Capterra Review: Pricing, Features & What the Data Shows
Gartner-owned software review and comparison marketplace that sells PPC vendor placements alongside user reviews.
What Capterra Does
Capterra is a B2B software review and comparison marketplace owned by Gartner Digital Markets, sitting alongside its sister platforms GetApp and Software Advice. With thousands of software categories and millions of monthly visitors, it's one of the places B2B software buyers go to research tools, read user reviews, and compare options. For vendors, Capterra serves primarily as a lead generation channel through pay-per-click (PPC) placements, sponsored profiles, and content syndication.
The business model is the key difference from G2. While G2 monetizes through annual contracts for review management and buyer intent data, Capterra's primary revenue comes from PPC vendor placements. Software companies bid on positions on category pages and pay per click. This means the top results on Capterra are often paid placements—not necessarily the highest-rated products. Capterra labels sponsored listings, but buyers should understand that rankings are influenced by advertising spend, not purely by review scores or popularity.
Capterra's strength is breadth. It covers software categories that G2 doesn't reach, particularly in niche verticals like church management software, veterinary practice tools, construction project management, and other specialized segments. For vendors in these niche categories, Capterra may be the primary review platform where their buyers research. In mainstream B2B categories (CRM, marketing automation, project management), G2 has overtaken Capterra in review volume and buyer traffic.
For vendors evaluating where to invest, the choice between G2 and Capterra often isn't either/or. G2 is better for buyer trust, social proof, and intent data in competitive B2B categories. Capterra is better for direct lead generation through PPC, particularly in niche verticals or for mid-market software companies that want a pay-as-you-go model instead of G2's expensive annual contracts.
Capterra Key Features
PPC Lead Generation
Bid on positions on category pages and pay per click when buyers visit your profile. A more accessible, pay-as-you-go model compared to G2's annual contracts for vendor visibility.
Review Collection & Display
Collect and display verified user reviews on your product profile. Reviews build credibility with buyers researching your category and improve your organic ranking on the platform.
Broad Category Coverage
Covers thousands of software categories including niche verticals that G2 doesn't reach, making it particularly valuable for vertical and specialized software companies.
Gartner Digital Markets Distribution
Vendor profiles and reviews are distributed across Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice, giving vendors three platforms of buyer exposure from a single listing.
Comparison Tools
Side-by-side product comparison features that let buyers evaluate features, pricing, and reviews across multiple products in a category, driving informed purchase decisions.
Premium Profiles
Enhanced vendor profiles with custom content, featured placement options, and priority visibility that go beyond the standard free listing for vendors willing to invest.
Who Uses Capterra
PPC Lead Generation for Mid-Market Software
A mid-market project management software company spends $5,000/month on Capterra PPC to appear at the top of their category page. Buyers clicking through to their profile read reviews, compare features, and submit demo requests. The PPC model lets them scale spend up or down based on pipeline needs.
Niche Vertical Software Visibility
A veterinary practice management software company finds that Capterra has more relevant buyer traffic in their niche category than G2. They invest in a premium profile and PPC placement on Capterra's veterinary software category page, generating leads from a buyer audience that doesn't exist on G2.
Cross-Platform Review Strategy
A B2B SaaS company maintains active profiles on both G2 and Capterra. They use G2 for social proof badges and buyer intent data in their enterprise sales motion, and Capterra PPC for direct lead generation targeting mid-market buyers. Each platform serves a different part of their go-to-market strategy.
Capterra Pricing
Free Listing
Basic product profile, collect reviews, category presence
PPC Placements
Bid on category page position, pay per click to your profile
Premium Profiles
Enhanced profile, custom content, priority placement options
Capterra's vendor pricing is PPC-based, which makes it more accessible than G2's annual contracts. Free listings provide basic product profiles, the ability to collect reviews, and category presence at no cost. PPC placements start around $2/click, with actual costs depending on category competitiveness.
