Finding the right product experience platform isn’t just about features, it’s about getting real value for your money. If you’re investing in a tool to drive feature adoption, onboard users faster, and collect feedback, you want to be sure it’s worth the cost.
But Pendo’s pricing structure tells a different story. With plans starting at $7,000 per year and enterprise costs exceeding $100,000, many teams are left questioning: Are we overpaying for features we don’t even need?
So, is Pendo really the best choice for product growth? Or is there a more practical alternative that offers the same price advantage with more flexibility?
In this blog post, I’ll break down Pendo’s pricing structure, expose its hidden costs, and compare it to a better alternative: Userpilot.
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What is Pendo?
Pendo is a software that helps businesses understand user behavior, collect feedback, and drive feature adoption. It combines in-app guidance, analytics, event tracking, and customer feedback tools to optimize how users interact with your software.
What can you do with Pendo?
- Onboard new users effectively. Use in-app guides, walkthroughs, and tooltips to help users get started.
- Analyze user behavior. Track new feature adoption, retention rates, and engagement trends to guide decision-making.
- Collect user feedback. Via Pendo Feedback, Net Promoter Scores (NPS), and Pendo session replays to gather insights.
- Personalize user experiences. Segment audiences and deliver targeted in-app messages based on behavior.
- Support product growth initiatives. Leverage cross-app executive dashboards and journey orchestration to refine engagement strategies.
- Enhance mobile experiences. Provide in-app messaging and analytics for mobile apps.
Here’s what that looks like in action:
How much does Pendo cost?
Let’s talk numbers.
Pendo’s pricing is far from budget-friendly. The paid plan starts at $7,000 annually, but real-world costs are much higher. According to data from Vendr, the median buyer pays $47,000 annually, and for larger enterprises, that number jumps to $133,000 or more.
That’s a hefty bill! Especially when Pendo competitors like Userpilot offer the same product adoption and analytics features for a fraction of the cost and with transparent, upfront pricing.
But the cost isn’t the only concern. Pendo’s pricing model comes with a few key challenges, as expressed by Pendo users:
- High upfront costs. Some startups were quoted $30,000 annually for basic plans or even $85,000+ for more advanced use cases.
- Opaque pricing. Pendo does not publicly list detailed pricing, so teams must make multiple sales calls to get a quote.
- Multi-year contracts for discounts and annual price hikes. Many businesses must commit to multi-year contracts to lock in lower rates at auto-renewal. Those who don’t may see annual price increases ranging from 5-10%, with some cases reported as high as 20%, depending on their agreement.
- Lack of essential integrations at lower tiers. The Starter plan ($7,000/year) doesn’t include key integrations, meaning businesses may need to upgrade to higher-cost plans to access basic features.
Now, let’s break down what Pendo offers in each pricing plan and whether the cost aligns with the value you’re getting.
What pricing plans does Pendo offer?
Pendo’s pricing is divided into five plans: Base, Core, Pulse, and Ultimate. Each tier adds more features but also significantly increases the cost.
- Free: Pendo also offers a Free Plan, which includes retroactive product analytics, in-app guides, NPS surveys, and roadmaps for up to 500 monthly active users. This plan enables businesses to try before committing.
- Base: This plan is ideal for companies just starting with product analytics and in-app guides. It includes custom monthly active users (MAUs) and one integration core, making it a good entry point but with limited flexibility.
- Core: This plan, aimed at organizations that need deeper insights, adds session replays, allowing teams to see how users interact with their product in real-time. It builds on the Base plan’s foundation but provides more visibility into user behavior.
- Pulse: This plan, designed for teams optimizing research and development, introduces NPS surveys and product discovery tools. It helps businesses collect and analyze user feedback to refine their product strategy.
- Ultimate: This is the most advanced tier, which includes the Pro edition of in-app guides, journey orchestration, and data synchronization. It’s built for enterprises needing full-scale product analytics and automation.
Pendo doesn’t list its pricing, but according to reports, costs rise significantly across these tiers. If you want to know exactly what you’ll be paying, contact their sales team.
So, with all these plans, what’s the real experience of using Pendo? Let’s break down the pros and cons next.
What are the pros and cons of using Pendo?
Choosing the right product analytics platform isn’t just about features. It’s about whether it delivers real value for the cost. While Pendo offers strong analytics, in-app guidance, and feedback tools, users have mixed experiences with pricing, ease of use, and data accuracy.
Pros of using Pendo
Pendo combines product analytics and in-app messaging, allowing teams to track user behavior, onboard users, and collect feedback (all in one platform).
- Comprehensive analytics: Its behavioral analytics capabilities allow teams to track feature adoption, while retroactive product analytics help uncover past user trends.
