# Haystack review (2026): is the free plan enough?

> Digital-only business cards with directory sync for large companies

Checked Oct 24, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 by ToolGPA.

Haystack makes digital business cards shared by QR code, link, phone widget or email signature, and sells no physical NFC cards. Individuals get unlimited cards and AI card scans free. Paid plans add custom card designs, smart email signatures and CRM integrations, and larger companies sync employee cards from Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace or an HR system.

- **Category:** Digital Business Cards
- **Made by:** Haystack Australia Pty Ltd
- **Website:** https://thehaystackapp.com
- **Runs on:** Web, iOS, Android
- **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you want a physical NFC card, as Haystack sells none and suggests printing your QR code on paper.
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 24, 2026

## Pricing

As of Oct 24, 2026, Haystack has a free plan, and paid plans start at $2.50 per user / month, billed annually (Business, 10+ users).

- **Pricing model:** Free plan
- **Free plan:** Personal plan, free: unlimited cards, shares and contacts, unlimited AI card scans, logo and photos, social links, notes and tags, and the iOS and Android apps.
- **Free trial:** 14-day free trial of Pro and Business; the card is charged only when the trial ends.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Personal | $0 | For sole operators: unlimited cards, shares, contacts and AI card scans, with logo, photos and social links. |
| Pro | $4.50 per user / month, billed annually ($7.95 billed monthly) | Custom card design, user permissions, custom links, smart email signatures, CRM integrations and analytics. Currency not stated. |
| Business | $2.50 per user / month, billed annually ($4.95 billed monthly) | For teams of 10 or more: everything in Pro plus teams for organizing shared contacts. Currency not stated. |
| Enterprise | Custom | For 250+ users: usage-based pricing, HRIS integrations, custom fields, contract terms and dedicated customer success. |

Read from https://thehaystackapp.com/pricing on Oct 24, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Haystack before buying.

## Ways to pay less

- **Up to 40% off with annual billing** (Annual discount): Haystack's pricing page marks annual billing -40%: Pro is $4.50 per user a month billed annually against $7.95 monthly, Business $2.50 against $4.95. Source: https://thehaystackapp.com/pricing

## Key features

- **Digital cards:** Unlimited cards with a logo, profile image, gallery, theme colors, social and video links, a portfolio, brochures and a calendar scheduler.
- **AI card scanner:** Scan paper business cards into contacts without limit on every plan, including the free one, and add notes and tags.
- **Sharing:** Share by QR code, personalized link, iOS and Android home screen widgets, or a smart email signature.
- **Directory sync:** Sync employees from Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace or an HR system so new hires get a card on day one and leavers' cards switch off.
- **Admin controls:** An admin dashboard with card templates and employee permissions, such as locking synced job titles while people add their own links.
- **CRM, Zapier and API:** Send new contacts met in person or over Microsoft Teams to a CRM, or connect other tools through Zapier, webhooks and a public REST API.

## Good for

- Individuals who want a free card and unlimited card scans
- Large companies that want cards created from their staff directory
- Teams that would rather avoid printing and shipping NFC cards

## Worth knowing

- Prices carry a dollar sign without saying whether they are US or Australian dollars; the page lists USD and AUD as payment options.
- Haystack sells no NFC cards; it suggests printing your card's QR code on paper cards if you want something physical.
- Card design, smart email signatures and CRM integrations need Pro or Business; HRIS integrations and custom fields are Enterprise features.
- Business is for teams of 10 or more, and Enterprise starts at 250 users with usage-based pricing.

## ToolGPA grades

**GPA: 3.0 out of 4**, graded Oct 24, 2026. Haystack's free plan gives one person unlimited digital cards, contacts and AI card scans, and larger companies can create cards from their staff directory. It sells no NFC cards, your own card design and CRM links need Pro, and the prices don't say whether they're US or Australian dollars.

- **Value for money: B.** Pro is $4.50 a user a month on yearly billing, inside this category's cheapest quarter ($4.99), though $7.95 monthly. Business is $2.50 a user for 10 users or more, $25 a month at the least. The page doesn't say which dollar.
- **Free plan and trial: A.** Personal is free with no cap on cards, shares, contacts or AI card scans, plus your logo, photos, notes, tags and both phone apps. Custom card design, email signatures and CRM links are the paid part.
- **Features: C.** Unlimited cards, a paper card scanner, sharing by QR, link, widget and email signature, directory sync, admin templates, CRM links, Zapier, webhooks and a REST API. The listing's gap: no NFC cards, so a physical card means printing its QR code.
- **Ease of use: B.** No store rating on record. You make a card in the iOS or Android app and share it by QR, link or widget. Directory sync and admin templates are for companies setting up their staff.
- **Platforms and integrations: B.** Web, iPhone and Android, with Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Zapier, webhooks and a public REST API. No desktop app.

These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Haystack's own pages on 24 October 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.

## Where it stands among digital business cards

- Haystack's GPA of 3.0 is higher than 7 of the 10 other digital business cards we grade, and level with 3.
- It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 10 of 10) and worst on features (C, above 0).
- Its paid plans start at $2.50 a month for each person, against a middle price of $5 for the category: 0 of the 8 others that charge start lower.
- On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4, and no tool on the category's chart scores higher without costing more.

The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/business-cards

## Keep it, or make your own?

**Keep it.** The plain part of Haystack you could make: digital business card and email signature. What surrounds it you could not. The 6 things listed below take a company, not a weekend. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 3.0 is higher than 7 of the 10 other digital business cards we grade. It costs $30 a year.

- You could make: Digital business card and email signature: an app builder makes these well.
- You could not: A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
- You could not: It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- You could not: It plugs into other products, Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace and Zapier among them, and has an API.
- You could not: AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
- You could not: Hooks into the device itself: widgets.
- You could not: What a company asks for before it lets staff use something: roles and permissions.

A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it.

## Works with

Microsoft Entra ID, Google Workspace, Zapier, Microsoft Teams, Outlook

**Tags:** Digital business card, Email signature, AI features, Public API

## Alternatives

- [HiHello](https://toolgpa.com/tools/hihello): Digital business cards, email signatures and lead capture for teams. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/haystack-vs-hihello)
- [Blinq](https://toolgpa.com/tools/blinq): Digital business cards with contact scanning and event lead capture. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/blinq-vs-haystack)
- [Popl](https://toolgpa.com/tools/popl): Digital business cards and event badge scanning for sales teams. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/haystack-vs-popl)
- [Wave Connect](https://toolgpa.com/tools/wave-connect): Digital business cards with AI badge scanning on prepaid credits. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/haystack-vs-wave-connect)
- [Linq](https://toolgpa.com/tools/linq): NFC business cards and a pocket CRM with a second phone line. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/haystack-vs-linq)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 24, 2026:

- https://thehaystackapp.com/pricing
- https://thehaystackapp.com
- https://thehaystackapp.com/integrations
- https://thehaystackapp.com/nfc
- https://apps.apple.com/us/app/haystack-business-cards/id920294144

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/haystack
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).