy generator, which creates variations of your existing copy that you can test against, as well as VWO’s Asynchronous SmartCode which ensures page load times are minimized during testing.
How much does VWO cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Enterprise brands with sophisticated testing needs.
5. Optimizely
Optimizely is a data-driven digital experience platform aimed at enterprise businesses. The platform lets you continuously experiment across websites, mobile apps, and messaging platforms.
A powerful and comprehensive testing platform, Optmizely offers three plans that include A/B testing. That said, most of their experimentation features are found in the Intelligence Cloud plan. From A/B and multivariate testing capabilities to in-built program management tools that help improve collaboration and reporting, the Intelligence Cloud provides a complete toolkit for digital experience optimization.
How much does Optimizely cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Enterprise companies with high-traffic websites.
6. Omniconvert
Omniconvert is a Romanian-based conversion optimization platform that includes features such as A/B testing, on-page surveys, pop-ups, and audience segmentation.
The platform offers three plans (Explore, Reveal, and Adapt) with Explore being labeled “the CRO tool for eCommerce”. This plan includes features such as split URL testing, stacked testing, and a browser extension that lets you bypass the CDN cache so you can test your ideas instantly. There’s also a debugger tool, which lets you identify the source of any issues when applying your experiment to your website.
Perhaps Omniconvert’s most impressive feature is that it lets you provide personalized experiences to different segments of your audience through its 40 segmentation parameters. These parameters include visitor location, days since the last conversion, and new/returning visitors.
How much does Omniconvert cost?
The Explore plan starts at $167/month when billed annually. The Reveal plan has three tiers: ‘Start’ is free, ‘Grow’ is $83/month billed annually, and ‘Scale’ is $250/month billed annually. Pricing for the Adapt plan is available upon request.
Great for…
Startups and SMBs with in-house developers that can take full advantage of all the features.
7. AB Tasty
AB Tasty is a French digital optimization platform that lets you implement A/B tests, multivariate tests, and multi-page testing.
A relatively simple and easy-to-use CRO tool, AB Tasty also includes a few more advanced features like heat-mapping, segmentation targeting, and an ROI dashboard. The platform’s user-friendly drag-and-drop builder, coupled with the product’s thorough support documentation and responsive customer service team, means that non-technical users can design and implement tests with confidence.
How much does AB Tasty cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Companies trying A/B testing for the first time.
8. Convert
Convert is a powerful A/B testing solution that also includes URL split testing, multivariate testing, and multi-page testing.
The platform offers considerable customization when it comes to designing and adjusting your experiments. It also offers hundreds of third-party integrations including Google Analytics, WordPress, and Shopify.
Convert is known for its impressive speed, which prevents flickering so your experiments don’t hinder your visitors’ experience. Flickering occurs when visitors are momentarily shown the original version of a page before the alternative version during an A/B test. According to Convert, this can damage your conversion rates by as much as 10%.
How much does Convert cost?
The Kickstart plan starts at $699/month billed annually, the Specialist plan starts at $879/month billed annually, and the Leader plan starts at $1,899/month billed annually.
Great for…
Agencies and CRO experts looking for enterprise-grade functionality at a more affordable price.
9. Adobe Target
AdobeTarget is a digital experience personalization platform that lets you implement extensive testing at scale. While it provides all the features you need for running tests on your web pages, it also lets you run tests across other channels including mobile apps. This platform is aimed exclusively at enterprise businesses and is priced accordingly.
As you’d expect, Target integrates with other Adobe Marketing products via the Adobe Marketing Cloud. This opens up the possibility for powerful data sharing and analysis.
What makes Target especially popular among enterprise brands is the platform’s self-learning algorithm that powers its Automated Personalization feature. This feature uses advanced machine learning to match offer variations to different visitors based on their individual customer profiles. The end result is more personalized content and better sales figures.
How much does Adobe Target cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Enterprise businesses that take CRO and personalization extremely seriously.
10. Convertize
Convertize is an A/B testing platform designed to let any marketer test out their ideas without the need for technical skills.
