How much does a PIM cost? Per-user, per-SKU or usage-based pricing

Why PIM pricing is hard to compare

Comparing PIMs by list price is like comparing cars by the down payment: the first number you see is rarely the one you pay. Each vendor uses a different pricing model, includes different things and leaves others out. To compare for real, bring everything down to one question: how much does it cost me to keep my catalog complete and published for a year?

The three pricing models

Per user

You pay a fee for each person with access, usually monthly or yearly. It is predictable, and it works when a small team manages a large catalog. The risk is the opposite case: when many people need occasional access —suppliers, reviewers, other departments— every seat costs money even if it is barely used.

By catalog size

You pay according to how many products or SKUs you manage, in tiers. It works when the catalog is stable and the team changes. The risk is that adding products moves you up a tier even if your operation has not changed, and that variants count as products.

By usage

You pay for what you do: generating content, processing products, API calls. There is no fixed plan and you pay when you use it. It works when the work comes in waves —a big upload, a launch— and when the team varies. The risk is not knowing in advance how much you will spend; that is why the unit price should be clear and there should be a way to set a cap.

The costs the quote leaves out

• Implementation: setting up families, attributes, categories and channels, and importing the initial catalog.
• Integrations: connecting the PIM with your store, your ERP and your marketplaces.
• Training for the team and for suppliers.
• Content work: a PIM that only stores data leaves the descriptions, missing attributes and translations for you to do. Done by hand, that work often costs more than the license.
• The cost of staying the same: products that can't be published because a field is missing, returns caused by wrong product records, hours of copying and pasting between channels.

How to do the math

Do the math with your numbers, not the brochure's:

1. How many products you need complete this year, including new ones.
2. How many people need access, and how often.
3. How many channels and languages you publish to.
4. How much content is missing: descriptions, attributes, translations.
5. How much that work costs today done by hand, in team hours.

With that, compare one year of each option against the cost of staying as you are.

Questions to ask before signing

• What happens if my catalog doubles this year? And if it shrinks?
• Do suppliers and occasional reviewers count as users?
• Do variants count as products?
• What does the price include and what is charged separately: generating content, translating, storing images, using the API?
• Can I take my full catalog out whenever I want, in a format another system can use?
• Is there a minimum term, or can I stop paying when I stop using it?

How Bruxel charges

Bruxel is usage-based: you buy credits and use them whenever you want, with no monthly plan. Each description costs 10 credits, and the price per description drops with volume: 1.00 USD from 1 to 999 descriptions, 0.90 USD from 1,000 to 9,999 and 0.85 USD from 10,000. The minimum purchase is 10 USD, and when you create your organization you get welcome credits to try it with your products. Exporting costs no credits: a description is paid for when it is generated, not every time you download it. The details are on the pricing page and in the credits guide; what the product includes, on the PIM page.

Where to start

Before asking for quotes, measure how many product records are incomplete and how much time your team spends completing them. That number is the one any PIM should bring down, and it will tell you which pricing model makes sense for you.