Cello review (2026): is the free plan enough?
Referral platform for B2B SaaS, for users and for partners
Black Friday: is there a Cello sale?
Cello report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for referral programs for B2B SaaS, users and partners
Cello runs referral programs for SaaS companies, for users inside the product and for partners, with a free partner plan for 1 campaign and 5 partners. But user plans are capped by referral ARR, partner plans take a 2% to 5% cut of transactions, and the page's currency should be checked.
Who Cello is for
- 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
Who Cello is not for
- 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
Why Cello gets a 2.4
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for moneyUser 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.
- CFree plan and trialA free partner plan with 1 campaign and up to 5 transacting partners, with a 5% transaction cost. Caps you will reach quickly.
- BFeaturesIn-product referrals, sharing, campaigns, rewards, activation sequences and partner programs cover the core job. The listing names no gap.
- CEase of useA web app with campaigns and rewards to build, and Slack support on paid plans. No store rating is on record.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, iOS and Android listed, with a single integration named.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Cello's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/cello#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/cello.svg" alt="Cello: 2.4 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Cello stands among affiliate and referral tools
Cello's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 68 of the 89 other affiliate and referral tools we grade, and level with 12.
It stands best on features (B, above 57 of 89) and worst on ease of use (C, above 2).
Its paid plans start at $65 a month, against a middle price of $65.46 for the category: 24 of the 49 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 90 affiliate and referral tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Cello’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 14 of 89, level with 61
- CFree plan and trialAbove 60 of 89, level with 19
- BFeaturesAbove 57 of 89, level with 29
- CEase of useAbove 2 of 89, level with 87
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 35 of 89, level with 54
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 51 affiliate and referral tools. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Cello, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Cello you would be making payouts to partners in many countries, with their tax forms. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.4 is higher than 68 of the 89 other affiliate and referral tools we grade. It costs $780 a year.
What you could make
- Reports: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- Payouts to partners in many countries, with their tax forms.
- Every click and sale traced back to the right partner.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.
What this rests on. Cello’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Cello?
Cello is a referral platform with two product lines: user referrals, embedded inside a SaaS product through web and mobile SDKs, and partner referrals for affiliates and influencers. User-referral plans are priced by the referral ARR a program generates; partner plans by campaigns and transacting partners. It includes a Slack support channel and a growth portal.
Worth knowing
- 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.
Key features
- 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.
Cello pricing
As of Nov 13, 2026, Cello has a free plan, and paid plans start at $65 per month for up to $10K referral ARR.
- Starts at
- $65 per month for up to $10K referral ARR
- Free plan
- Partner referrals Free plan: 1 campaign and up to 5 transacting partners, with a 5% transaction cost.
- Free trial
- None listed
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| User referrals Start | $65per 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 | $200per 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 | $750per 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 | $80per month for up to 25 transacting partners | 3 campaigns, with a 3.5% transaction cost. |
| Partner referrals Pro | $280per month for up to 100 transacting partners | 10 campaigns, 3.5% transaction cost. The Enterprise tier has custom pricing and a 2% transaction cost. |
Read from cello.so on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Cello before you buy.
Works with
Cello alternatives
- Cello vs FirstPromoter
Free trial · from $49/mo
- Cello vs Rewardful
Free trial · from $49/mo
- Cello vs Referral Factory
Free trial · from $200/mo
- Cello vs GrowSurf
Free plan · from $125/mo
Common questions
Does Cello have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Cello is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Does Cello have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 13, 2026. Cello is listed for Web, iOS and Android.
Is Cello open source?
Cello is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026.