Birdeye vs Customer Lobby (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Birdeye grades higher than Customer Lobby: 2.0 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Birdeye grades higher on value for money and features. They get the same grade on the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Birdeye
Review management and AI agents for multi-location local businesses
Customer Lobby
Review requests and customer marketing for home service businesses
Which one is for you
Pick Birdeye if
- Fits if you run a franchise or a brand with dozens of locations
- Works for dental, healthcare, car and home service businesses that want reviews and listings on one contract
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to see a price before talking to sales, as none is published
- Not for you if you run a single shop and want to try it free first, as there's no free plan or trial
- Not for you if you sell online and need reviews of each product on your store
- Watch out: pricing is set by the products deployed at each location, under one contract, rather than by seats
- Tight if you want a quick start, as there's a sales quote and a lot of platform to set up across locations
Pick Customer Lobby if
- Fits if you run HVAC, plumbing, electrical or a similar service business
- Works for companies that want review requests tied to each invoice
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you only want reviews: $299 a month plus a $199 activation fee
- Watch out: each plan has a $199 one-time activation fee
- Skip it if you sell online, because it's built for service businesses, not online stores or healthcare
- Watch out: a page also lists Pro Marketing from $299, with exact pricing set in a demo
How we grade them
| 2.0GPABirdeyeFair | 1.6GPACustomer LobbyWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price is published: the pricing page asks for your number of locations and contact details before you get a quote, and Birdeye prices by the products deployed at each location, not by seats. With nothing to compare, it sits at C, the grade for no stated price. | DReviews is $299 a month plus $199 activation, and Essentials is $499. The category's dearest tenth starts at $250. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial on record. You ask for a quote and sign a contract, so there's no way to look around for free first. | FNo free plan or trial is on record for this listing. |
| Features | BIt covers the whole job: AI review requests on the channel most likely to get a reply, AI replies within industry rules, every site's reviews in one inbox with a score per location, competitor benchmarks, and positive reviews turned into branded posts. | CReview requests after every job, a technician app, customer marketing, invoice sync and spend tracking. The marketing is most of what the price buys. |
| Ease of use | C4.32 from 508 App Store ratings, which is middling. There's a lot of platform to set up across locations, and you start with a sales quote rather than a sign-up. | CNo rating on record, and it syncs with your invoice system before it works. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Salesforce, HubSpot, ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber, QuickBooks Online, Square and Dentrix. No desktop app is listed, which keeps it off an A. | BWeb, a technician mobile app and Google and Facebook review links. |
| Best for | reviews for brands with many locations | service businesses wanting reviews and marketing |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Birdeye and Customer Lobby. How we grade
Where they differ
- Birdeye also covers AI agents, surveys, reports and chatbots.
- Customer Lobby also covers email campaigns, sMS marketing and dashboards.
At a glance
| Birdeye | Customer Lobby | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | Not published | $299 per month, plus $199 activation |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Birdeye Inc | Customer Lobby |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | customerlobby.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Birdeye
- No prices are published: the pricing page asks for the number of locations and contact details before giving a quote.
- Birdeye says it prices by the products deployed at each location under one contract, not by seats.
- It is aimed at multi-location businesses; the pricing form starts at 1 to 3 locations and runs past 1,000.
Customer Lobby
- Pricing is high for a reviews tool because the plans center on marketing to past customers.
- Each plan has a $199 one-time activation fee.
- A page also lists a Pro Marketing price starting at $299 with exact pricing set in a demo.
- Built for service businesses, not online stores or healthcare.
Key features
Birdeye
- Review requests at the right moment
- An AI agent asks each customer for a review on the channel most likely to get a reply and prompts for detail in the review.
- AI review replies
- Writes responses in the brand's voice within industry rules, and either posts them on its own or holds them for approval.
- All review sites in one place
- Gathers ratings and reviews from every site for every location into one inbox, with a reputation score per location over time.
- Reviews turned into posts
- Picks strong reviews and designs branded graphics to post on social media and the business's website, by location.
- Competitor benchmarks
- Compares each location's ratings and visibility against named competitors, location by location.
- Wider platform
- The same contract can add listings, social posting, a chatbot, surveys, ticketing, appointments and reminders by voice, email and text.
Customer Lobby
- Review requests after every job
- Follows each transaction with a review request aimed at Google, Facebook and other chosen sites.
- Technician mobile app
- Lets techs ask for a review in the customer's home on the spot.
- Customer marketing
- Uses each customer's history to send personalized emails, postcards and texts.
- Invoice system sync
- Says it connects to more than 150 invoicing systems to choose which customers to contact.
- Spend tracking
- Ties marketing spend back to sold jobs in a dashboard.
Plans
Birdeye
Pricing could not be confirmed. See birdeye.com.
Customer Lobby
Reviews$299
per month, plus $199 one-time activation
Unlimited review requests synced with your invoice system.
Essentials$499
per month, plus $199 one-time activation
Review requests plus marketing to up to 230 customers a month with emails and postcards.
Pro$999
per month, plus $199 one-time activation
Targets up to 510 customers a month and includes 500 promotional texts a month.
Master$1,999
per month, plus $199 one-time activation
Targets up to 1,200 customers a month and includes 1,000 promotional texts a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Birdeye or Customer Lobby?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Birdeye has no price we could confirm, and Customer Lobby starts at $299 per month, plus $199 activation.
Which has a free plan, Birdeye or Customer Lobby?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Birdeye nor Customer Lobby has a free plan.
Which platforms do Birdeye and Customer Lobby run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Birdeye lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.