The platform has a straightforward interface with an intuitive visual editor for creating page variations. Convertize includes a variety of smart features to facilitate testing speed and effectiveness. For example, the Autopilot feature is a set of algorithms that reduce the need for manual test monitoring by automatically moving more of your visitors to the best-performing version in your experiment.
The platform also gives you access to over 150 A/B testing tactics based on psychology and consumer behavior so you’re never at a loss for what to test next.
How much does Convertize cost?
The Solo plan costs $49/month billed annually and allows for up to 20,000 monthly visitors. The Team plan starts at $199/month for 100,000 monthly visitors.
Great for…
Companies looking for an innovative A/B testing tool at a fraction of the cost of enterprise-grade alternatives.
11. Kameleoon
Kameleoon is a powerful, all-in-one platform for A/B testing and personalization on the client-side, server-side, and mobile apps.
The platform boasts a wide range of advanced features, including a smart graphic editor, a vast library of widgets and segment builders, and the ability to simulate variations before publishing.
Kameleoon might be a good option for healthcare and financial organizations, thanks to its heavy emphasis on data security, privacy, and consent management. The platform is also popular among retail and eCommerce brands due to its wide range of segmentation options and its machine learning algorithms that boost conversions automatically by predicting visitor purchase intention in real-time.
How much does Kameleoon cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Mid-sized and enterprise companies seeking a sleek and sturdy experience optimization platform.
12. Oracle Maxymiser
Oracle Maxymiser is another powerful, enterprise-grade testing and experience optimization platform.
The platform’s visual editor lets you set up tests easily and even allows you to build rules for targeting specific visitor segments and displaying personalized content. As you’d expect, there is also a code editor available for more sophisticated projects.
Among the platform’s finest features is its test length calculator, which estimates how long your test should run to achieve statistical significance.
However, since Oracle Maxymiser is a self-service tool you’ll need a considerable degree of technical expertise within your organization to truly make the most of its advanced features.
How much does Oracle Maxymiser cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Enterprise businesses with plenty of in-house tech support.
13. Apptimize
Apptimize is an A/B testing platform that lets you optimize customer journeys across all channels, including web, mobile, OTT, and in-store.
Billed as “the only truly cross-platform A/B testing solution”, Apptimize lets you test a change on any platform and track its impact across all channels. It also gives you the power to create consistent customer experiences by ensuring that each customer sees the same messaging, pricing, and features as they move from one platform to the next.
How much does Apptimize cost?
Pricing is available upon request.
Great for…
Brands with a major focus on providing the best cross-platform experiences.
Time to test!
A/B testing is a powerful technique for improving user experience and boosting conversion rates by allowing you to compare two or more versions of a webpage to see which performs best. This strategy is essential for understanding what works for your audience and refining your marketing efforts. Fortunately, a range of A/B testing tools is available to support businesses in running these experiments effectively.
For small businesses, choosing an all-in-one solution can be the most efficient and cost-effective way to get started. Platforms like Leadpages offer everything you need to create and test landing pages without requiring advanced technical skills.
Leadpages features a user-friendly drag-and-drop page builder, allowing you to design professional-looking landing pages in minutes. With integrated A/B testing capabilities, Leadpages makes it simple to create multiple versions of your pages and see which design, messaging, or layout yields the best results.
Leadpages is also flexible and pairs well with other marketing tools, offering advanced testing options for those seeking deeper insights into user behavior. For example, if you’re looking to refine specific aspects of your pages, such as call-to-action buttons, headlines, or images, you can integrate Leadpages with additional testing tools that provide more granular data analysis and reporting features.
By trying Leadpages free for 14 days, you can explore just how easy it is to create high-converting websites and landing pages. This trial period allows you to experiment with different page variations, run A/B tests, and optimize for the highest impact—all without upfront costs. This approach gives you the insights you need to make data-driven decisions and continuously improve your online marketing performance.
Try Leadpages free for 14 days and discover how easy it can be to create high-converting websites and landing pages.
Try Leadpages free for 14 days
Easily create your website and landing pages with the only platform engineered by marketing nerds.
