--- title: "Podium Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra" description: "Is Podium the right Conversational AI Platform solution for you? Explore 527 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice." source_url: "https://www.capterra.com/p/164285/Podium/reviews/" page_type: "reviews" language: "en" publication_date: "2026-11-09" --- Podium 4.2 (527) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/164285/Podium/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated November 9th, 2026 # Reviews of Podium Ease of use 4.3 Customer Service 4.0 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews LK Larry K IT ManagerConstruction, 51 - 200 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “Podium offers a streamlined platform that allows you to manage your customer and call center interactions seamlessly.“ July 23, 2026 IS Ilayda S Marketing DirectorApparel & Fashion, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: More than 2 years. “It’s obviously designed with service businesses in mind, so some features that are common in retail, like inventory integration or product-oriented messaging aren’t exactly on point.“ April 23, 2025 JA Jhovanny A Receptionist- New Client LiaisonLaw Practice, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “What i liked most about Podium was the all in one communication found in the application. Whether it was direct messages, attachment requirements, easily accessible and editable contact information and automatic formulas for messaging: all was found in Podium.“ December 21, 2025 JL Jessica L Dispatcher, Project manager, Purchasing managerConstruction, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “The typed transcripts are not always accurate.“ February 18, 2026 IS Ilayda S Marketing DirectorApparel & Fashion, 11 - 50 employeesUsed the software for: More than 2 years. “I love that I can respond to customer inquiries via SMS quickly, while not switching between platforms including sending reviews requests directly after making a sale while the luster of excitement is still there.“ April 23, 2025 JO Jim O CEOHospitality, 51 - 200 employeesUsed the software for: More than 2 years. “Customer service was the deal-breaker.“ July 16, 2026 CJ Céline J Social Media ManagerConsumer Services, 51 - 200 employeesUsed the software for: 6-12 months. “It works well with our setup — we can send payment links and bulk SMS to clients quickly and securely.“ August 12, 2025 ZD Zach D directorSports, 2 - 10 employeesUsed the software for: More than 2 years. “The interface can be a little overwhelming at times.“ April 10, 2025 ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 527 available reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use Marketing Manager Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Pick Anyone but Podium" November 2, 2026 1.0 Terrible. I cannot recommend enough for people considering Podium to move forward with another AI company. During the sales and even onboarding process i was told so many things that it can do. Turns out not a lot of it was the truth. Pros The AI tool seems to be decent and the dashboard is convenient. Honestly, that is all the good about this product. Cons Customer support is terrible, onboarding is horrendous. Sales staff lie to you and tell you what you want to hear in order to get you to sign up. Alternatives considered [Impel](https://www.capterra.com/p/139208/SpinCar/) Reasons for choosing Podium Because the salesperson sold me on a bunch of lies. If I could go back, I would pick differently. Review Source AG Alexa G. Assistant General Manager Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Podium App" September 8, 2026 3.0 Pros Ability to schedule send individualized text messages and bulk messages. The use of tagging contacts to filter. Cons Frequent lagging during peak usage. Anytime bulk messages are sent there's no notifications coming through and there's a need to refresh the entire site to see incoming messages, they do not immediately pop up when coming through. Review Source Stephen G. General Manager Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Podium not worth the money or effort" August 9, 2026 3.0 Once we decided to move to another company, they were given their 30 day notice and contiued billing our CC for an additional 4 months after, sometimes double billing us within that same month. Pros Hassle free monthly data input - lots of metrics to look at, included most of my staff with their metric campaign Cons Customer Service and the fact that they would indicate how many sales leads we were getting and they were completely inaccurate Switched from We thought we needed a bigger more robust operation Review Source Larry K. IT Manager Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Solid Customer Relations platform" July 24, 2026 5.0 Overall I would recommend Podium as a all in one call center and customer relation software. The ability to have all the call center interactions connected to the customers as well as the ability to handle text messages as well is a huge benefit. Pros Podium offers a streamlined platform that allows you to manage your customer and call center interactions seamlessly. The learning curve is not steep for the software which makes onboarding a breeze. The ability to have all customer records including messages and call records quickly accessible allows for better insight into the entire job