Cello vs Referral Factory (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Cello grades higher than Referral Factory: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Cello grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Cello
Referral platform for B2B SaaS, for users and for partners
Referral Factory
Referral program software for mid-market and enterprise teams
Which one is for you
Pick Cello if
- Fits if you run B2B SaaS and want referrals from both users and partners
- Works for small partner programs that stay under 5 transacting partners
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if your referral ARR is above $10K, where the next user plan is $200 a month
- Tight if you grow past 5 partners, as the next partner plan is $80 a month
- Watch out: partner plans take a transaction cost of 5% on Free and 3.5% on Plus and Pro
- Watch out: the page shows dollars but its pricing data lists euros, so check the currency at sign-up
Pick Referral Factory if
- Fits if you run a mid-sized or larger company and want referral campaigns without developers
- Works for teams that want 200+ reward types in one place
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are small: Basic is $200 a month and covers 20,000 users
- Skip it if you need white-labelling, your own domain, SSO or PayPal payouts, as none are on Basic
- Watch out: price follows users who join a campaign, whether referring or invited
- Tight if you want self-hosted data or a dedicated manager, as those are Enterprise at $1,000 and up
How we grade them
| 2.4GPACelloFair | 2.0GPAReferral FactoryFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CUser referrals start at $65 a month for up to $10K referral ARR, which is under the category's middle of $69 but not in its cheapest quarter. | D$200 a month against a category middle of $69, and white-labelling, your own domain and SSO sit on Pro at $400. Dearer than most of the category. |
| Free plan and trial | CA free partner plan with 1 campaign and up to 5 transacting partners, with a 5% transaction cost. Caps you will reach quickly. | DA 15-day free trial and no free plan. Whether the trial needs a card is not stated. |
| Features | BIn-product referrals, sharing, campaigns, rewards, activation sequences and partner programs cover the core job. The listing names no gap. | BCampaign builder, rewards, fraud alerts, tracking, webhooks and API all come on Basic. Nothing in the listing is missing from the core job. |
| Ease of use | CA web app with campaigns and rewards to build, and Slack support on paid plans. No store rating is on record. | CA web app where you build the campaign yourself, with a guided onboarding only on Pro. No store rating is on record. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iOS and Android listed, with a single integration named. | BWeb only, with 8 integrations plus webhooks and an API. |
| Best for | referral programs for B2B SaaS, users and partners | no-code referral programs for mid-size teams |
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: Cello and Referral Factory. How we grade
Price against what you get
Cello starts at $65 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Referral Factory starts at $200 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Cello starts $135 a month lower. Of the other affiliate and referral tools on the chart, none scores higher than Cello for less, and none scores higher than Referral Factory for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Referral Factory also covers no-code.
At a glance
| Cello | Referral Factory | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $65 per month for up to $10K referral ARR | $200 per month for up to 20,000 users |
| Free plan | Partner referrals Free plan: 1 campaign and up to 5 transacting partners, with a 5% transaction cost. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 15-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Cello | Referral Factory |
| Price read from | cello.so | referral-factory.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Cello
- User-referral plans are capped by referral ARR: $10K, $50K and $100K, with Enterprise for more.
- The page text shows dollars, but its structured pricing data lists euro amounts, so confirm the currency at sign-up.
- Partner referrals charge a transaction cost of 5% on Free, 3.5% on Plus and Pro, and 2% on Enterprise.
- Dedicated success manager is not on the Start plan.
Referral Factory
- Price follows the number of users who join a campaign, whether referring or invited: 20,000 on Basic and 40,000 on Pro.
- White-labelling, your own domain, SSO and PayPal payouts are not on Basic.
- Self-hosted data, invoice billing and a dedicated account manager are Enterprise only.
- The vendor positions it for mid-market and enterprise teams rather than very small programs.
Key features
Cello
- In-product referrals
- A web SDK and a mobile SDK for iOS, Android, Flutter and React Native put personal referral links inside the product, with no separate sign-up.
- Sharing and attribution
- Share by email, social, QR code or unique link, with branded landing pages and auto attribution that recovers missed attributions.
- Campaigns and rewards
- Campaigns carry payout rules, and users are notified and rewarded automatically when a referral succeeds.
- Activation sequences
- Automated engagement sequences across in-product and email touchpoints encourage users to share.
- Partner referrals
- A separate line for affiliates and influencers, priced by campaigns and transacting partners, with a growth portal.
- Performance analytics
- Referral performance is tracked in a portal in real time, with text customizable in more than 10 languages.
Referral Factory
- No-code program builder
- An AI-assisted builder creates a branded referral program, with page editing or custom HTML upload, widgets, pop-ups and embeds.
- Several ways to capture referrals
- Referrals can come from unique links, referral codes, QR codes, lead-submission forms, uploads, the API and integrations.
- Rewards automation
- Over 200 reward types including gift cards in several currencies, cash payouts via PayPal, discounts, coupons and custom rewards.
- Fraud alerts
- Flags sign-ups from the same IP address or suspect emails so rewards are not issued for fake referrals.
- Integrations and API
- Connects to HubSpot, Stripe, Intercom, Salesforce, Zoho, Pipedrive and Zapier, plus webhooks and an API on every plan.
- Security and compliance
- The pricing page lists SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001, with SSO on the Pro plan and above.
Plans
Cello
User referrals Start$65
per month for up to $10K referral ARR
Unlimited referrals, 1 campaign, all integrations and features, Slack support, 0% transaction costs. Shown with a 32% discount.
User referrals Grow$200
per month for up to $50K referral ARR
Unlimited campaigns, priority Slack support and a dedicated success manager. Shown with a 33% discount.
User referrals Scale$750
per month for up to $100K referral ARR
Same features as Grow at a higher referral ARR ceiling; Enterprise has unlimited ARR at a custom price.
Partner referrals Free$0
1 campaign and up to 5 transacting partners, with a 5% transaction cost.
Partner referrals Plus$80
per month for up to 25 transacting partners
3 campaigns, with a 3.5% transaction cost.
Partner referrals Pro$280
per month for up to 100 transacting partners
10 campaigns, 3.5% transaction cost. The Enterprise tier has custom pricing and a 2% transaction cost.
Referral Factory
Basic$200
per month for up to 20,000 users
Self-serve. Unlimited campaigns, 200+ reward types, fraud alerts, tracking and reporting, all integrations, webhooks and API.
Pro$400
per month for up to 40,000 users
Everything in Basic plus white-labelling, SAML SSO, email verification, teammate access and guided onboarding.
Enterprise$1000
per month and up, for 100,000+ users
Everything in Pro plus a dedicated account manager, invoice billing, self-hosted data and custom HTML. Sold through a demo.
Ways to pay less
Cello
No public discounts listed.
Referral Factory
- Annual discount
20% off yearly billing
The pricing page has a Monthly/Yearly toggle labelled Save 20%. The prices above are the monthly ones.
- Startups
50% off for startups and small businesses
Startups and small businesses can apply for 50% off qualifying subscriptions, with the same 15-day trial.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Cello or Referral Factory?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Cello is cheaper to start with: $65 a month, against $200 a month for Referral Factory. Cello starts at $65 per month for up to $10K referral ARR, and Referral Factory starts at $200 per month for up to 20,000 users.
Which has a free plan, Cello or Referral Factory?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Cello has a free plan. Referral Factory does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Cello and Referral Factory run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Cello 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.