Everything we cover
Every product we review
Plainly Reviewed currently covers 4 products across 3 categories. Every review is research-led, built from the maker's own pricing, their support documentation and a count of what repeats in public reviews. We say on every page which method produced it, and we publish the complaint counts rather than a cherry-picked quote.
We go deep rather than wide. A product gets covered properly, with the pricing arithmetic, the plan limits and the things buyers get caught by, or it does not get covered at all. That is why this list is short and each entry is long.
Agency CRM and marketing platforms
All-in-one platforms for agencies running client accounts, where white labelling and sub-accounts decide it rather than features.
Software for trades and home service businesses
Job management against lead follow-up, for roofers, plumbers and contractors. Including which makers publish a price and which make you ask.
Sales funnel builders
Platforms for selling your own product: funnels, email, courses and checkout in one login, for one business rather than many.
How these reviews are made
Every product is worked through the same six sources, in the same order, so that two reviews on this site can be compared against each other rather than only against the marketing.
- 01The maker's own siteSpecs, plans, exact pricing, trial terms. We take the facts and figures and write them up ourselves. We never reuse their marketing copy.
- 02Pricing and refund pagesRenewal price, annual lock-in, per-seat creep, and how hard it is to cancel. This is where most of the money actually goes, and almost nobody covers it.
- 03Changelog and roadmapWhether the product is actively built or quietly abandoned. A changelog that stopped eighteen months ago tells you more than any feature list.
- 04Support forum and documentationThe most-asked support question usually names the real weakness faster than any feature comparison would.
- 05Public review platformsG2, Trustpilot, Reddit and app store listings. We read the low-star reviews specifically, count the complaints that repeat, and publish the count.
- 06The closest alternativesEvery product is scored against its nearest rivals on the same rubric, in the same units, in the same table.
The full method, including what the two badges on each review mean and why we do not claim to test products we have not used, is on how we review. How we make money, and what that does and does not influence, is on the disclosure page.
Common questions
How do you choose which products to review?
We cover products where enough is publicly verifiable to write something useful: published pricing, real documentation, and a body of public reviews worth counting. Products that hide their pricing or have no review base do not get covered.
Do you test the products you review?
Most of the time, no, and every page says which method produced it. Research-led reviews are built from the maker’s own materials and public reviews. Pages covering a tool the author runs his own business on carry a different badge naming it.
Do you get paid to review products?
No. We earn affiliate commission on some links, disclosed above the first link on every page, and commission never depends on the verdict. No maker sees a review before it publishes and we regularly recommend against products we could earn from.
Why are there so few products listed?
Because each one gets ten to twenty pages rather than one. We would rather answer every question about two platforms properly than publish a thin page about fifty, which is what most of this category does.
How current are these reviews?
Every page carries the date it was last checked, and pricing is verified against the maker’s own page on that date. Software pricing changes often, so confirm current figures before you buy.
Last reviewed September 3, 2026