Decisions
Agent-run comparisons. Every figure has a source and a check date.
The pages
Which platform should I use to sell an online course?
Seven plans across five platforms, re-ranked by what they really cost per year once each one's cut of your sales is counted.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does it really cost to host a small app?
One always-on web service on six platforms, priced at 256 MB to 2 GB of memory: one is free up to 1 GB, one climbs to $250.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does SEO rank tracking really cost?
Six rank trackers priced by how many keywords you check daily, at month-to-month prices: the cheapest changes at 2,000 keywords, and one stops publishing prices.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat should an SEO audit check, and what do the tools cost?
Nineteen checks from Google's own documentation, then seven audit tools priced for 500 to 100,000 pages: free for a small site, cheapest on desktop for a big one, and one suite publishes no price past 20,000 pages per site.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat do link-building and outreach tools really cost?
Five outreach tools priced at 500 to 10,000 new prospects a month: a desktop app sold by the year is cheapest, one 'monthly' plan is a one-year contract, and the market is shrinking into pay-per-link services.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does it really cost to send your app's email?
Five transactional email services priced at 10,000 to 100,000 emails a month: one charges by the email and is a tenth of the price; among the plans, the order changes with volume.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhich wine affiliate programme actually pays most?
Ten wine programmes for UK and US sites, ranked by what one new customer's order earns you: a flat fee wins on small orders, a percentage on big ones.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhich dog affiliate programme actually pays most?
Twelve pet food, gear and retail programmes for UK and US sites, ranked by what one new customer's order earns: US fresh-food flat fees beat the big retailers' 1–2% on almost any order.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does a newsletter really cost?
Eight newsletter platforms priced by list size, month to month: the cheapest paid plan changes with your list, free plans carry branding, and several pages show the yearly price first.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat do AI writing tools really cost?
Seven AI writing tools and three general assistants priced month to month for an entry plan, unlimited writing and a team of three: a £4.49 assistant undercuts most writing tools.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat do AI image and video upscalers really cost?
Eleven photo and video upscalers priced month to month for 100 images, 1,000 images and an hour of video: flat-rate plans beat credits at volume, and one good one is free.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does TikTok really pay creators?
Eight ways TikTok pays creators, the follower count each asks for, and what TikTok says it keeps: 10,000 followers is the real gate, and most rates aren't published.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat do data science certificates really cost?
Eleven data science programmes priced by what it costs to finish at their own stated pace: about £100–£330 self-paced, £1,000 with a university name, £8,000 for a bootcamp.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat do social media management tools really cost?
Twelve social media tools priced month to month for one business, two brands and a team of three: £12 at the cheap end, $1,197 for a team on per-seat pricing.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does beat-making software really cost?
Twelve music programs priced three ways: the cheapest way to start (often free), the full version bought outright (£99 to £799), and paying monthly.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does DJ software really cost?
Seven DJ programs priced to start, to own outright and to pay monthly: most have a free version, but only one is free with no strings, and two headline prices leave out VAT.
Open the comparison → Last checkedWhat does an AI chatbot for your website really cost?
Eight AI chatbots priced at 100 to 10,000 website chats a month: per-resolution billing grows with every chat, the cheapest bills per AI reply, and one can't be priced per chat at all.
Open the comparison →Notes
- The $39 plan that costs more than the $89 oneTeachable's cheaper plan costs more above about $670 a month in sales. What a pricing page shows you, and what you pay.
- What a small app really costs to hostOne platform keeps a small app on for free up to 1 GB; another charges $250 at 2 GB. With a disclosure about where my own product runs.
- Pricing pages show you the annual priceSeveral SEO tools show their annual rate as a monthly price. Switched to monthly billing, the cheapest tool changes at about 2,000 keywords.
- The cheapest way to send email is not the easiestFive email services at 10,000 to 100,000 emails a month: the cheapest by far, the cheapest plans, and why they are different answers.
- How to set up a digital marketing teamStart with the outcomes, not the org chart: the five skills a small team needs, what to keep in-house, the order to hire, and what to measure.
- AI writing tools are being absorbed by the assistantsThe cheapest AI writing help is now a general assistant. The specialists are moving up-market or into other businesses, and most pricing pages lead with the yearly price.
How these pages are made
- Agents read the public pages. Software agents read each vendor's own pricing and terms pages — never a roundup — and every figure links back to the page it came from.
- Re-checked, and dated. An agent re-reads affiliate terms on a weekly rotation and flags any change; prices are re-verified by hand. Every page shows the date its figures were last checked.
- Affiliate links are disclosed. Where a page can earn a commission, the link is marked as one, and the page says so beside it and again at the foot.
- No tracking. No cookies, no tracking scripts, no third-party requests. Visits and clicks are counted on this server, without storing anyone's IP address.
- A personal project. Separate from my day job.