Looking at push notification platforms for your B2B SaaS? You’ve probably heard OneSignal’s name thrown around, along with a half-dozen others. Choosing the right one isn’t just about picking the flashiest dashboard or biggest customer list. You want something that works for your product, your team, and—most importantly—your customers.
This guide is for B2B SaaS folks (product managers, growth leads, or founders) who want real answers, not marketing fluff. Let’s get you clear on what matters, what doesn’t, and how to actually compare these tools without losing hours to demo calls.
1. Know What You Need (Not Just What They Sell)
Before diving into feature charts, get straight on your own requirements. It’s easy to get distracted by “AI-powered engagement” claims and miss what actually moves the needle for your users.
Ask yourself: - Who’s the real audience? (Admins? End-users? Both?) - What’s your tech stack? (Web, mobile, desktop, or all three?) - How complex is your user segmentation? (Everyone gets the same message, or do you need targeted triggers?) - Are you sending “urgent” ops alerts, or more nurture-style engagement? - Any compliance or data privacy requirements? (GDPR, HIPAA, etc.)
Pro tip: Make a quick list of “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves.” If a platform can’t do your must-haves reliably, move on. No tool is magic.
2. The Contenders: Who’s Actually Competing Here?
OneSignal (see onesignal.html) is probably the most popular “all-purpose” push platform out there. But it’s not alone. The main competitors you’ll hear about for B2B SaaS use cases are:
- Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM): Google’s free, developer-centric push tool.
- Pusher Beams: A simple, developer-friendly alternative for transactional pushes.
- Airship (formerly Urban Airship): Enterprise-grade, lots of bells and whistles.
- CleverTap, Braze, Iterable: More like “customer engagement suites” with push as one piece.
- Amazon SNS, Azure Notification Hubs: Cloud-native, but not very friendly for non-developers.
Each has strengths, but also real tradeoffs. Don’t trust “Gartner Magic Quadrant” charts—your use case isn’t the same as a Fortune 500 retailer.
3. Compare the Basics: Features That Actually Matter
Let’s cut through the noise. Here’s what you really need to look at:
a. Channel Support
- Web push: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari—does it cover the browsers your users have?
- Mobile push: iOS and Android support? Any headaches with Apple’s frequent changes?
- Email/SMS/in-app: If you want multi-channel, some platforms bundle these, others don’t.
Reality check: OneSignal covers almost everything out-of-the-box. FCM is mobile-first; web support is there, but clunky.
b. Segmentation and Targeting
- Can you easily target by role, company, or custom user properties?
- Is the UI usable, or does everything require developer time?
- Can non-technical folks set up campaigns without filing tickets?
Pro tip: Try building a segment on the free tier before you buy. Some tools bury this behind a paywall or make it way harder than it should be.
c. Automation and Triggers
- How easy is it to set up event-based messages? (e.g., “Send alert when payment fails”)
- Do you need to write code, or can you set it up in the dashboard?
- Can you A/B test messages, or just blast and pray?
What to ignore: Overhyped “AI” features. If you’re just starting out, a basic trigger works fine. You don’t need “predictive engagement” to tell you failed payments matter.
d. Analytics and Reporting
- Can you track opens, clicks, conversions?
- Do you get per-user delivery logs (helpful for debugging)?
- Can you export data, or are you locked in?
OneSignal has solid analytics, but for deep dives you’ll probably want to export to your own BI tool anyway.
e. Deliverability and Reliability
- What’s the platform’s uptime record?
- How do they handle rate limits and spikes? (Some services throttle aggressively)
- Any horror stories about messages not being delivered?
Hint: Free or cheap platforms (like FCM) can get you started, but you might outgrow them fast if reliability is critical.
4. Pricing: The Devil’s in the Details
Don’t just look at the headline price. Here’s what to dig into:
- Is there a free tier? What’s included—and what isn’t?
- Are you charged per subscriber, per message, or both?
- Any hidden costs for features you’ll actually use? (Segmentation, analytics, APIs)
- How painful is it to switch plans if you grow or shrink?
OneSignal starts free and stays affordable for small teams, but costs rise fast if you want advanced features or lots of subscribers. Airship and Braze are “call us for a quote”—usually code for “expensive unless you have real volume.”
Watch out for: Platforms that look cheap but nickel-and-dime for basics like segmentation or API access.
5. Integration: How Much Pain to Get Up and Running?
This is where a lot of B2B SaaS teams hit roadblocks.
- SDKs: Are they maintained? Do they work with your frameworks (React, Angular, native mobile, etc.)?
- API access: Is it well-documented? Can you trigger notifications from your backend easily?
- Third-party integrations: Zapier, Segment, or native integrations with your CRM or product analytics?
Real talk: If you have to spend weeks fighting brittle SDKs or missing docs, move on. OneSignal’s docs are pretty good and the SDKs are reliable, but FCM and Amazon SNS expect you to bring developer muscle.
6. Security and Compliance
- Does the platform offer encryption for messages in transit and at rest?
- Any certifications (SOC 2, ISO 27001, etc.)?
- Can you choose data residency (important for GDPR folks)?
- How do they handle user opt-in and unsubscribes?
Some platforms punt this to you. If you’re in healthcare, finance, or serving European customers, don’t gloss over this section.
7. Support and Community
- Is real support included, or do you have to pay extra?
- How active are their docs, forums, or Slack channels?
- Can you actually get a human if things break?
OneSignal has a big community and solid docs. Some enterprise tools offer “white glove” support, but you’ll pay for it.
8. The Intangibles: What’s the Tradeoff?
Every tool has its quirks.
- OneSignal: Big, friendly, but some B2B features (like deep workspace management or multi-tenant sender controls) can be a little thin. Great for most, but not all, use cases.
- FCM: Free, fast, but very developer-centric. UI is basic, segmentation is weak.
- Airship/Braze: Powerful, but overkill for many SaaS teams (and expensive).
- Pusher Beams: Simple and reliable, but limited in features.
- Amazon SNS/Azure: Good if you’re all-in on those clouds; otherwise, prepare for pain.
Ignore: Hype about “omnichannel orchestration” or “360-degree engagement” unless you actually need it. Most B2B SaaS teams just want to send clear, timely messages—not run a marketing campaign for Nike.
9. How to Actually Test Before You Commit
Don’t buy based on a sales demo. Here’s what to do:
- Sign up for a free trial or free tier.
- Send a real notification to yourself and a teammate. Try web and mobile if you can.
- Set up a basic segment or trigger. See how easy (or not) it is.
- Check delivery and analytics. Do you see what you need, or is something missing?
- Test the docs and support. Send in a basic support request. How fast do they respond? Is the answer helpful?
- Estimate real costs. Plug your actual user numbers into their pricing page—don’t guess.
You’ll learn more from an afternoon of hands-on testing than a week of reading blog posts.
Wrap-up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Don’t get paralyzed by feature lists or marketing jargon. Pick the platform that checks your must-haves, gets you sending messages fast, and doesn’t lock you in. If that’s OneSignal, great. If it’s something else, that’s fine too.
You can always switch tools as your needs grow. Start simple, send real messages, and let your users tell you what works. Everything else is just noise.