So you’re running a B2B SaaS company, and you know spreadsheets just aren’t cutting it anymore for tracking customer health, expansion, and churn. You’ve heard about Planhat and its competitors—Gainsight, Totango, Catalyst, ChurnZero, and a few others. But it’s a mess out there: slick demos, bold claims, and a lot of handwaving about “AI-driven insights.” How do you actually compare these tools and pick the right one for your team, without wasting six months and burning through your budget?
This guide is for founders, heads of CS, ops folks, or anyone who’s got “find us a customer success platform” on their to-do list.
Step 1: Get Real About Why You Need a Customer Success Platform
Before you even open a demo tab, stop and write down what you’re trying to fix. Are you struggling to spot churn risks? Is your onboarding inconsistent? Are your CSMs spending more time updating Salesforce than talking to customers? Or are you just tired of living in 12 browser tabs?
Don’t get sucked in by features you’ll never use. Most B2B SaaS companies actually need:
- A unified customer view (health scores, usage data, notes)
- Playbooks for onboarding, renewals, and upsells
- Task management and reminders
- Reporting that doesn’t require a PhD in Excel
- Easy integrations with your CRM, support, and product analytics
Write down your non-negotiables. If you skip this step, every vendor demo will sound magical, and you’ll end up overpaying for stuff you don’t need.
Pro tip: If your CS team is fewer than five people, you probably don’t need every bell and whistle out there. Focus on the basics.
Step 2: Build a Shortlist (and Don’t Let Hype Guide You)
There are dozens of tools out there, but only a handful are built for serious B2B SaaS needs. Here’s how to cut through the noise:
- Start with peer recommendations. Ask folks at similar-stage SaaS companies what they actually use—not what they demoed.
- Ignore G2 and Capterra “Best Of” lists. These are mostly popularity contests, not deep dives into usability.
- Check for B2B SaaS focus. Some platforms are better for agencies or B2C—skip those.
- Look at integration options. If a tool doesn’t play nice with your CRM or product analytics, it’s probably a non-starter.
You’ll usually end up with Planhat, Gainsight, ChurnZero, Totango, and maybe Catalyst. If you’re early-stage, throw in ClientSuccess or Custify. If your company is huge, Gainsight is the default—but not always the best fit.
Step 3: Compare Based on What Matters (Not Just Feature Lists)
This is where most teams go wrong. Vendors love to show you side-by-side checklists with 47 features. Most don’t matter.
Here’s a more practical list to compare:
1. Usability
- How long does it take a new CSM to get productive?
- Can non-technical folks set up playbooks and reports?
- Is the interface intuitive, or do you need hours of training?
Honest take: Planhat and Catalyst get high marks for usability. Gainsight is powerful but often overwhelming. ChurnZero and Totango are somewhere in the middle.
2. Data Integration
- How cleanly does it pull in data from your CRM, product, support desk, and billing?
- Are there native integrations, or will you be stuck with manual uploads or Zapier hacks?
Honest take: Planhat and ChurnZero have good, flexible integrations. Gainsight can do almost anything, but expect to pay for implementation help. If you’re on HubSpot or Intercom, check for direct support—some platforms are still Salesforce-first.
3. Flexibility
- Can you customize health scores, segments, and workflows to fit how you work?
- Or are you stuck with someone else’s idea of what customer success should look like?
Honest take: Planhat is strong here—custom fields, flexible health scoring, automation without needing your dev team. Gainsight is flexible but complex. Some tools (like Totango) are more rigid.
4. Automation and Playbooks
- Does the platform help you automate repetitive stuff (renewal reminders, NPS surveys, onboarding steps)?
- Or is it more manual than you hoped?
Honest take: Automation is an area where differences show up. Planhat and ChurnZero both make it easy to set up playbooks and reminders. Gainsight can do it all, but you’ll need to invest in configuration.
5. Reporting and Insights
- Can you actually get the reports you need without exporting to Excel?
- Are dashboards useful, or just eye candy?
Honest take: Reporting is rarely as good as the sales demo. Planhat’s reporting is solid for most SaaS teams. Gainsight is a reporting powerhouse, but it’s easy to drown in options. Totango and ChurnZero are decent but sometimes a step behind.
6. Pricing (and What’s Hidden)
- Is pricing transparent, or do you need to talk to sales for a quote?
- Are you paying per user, per account, or something else?
- Watch for hidden setup fees.
Honest take: Planhat, ChurnZero, and Catalyst are usually more upfront than Gainsight (which gets expensive fast). Totango is somewhere in the middle. Always ask about onboarding costs and minimum contract terms.
7. Customer Support and Community
- Will you get real help when you need it?
- Is there an active community or knowledge base?
Honest take: Smaller vendors often shine here. Planhat and ChurnZero have reputations for responsive support. Gainsight’s support is big-company style—lots of resources, but sometimes slow. Catalyst is newer but hustling to impress.
Step 4: Actually Try the Product (With Your Data, Not a Demo Environment)
Watching a vendor drive a polished demo is useless. You need to see the tool with your customers, your data, your team.
- Ask for a real trial. Not just a guided demo—an actual account with your data loaded.
- Test core workflows. Try onboarding a new customer, running a renewal playbook, updating health scores.
- Include your team. The people who’ll use this daily should get hands-on.
- Push the edges. Try to break it. See if it handles your weird edge cases.
Pro tip: Set a time limit (two weeks tops) and keep notes. Don’t let trials drag on forever.
Step 5: Ask the Right Questions Before You Buy
Before you sign anything, get clear answers on:
- What’s included in the base price, and what costs extra?
- How long does onboarding really take?
- What integrations are native, and which require custom work?
- How easy is it to make changes after go-live?
- What does support look like after the first few months?
If a vendor dodges questions or gives vague answers (“That’s coming soon!”), take it as a red flag.
What to Ignore (Seriously)
- AI-powered insights: Most of this is just basic if/then logic dressed up. If you need real predictive analytics, you’re probably already doing it in-house.
- Gamification: You’re not running a sales contest. Most CSMs hate this.
- “Single pane of glass” promises: Every tool claims this. You’ll still need to check your CRM sometimes.
Focus on what’ll actually save you time and help your team do better work.
Summary: Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast
Choosing a customer success platform is a big decision, but don’t let it become a months-long epic. Get clear on your must-haves, ignore the hype, and insist on real trials with your data. No tool will solve every problem—focus on something your team will actually use, and plan to revisit your setup as you grow. Simple wins. Iterate as you go. And remember: no platform will replace talking to your customers.