In competitive categories (CRM, project management, HR software), expect $5-$15/click. In niche verticals with less competition, $2-$5/click is common. Most B2B software companies spend $2,000-$10,000/month on Capterra PPC, with cost-per-lead varying widely by category, conversion rate, and sales cycle.
Premium profiles start around $500/month for enhanced visibility, custom content, and priority placement options. These are optional and layer on top of or complement PPC spend.
The ROI calculation depends heavily on your category, conversion rate from click to demo, and average deal size. In a category where clicks cost $5 and 1 in 20 visitors requests a demo, your cost per lead is $100. Whether that works depends on your close rate and ACV. Track the math carefully—PPC costs can escalate in competitive categories without proportional lead quality.
Job Market Demand for Capterra
Capterra appears in 1 job postings across 1 companies in our database of 23,338+ analyzed job postings. The average salary range for roles requiring Capterra: $95K - $135K.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Broader category coverage than G2, including niche verticals that G2 doesn't reach
- PPC model is more accessible for smaller vendors vs. G2's $15K+ annual contracts
- Gartner ownership provides credibility and cross-platform distribution (GetApp, Software Advice)
- Strong lead generation channel for mid-market software companies
- Lower barrier to entry for collecting reviews and establishing a presence
Cons
- Category rankings are heavily influenced by PPC spend, not just review quality
- Lower buyer traffic than G2 for mainstream B2B software categories
- No buyer intent data product comparable to G2's Buyer Intent signals
- Review depth and volume lag behind G2 in competitive categories like CRM and marketing automation
- PPC costs can escalate in competitive categories without proportional lead quality
Best for: Mid-market and vertical software companies that want an accessible, pay-as-you-go review and lead generation channel without committing to G2's annual contracts
Not ideal for: Enterprise software companies primarily competing for buyer trust in mainstream B2B categories where G2's review volume and intent data have more impact
Capterra Alternatives
| Tool | Starting Price | Job Mentions | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| G2 | $0 | 42 | B2B software companies that want to build buyer trust through reviews and capture intent signals from active software evaluators |
| Bombora | ~$25K-$40K/yr | 1 | Mid-market and enterprise B2B companies running ABM programs who want to prioritize outreach based on buyer research activity |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Capterra better than G2?
They serve different strengths. G2 has more reviews, higher buyer traffic in mainstream categories, and offers buyer intent data as a product. Capterra has broader category coverage, a more accessible PPC pricing model, and better reach in niche verticals. Most B2B software companies maintain a presence on both.
How much does it cost to advertise on Capterra?
Capterra uses a PPC model starting around $2/click. Actual costs depend on category competitiveness. In crowded categories (CRM, project management), expect $5-$15/click. Most vendors spend $2,000-$10,000/month. Unlike G2, there's no mandatory annual contract for advertising.
Does Capterra offer buyer intent data?
Not as a standalone product like G2 Buyer Intent. Capterra provides lead data (form fills, demo requests) from its PPC campaigns, but it doesn't sell third-party intent signals the way G2 does. For intent data, you'd need G2, Bombora, or a dedicated intent data provider.
Our Verdict on Capterra
Capterra fills a specific role in the B2B software go-to-market stack: accessible, pay-as-you-go lead generation through a review marketplace. The PPC model makes it more approachable than G2's expensive annual contracts, and the broad category coverage makes it particularly valuable for niche and vertical software companies that don't have a strong presence on G2.
For mainstream B2B categories, G2 has pulled ahead in review volume, buyer traffic, and strategic value (intent data, social proof). Most competitive B2B software companies maintain profiles on both platforms but invest more heavily in G2 for trust-building and Capterra for direct lead generation.
The practical approach: set up a free profile on Capterra, collect reviews from your customer base, and test PPC with a modest budget to measure cost-per-lead in your category. If the unit economics work, scale the spend. If your category is too competitive and clicks are too expensive relative to lead quality, focus your review platform budget on G2's intent data and social proof capabilities instead.