Attest gives you a self-serve survey builder backed by a dedicated research expert on every plan - a genuine strength, but access runs on annual credits that expire, and entry starts with a demo. Standard Insights covers the same range, from a turnkey module to a fully custom survey you design yourself, priced per project with nothing to lose and no demo required.
Standard Insights delivers a finished, decision-ready report - analysis and personas included - for a fixed price per project, starting at $1,490, with no annual commitment required to place an order. It also supports building your own study: the DIY tier gives full control over question design, and Studio (from $199/month or $1,990/year) adds a standing, self-serve workspace for teams that want ongoing access instead of one-off orders - neither runs on credits. Credits only enter the picture at Enterprise, from $50,000/year in prepaid research credits, where they unlock the full platform rather than just fieldwork access.
Attest combines a self-serve survey builder with panel access and a dedicated research expert bundled into every subscription tier, but runs on annual credits that expire 12 months after purchase, with entry through a sales demo rather than direct signup, from the very first study.
The core difference isn't credits versus no credits - it's how long you can go before you need them, and what they buy once you do.
Choosing between these two often comes down to one question: do you want to buy a single answer, or a year of research capacity managed through a credit system?
Attest combines a self-serve survey builder with panel access and, notably, a dedicated research expert included on every subscription tier - a genuine point of difference from pure DIY tools, and a real strength if your team wants that ongoing relationship. The commercial model is built around annual credits (1 credit = 1 question answered by 1 respondent): those credits expire 12 months after purchase with no rollover, mid-year top-ups cost roughly 10% more per credit than credits bought upfront, and the visible path to entry is booking a demo rather than signing up directly. There's no credit-free tier - every study, however small, runs through the same credit system. The platform's own output is a dashboard - the bundled research expert helps interpret it, but the deliverable itself stops short of a finished, presentation-ready narrative.
Standard Insights covers a comparable range of building control - pre-built modules that need no design work, a DIY tier with full control over question design, and a Studio workspace for teams that want standing access - all ordered directly, with nothing metered by credits and nothing to forecast. Credits show up on our side too, but only at Enterprise, and only because $50,000+ in committed research spend is a point where forecasting is a reasonable ask either way. What's consistent across every tier, credit-based or not, is the deliverable: a finished report, written analysis and personas included, not a dashboard with support attached.
This comparison covers:
| The Strategic Outcome | Standard Insights | Attest |
|---|---|---|
| Can you build a custom survey? | Yes - DIY (full question-design control), Studio, and Enterprise (fuller survey builder) all support it | Yes - self-serve survey builder is a core part of the platform |
| Commercial model | PAYG/DIY: per-project, no credits. Studio: flat subscription, no credits. Enterprise: prepaid credits from $50,000/year - unlocks the full platform, not just fieldwork | Annual credit subscription from the first study; unused credits expire after 12 months |
| Entry point | PAYG/DIY: order directly, no call required. Studio/Enterprise: a short setup conversation, not a sales demo | Book a demo - no public self-serve signup found, for any volume |
| Support model | Self-contained modules; standard support on Studio; dedicated account manager on Enterprise | A dedicated research expert bundled into every plan |
| The final deliverable | Finished report: written analysis, personas, presentation-ready narrative - at every tier | Dashboard, with expert support to help interpret it |
| Credit terms (Enterprise only) | 12-month expiry, no rollover, ~10% mid-year top-up premium - comparable to Attest's terms, but the credits unlock Communities, Knowledge Hub, white-label, SSO, and API on top of fieldwork | Topping up mid-year costs roughly 10% more per credit, per Attest's published credit terms |
| Price | Modules from $1,490; DIY from $990; Studio from $199/month ($1,990/year); Enterprise from $50,000/year in credits | Estimates range from $2,000 for a single study to $10,000-$50,000+/year, according to third-party buyer research; some sources cite a $25,000/year entry point |
Both eventually use something like a credit system - the real question is how much you can do before you need one, and what it buys when you get there.
Request a DemoAnnual credit subscriptions from the first study, with published terms specifying that unused credits expire 12 months after purchase and mid-year top-ups cost a premium versus buying credits upfront.
Third-party estimates (industry buyer guides) put typical annual spend between $10,000 and $50,000+, with a single standalone study estimated around $2,000.
Both are available. Pre-built modules need no design work. The DIY tier gives full control over question design, and Studio and Enterprise include a fuller survey builder - comparable in spirit to Attest's self-serve builder, but without a credit system behind it unless you're at Enterprise scale.
Not for PAYG or DIY - projects can be ordered directly, whether that's a pre-built module or a survey you design yourself. If you want the Studio workspace instead of one-off orders, activation is a short conversation to set it up, not a sales demo. Attest's visible entry point is a demo request rather than self-signup, for any tier, at any volume.
Depends on the tier. PAYG and DIY have no budget to lose - you only pay for what you order. Studio is flat access for the period you're subscribed, not a shrinking pool of credits. Enterprise does use credits, and on that tier the terms are close to Attest's: unused credits expire after 12 months, no rollover. The difference is what's unlocked while they're active - the entire platform, not just fieldwork.
Yes, at Enterprise - once you're committing $50,000+ a year, credits are the mechanism, and the terms (12-month expiry, ~10% mid-year top-up premium) are comparable to Attest's. The difference is what the credits buy: on Enterprise, the same prepaid credits unlock the full platform - Communities, Knowledge Hub, white-label, SSO, API - not just fieldwork with an expert attached. And two tiers exist below Enterprise (PAYG, Studio) with no credit system at all.
Attest bundles in a research expert precisely because the platform benefits from that support - it's a genuine strength if your team wants it. If you'd rather not need research support to build and interpret a study, our pre-built modules or DIY tier are built for that directly.
There's no single published number. Industry buyer estimates place typical annual spend between $10,000 and $50,000+, with entry-level single studies around $2,000 and some sources citing a $25,000/year starting point for ongoing subscriptions.
Yes. Studio is built around this - bring datasets from any supplier (including Attest) into standard formats and turn them into finished reports, with fieldwork through Standard Insights optional. Enterprise goes further, with done-for-you mapping of legacy or exotic formats on top of everything in Studio.
