Orbit vs Keap
Keap (formerly Infusionsoft) bundles CRM, email and SMS automation, and built-in invoicing for small service businesses, priced as a paid platform. Orbit is a free CRM for one person where 16 AI agents prospect, call leads back in about 90 seconds, and draft follow-ups you approve. Keap automates your marketing campaigns. Orbit puts an AI team on the relationship work.
What is Keap great at?
Keap is a heavyweight in small-business marketing automation. Its strength is the campaign builder: visual, branching automations that move a contact through emails, SMS, tags, and tasks based on what they do. Pair that with built-in invoicing and payments, and a service business can run lead capture, nurture, booking, and billing inside one platform.
For a business that genuinely runs on automated marketing, think a clinic, a course seller, or an agency with repeatable funnels, Keap removes a lot of glue work. The trade-off is that it is a real platform with a real learning curve and a real price, but for the right use it pays back. Check their site for current plans.
Orbit vs Keap at a glance
Side by side on what a one-person business actually needs.
| Orbit | Keap | |
|---|---|---|
| Built-in AI agents that do the work | 16 named agents from prospecting to collections | Marketing automation, not an AI agent team |
| AI voice calls and speed-to-lead | Remy calls new form leads back in about 90 seconds | |
| Email and SMS automation | Agents draft follow-ups you approve, no auto-blast | Strong campaign builder, a core strength |
| Built-in invoicing and payments | Invoices and proposals on the free plan, Ray chases them | Yes, invoicing and payments included |
| Human approval gates on AI output | Every agent output is a card you approve first | Automations run on rules, not approvals |
| Built for one person | Yes, solo-first | Built for small service businesses |
| On-device meeting transcription | Free, audio stays on your machine | |
| Free plan | Free forever, no credit card | Free trial, then paid platform, check their site |
| Pricing model | Free plan now, your own API keys at provider cost, Pro coming soon | Paid monthly platform, check their site |
Where does Orbit fit instead?
Keap and Orbit both want to take work off your plate, but they take different work. Keap automates marketing: a contact triggers a campaign, and emails and tags fire on rules. Orbit automates relationship work: an agent does the human-feeling task, then waits for you to approve it. Remy calls a new lead back in about 90 seconds. Tess drafts a bump for a quiet thread. Wes nudges an unsigned proposal. Ray sends a polite invoice reminder on day 3 and a firmer one on day 14.
The honest line is this: if your business lives on automated funnels, Keap is purpose-built for that. If your business lives on personal follow-up where every message should sound like you, Orbit fits better, because the agents draft and you approve. You still get invoicing: Orbit includes invoices and proposals, and chasing overdue invoices is Ray's whole job.
Nothing auto-sends without your yes, voice runs on your own Vapi number, and the free plan covers all 16 agents with your own AI key. Providers bill you at cost, cents to a few dollars a month for typical solo use, with no platform markup.
Choose Orbit over Keap when
- Your follow-up is personal one-to-one, not a marketing funnel that fires on rules.
- You want a voice agent to call new leads back, which Keap does not do.
- You would rather approve each message than maintain branching automations.
- A paid platform feels heavy for a business of one. Orbit's core is free.
- You want a meeting recorder, MCP access, and a built-in assistant alongside the CRM.
Keap automates your marketing funnel. Orbit puts an AI team on the personal follow-up a funnel cannot fake.
Keep exploring
Frequently asked questions
Is Orbit a good Keap alternative for a solo service business?+
It depends on the work. If your business runs on personal one-to-one follow-up, Orbit fits well: 16 AI agents draft outreach, call leads back, and chase invoices, with your approval. If your business runs on automated marketing funnels with branching campaigns, Keap is purpose-built for that.
Does Keap have a free plan?+
Keap is a paid platform with a free trial rather than a permanent free tier. Check their site for current pricing. Orbit has a free forever plan with no credit card, including all 16 AI agents used with your own API keys.
Does Orbit do email automation like Keap?+
Differently. Keap runs rule-based campaigns that fire automatically. Orbit's agents draft personal follow-up emails that wait for your approval, which suits one-to-one relationships more than mass funnels. Orbit is not a replacement for a full marketing-automation platform.
Can Orbit send invoices and chase them?+
Yes. Orbit's free plan includes invoices and proposals, and the agent Ray sends polite collection reminders on a schedule you set, for example day 3 and day 14. Every reminder lands as a card you approve before it sends.
Who pays for the AI in Orbit?+
You bring your own AI model key, plus Vapi for voice. Providers bill you directly at cost with no Orbit markup. Typical solo usage runs cents to a few dollars a month, far less than a paid automation platform for light use.
Personal follow-up, done by a team you approve
Orbit is free forever, no credit card. Bring your own AI key, turn on the agents you want, and approve every card before it sends.
Free forever plan. No credit card. No spam.