- In-app messaging and onboarding: Businesses can use walkthroughs, tooltips, and banners to guide users without developer involvement, improving activation rates.
- Collect customer feedback: Pendo helps businesses collect user feedback and monitor customer feedback through NPS surveys, session replays, and feedback collection tools.
- Cross-app analytics: Larger teams benefit from cross-app executive dashboards, giving them a holistic view of engagement across multiple products.
Cons of using Pendo
However, while Pendo is great for feature and digital adoption, users have reported challenges with reporting accuracy and customization.
- Steep learning curve: Setting up event tracking and guides can take time, and some teams struggle with manual tagging and data extraction.
- Limited customization: While Pendo offers pre-built templates, its in-app guides lack deep UI customization, making it harder to match branding needs.
- Reporting & data quality issues: Some users find inconsistencies in visit numbers and say pulling accurate data in one view is difficult. Others mention survey export limitations, requiring additional work to make sense of feedback.
For teams that prioritize ease of use, affordability, and reliable reporting, Pendo’s cost and complexity can be a major drawback.
If you’re evaluating Pendo’s pricing and value, you might wonder if a better alternative offers the same features without the hefty price tag.
Looking for a Robust Pendo Alternative? Try Userpilot
Userpilot: A more cost-effective alternative to Pendo
Yes, there’s a better alternative: Userpilot. You get the same must-have features: product analytics, in-app guidance, and feedback collection, but with more control, easier customization, and a price tag that won’t make your finance team panic.
Why should you choose Userpilot over Pendo?
Both Userpilot and Pendo offer strong onboarding and product adoption features, but they cater to different needs. If you’re looking for more customization, pricing transparency, and an easier transition, Userpilot might be a better fit. Let’s break down what makes it a better alternative.
1. More control over customization
Pendo provides solid onboarding and analytics but has limitations when it comes to UI branding and guide triggers. If flexibility is a priority, Userpilot allows you to fully customize your onboarding flows and user interactions—without relying on developers.
2. Transparent pricing with no hidden fees
Userpilot offers transparent pricing with flexible plans, giving businesses more control over their budget.
For instance, Cuvama, a value-selling platform, pricing played a huge role in their decision to switch. They found themselves paying for features they didn’t need, and moving to Userpilot helped them cut costs while keeping the core functionality they required.
“High price was one of the decision criteria to move from Pendo because we were paying lots, and we were not using it.”
— Leyre Iniguez, Customer Experience Lead, Cuvama
3. Easier migration with contract buyout
Switching platforms can be a hassle, but Userpilot helps ease the transition by offering a contract buyout option for Pendo users (terms apply). This makes it easier to switch without worrying about sunk costs.
How much does Userpilot cost?
Unlike Pendo, Userpilot offers transparent, upfront pricing, no hidden fees, and no surprises. You get the same in-app guidance, product analytics, and product feedback surveys at a fraction of the cost.
- Starter plan: At $249/month, this plan is perfect for smaller teams looking for essential user engagement tools, NPS surveys, and analytics for up to 2,000 monthly active users.
- Growth plan: Priced at $799/month, this is ideal for scaling teams that need advanced analytics, custom MAUs, and deeper user insights with in-app surveys and content localization.
- Enterprise plan: Custom pricing for large organizations that need premium integrations, security features, and priority support.
Userpilot is far more affordable than Pendo’s Starter plan, which begins at $7,000 annually. For more insights, visit Userpilot’s pricing page.
What do users say about Userpilot?
Userpilot users love its ease of use, flexibility, and impact on user engagement. Unlike Pendo, which often requires engineering support and long setup times, Userpilot makes creating in-app experiences simple and effective (without the hassle).
On G2, many users highlight how Userpilot’s no-code setup and intuitive interface make building user onboarding flows and product tours easy. One reviewer put it best:
For companies switching from Pendo, the benefits go beyond just ease of use. Shelterluv, a CRM solution for animal shelters, moved to reduce their team’s workload and improve customer support.
“In support and onboarding, Userpilot has been a time saver and has reduced the workload of a lot of the agents because we’re able to use in-app messaging to share information at scale.”
— Matthew Brown, Senior Customer Solutions Manager, Shelterluv
Whether saving time, increasing adoption, or providing a smoother onboarding experience, Userpilot is helping product teams deliver better product experiences with no complexity.
Looking for a Pendo alternative?
At the end of the day, why overpay for Pendo when you can get the same features, better customization, and no contract stress with Userpilot?
If you’re considering making the switch, Userpilot even buys out your existing Pendo contract (terms apply), making upgrading easier than ever.
Stop overpaying for unnecessary features. Switch to Userpilot today for more control, better customization, and a pricing model that works for you. Book your demo now.
Tired of Overpaying for Pendo Pricing? Switch to Userpilot Today
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