FiveStariz and Podium, side by side
We sell the asking. Podium sells more than that, and charges for it. Here is the difference, with the parts they win left in.
FiveStariz
From $19
a month, on our pricing page. $5 per location from 10 locations, with your own brand included.
Podium
$399 a month
Their cheapest plan. Extra fees apply per location on top.
Read on podium.com/pricing on 17 October 2026. Prices change, so check theirs before you decide.
What Podium charges
From their own pricing page on 17 October 2026.
| Plan | A month | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Core | $399 | Messaging, reviews and their AI answering. |
| Pro | $599 | More AI and automation. They mark it best value. |
| Signature | Custom | Quoted by their sales team. |
On top of the plan, their page lists these:
| A carrier fee for US texting | $5 a month per location |
| A network setup fee | $500 per location |
| Extra phone numbers | $5 a month each |
| Phone seats, if you want calls | $30 a user a month, $25 from 5 users |
Their own page warns that prices "may vary based on industry, partnerships, integrations, volume, and carrier fees", and that HVAC businesses must contact sales. So treat $399 as a starting point, not a final bill.
Ours, for the same job: $19 for 1 location, $29 with a team, $5 per location from 10 with your own brand on it.
What Podium does that we do not
- Webchat on your website, and 2 way texting with customers
- Phone calls and payments in the same inbox
- Reviews as 1 part of a bigger messaging product
What we do differently
- $19 a month against $399, with no per location setup fee
- Almost nothing to learn, because it does 1 job
- Per location pricing an agency can resell
Which one should you buy
Pick them if you want to run all your customer messaging in 1 inbox. Pick us if the only job is getting more reviews.
Four questions that settle it
Do you want an inbox for your reviews?
If yes, Podium or another suite. We do not have one and are not building one.
How many locations are you running?
At 1 location the gap is a few tens of dollars a month. At 25 it is thousands, because we charge $5 a location.
Who is doing the asking?
If it is a crew out on jobs, they can text a name and number in from their own phone here, with nothing installed.
Do you want to start today?
We publish the price and you can sign up. Podium will also let you start, at their price.
What moving over actually involves
- Your reviews stay where they are. They live on Google and the other review sites, not inside any tool. Nothing moves, and nothing is lost.
- Your review link does not change. We point at the same Google review page you already use.
- Bring your do not ask list. Upload the people you never want contacted, and they are blocked here too.
- Run both for a week if you like. Just make sure only 1 of them is asking a given customer, because we cannot see what another tool sent.
What you lose by leaving Podium
webchat on your website, and 2 way texting with customers, phone calls and payments in the same inbox, reviews as 1 part of a bigger messaging product. If you use any of those every week, keep them and treat us as the asking tool instead.
FiveStariz and Podium
Is FiveStariz a Podium alternative?
For review requests, yes. For webchat, 2 way texting with customers, phone calls and payments, no. We do not build any of those.
What does Podium really cost?
Their published plans are $399 and $599 a month, read on their own pricing page on 17 October 2026. On top of that their page lists a $5 a month carrier fee per US location and a $500 network fee per location. Phone seats are extra again.
Which is simpler to set up?
Ours. Add your business, paste a review link, send a test to your own phone. There is no inbox to staff and no new way of working for your team.
See what the asking half costs
From $19 a month, published, with no call and no contract.