Action Network vs Changemaker Lite

Action Network

Changemaker Lite

Side by side

Figure	Action Network	Changemaker Lite
Price from	$15/mo	Free
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Free trial	—	—
Open source	—	Yes
Web	Yes	Yes
Linux	—	Yes
API	Yes	Yes
Self-hosted	—	Yes
Plans published	8	3
Spec score · Advocacy Software	9.1 (#1)	8.8 (#2)
API	A REST-style API and webhooks support synchronizing people, email addresses, action histories, subscriptions, embeds and near-real-time event notifications.	Two JSON REST APIs are documented: Express on port 4000 for core functions and Fastify on port 4100 for media.
Company structure	Action Network says it is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit and the sole shareholder of Action Squared Inc., the maker of its toolsets.	The project is presented as built by The Bunker Operations, a Canadian worker co-op based in Edmonton.
Fundraising	Fundraising campaigns provide customizable donation pages, recurring giving, donor management, payment integrations and progress tracking.	The stack supports one-time donations, recurring subscription plans, products, tickets, merchandise, inventory, and payment analytics through Stripe.
Integrations	Action Network reports more than 20 integrations, including Salesforce, Catalist, SpeechifAI, ActBlue, CallHub, Zapier, Make, n8n, Inbox Monster and Mobile Commons.	The site describes integrations including Rocket.Chat, Gancio, Listmonk, n8n, Gitea, NocoDB, and Vaultwarden.
Licence	The service is proprietary; its terms state that Action Squared owns the services and restricts reproduction, modification and derivative works.	The public source repository identifies Changemaker Lite as Apache 2.0 licensed.
Purpose	Action Network describes itself as a progressive online organizing platform for individuals and groups organizing for progressive causes.	Changemaker Lite describes itself as a self-hosted campaign toolkit built for growing political movements.
Security	Action Network says it encrypts traffic and stored data, uses HTTPS/SSL on its pages and widgets, and is PCI compliant; Stripe handles card information.	The site lists JWT rotation, rate limiting, XSS prevention, encrypted secrets, and HSTS headers among its security measures.
Security controls	The privacy policy states that data is encrypted in transit and at rest and protected with web application firewalls, security scans, audits, access logging and monitoring.	Documented controls include password rules, Redis rate limits, JWT rotation, RBAC, AES-256-GCM field encryption, HSTS, and XSS prevention.
Self-hosting	The product is delivered as a hosted web service and the official materials provide no self-hosting option.	The software runs as a Docker Compose stack and can be installed from pre-built images or from source.
System requirements	The service requires internet access, a modern web browser and JavaScript enabled.	Local testing requires Docker 24+, Compose v2, OpenSSL, 2 GB RAM, and 10 GB disk; 4 GB RAM is recommended with media, chat, or monitoring.
What it does	Action Network is a progressive online organizing platform for publishing petitions, event RSVPs, surveys, fundraisers, ticketed events and letter campaigns, then communicating with participating activists by email or mobile messaging.	Changemaker Lite is a self-hosted campaign platform for political movements and community organizers.

Plans

Action Network pricing →

Changemaker Lite

Self-HostedFree
Managed HostingPriced on request
Pre-ConfiguredPriced on request

Changemaker Lite pricing →

In their own words

Action Network

Action Network is an online organizing platform for people and groups working on progressive causes. Organizers can create petitions, event RSVPs, surveys, fundraising forms, ticketed event pages, and letter campaigns, then use mass email and mobile texting tools. Email features include testing subject or message variants, templates, automated workflows, drip campaigns, personalization, targeting, and analytics. Event tools cover RSVP management, reminders, self check-in, ticketing, and maps; fundraising pages support recurring giving and donor management. Lists can be downloaded. Integrations include Salesforce sync, Catalist, SpeechifAI, ActBlue, CallHub, Zapier, Make, and n8n. Its REST API can retrieve and post data and sync systems, but access is limited to paying partners. The free plan is available; Movement starts at $15/mo and charges for email usage above its included allowance. Mobile SMS and MMS campaigns are a separate add-on to an email partnership. The platform says it does not provide websites, offline organizing, general CRM work, or FEC compliance.

Visit actionnetwork.org

Changemaker Lite

Changemaker Lite is a self-hosted campaign toolkit for growing political movements, combining advocacy, canvassing, volunteer scheduling and newsletters. Influence campaigns can look up representatives by postal code, send tracked advocacy emails and collect responses. Its mobile canvassing map supports live GPS, walking routes, visit recording and outcome tracking. Shift scheduling provides public signup, confirmation emails, cut assignment and capacity management. The Listmonk newsletter feature includes subscriber management, templates and analytics, with unlimited subscribers listed. Named integrations include Rocket.Chat, Gancio, Listmonk, n8n, Gitea, NocoDB and Vaultwarden. Deployment documentation covers Docker Compose and options including a reverse proxy, tunnel or private VPN. An included script backs up PostgreSQL databases and uploaded media, with optional S3 upload. REST endpoints cover authentication, campaigns, locations, shifts, media and more. The Self-Hosted plan is free, billed forever, and includes all 45+ campaign tools, unlimited users and data, community support and use of your own infrastructure. The homepage describes the product as beta and under active development, with possible breaking changes.

Visit cmlite.org