lifecycle. Cons I really do not have any problems with Podium as it is a solid platform offering a very user friendly ui and feature set. Switched from [Dialpad Connect](https://www.capterra.com/p/190976/Dialpad-Sell/) We were not pleased with the service we were receiving and wanted to try out the messaging and review management features. Review Source Jim O. CEO Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Great technology, but customer service failures cost us months of unnecessary charges" July 17, 2026 1.0 We ran into significant system downtime on multiple occasions, and each time, we couldn't get anyone from support to help us troubleshoot or resolve the issue in a reasonable timeframe. That unreliability, combined with unresponsive support, ultimately pushed us to switch to a different platform. When we tried to cancel, our request was ignored and we were billed for 6 more months. Between the downtime and the billing dispute, the good technology wasn't enough to keep us as customers. Pros The core technology worked well most of the time and delivered on the review management side — the review response tools were solid and made it easy to stay on top of customer feedback. Cons Customer service was the deal-breaker. Email responses took weeks, and phone calls went unanswered entirely. When we requested to cancel our account, that request was ignored, and Podium continued charging us for six additional months after we tried to cancel. Getting any resolution required far more effort than it should have. Switched from [Vonage Business Communications](https://www.capterra.com/p/159047/Vonage-Business/) We needed more features and better reporting. Review Source Sales Administrative Assistant Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Great Communication Tool!" July 15, 2026 4.0 Total Comfort is overall very pleased with Podium and the abilty to have our customers text us directly through our website. Pros We love that we can text back and forth with our customers and create reminder text messages for the customer appointments. It saves a lot of time. Cons Having to use another screen to schedule an appointment can slow down the process, it would be easier to have access through the contact info page. Switched from [Textedly](https://www.capterra.com/p/150912/Textedly/) Better platform, better price, and ease of use Review Source Dispatcher, Project manager, Purchasing manager Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Podium is very useful tool " February 23, 2026 4.0 Overall I like using Podium for calls and text messages versus using a regular landline. The AI is nice but still needs work. Podium is a very useful tool that we use on a daily basis. Pros I love the fact that you can go back in and listen to the calls. It helps getting more details that you may miss while actively on the call. Including if capturing the phone number of who is calling so if there is a disconnection we can call back. The recordings also help us when customers are stating that we said something that is untrue. Cons The typed transcripts are not always accurate. The AI doesn't do the greatest but improves everyday. Customers can tell as soon as they call that they are speaking to an AI agent. Review Source Jhovanny A. Receptionist- New Client Liaison Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "All in one communication app" December 22, 2025 5.0 Overall my experience has been great. It allows me to text potential new clients, current clients, manage workload and assignment among my team and communicate verbally, virtually and through attachments. Pros What i liked most about Podium was the all in one communication found in the application. Whether it was direct messages, attachment requirements, easily accessible and editable contact information and automatic formulas for messaging: all was found in Podium. Cons My least favorite detail about Podium may be the occasional glitch and lag. Podium really is just a great application and I cannot think of a dislike. Review Source Kevin C. VP of Marketing Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Love it but don't always love paying for it!" November 11, 2020 5.0 Overall, it's really good. I'm a big fan of feeling valued as a customer, and I don't feel valued, I feel like a number. I rarely get check-ins from the company. On top of that, I think the ability to get reviews could be a little better. Our customers just don't really react when we ask them for the review. They are always willing, but then seem to have some difficulty completing the process. Pros The ease of use is great, I love taking the conversation from the website to texting, and it's great for that. It also makes it pretty easy to request reviews, and so that is great. Cons It feels really expensive to me. At this point I might be able to get similar functionality for significantly less money, but nonetheless, because we've made the investment in it and trained our team on it, I selfishly don't want to have to deplore another program and do another batch of training. Switched from [Fin](https://www.capterra.com/p/10031266/Fin/) I think about 2 or so years ago, maybe a year and a half Alternatives considered [Fin](https://www.capterra.com/p/10031266/Fin/)[Birdeye](https://www.capterra.com/p/152997/BirdEye/) Reasons for choosing Podium It had the components of Intercom I liked, but also gave us the ability to hopefully simply get reviews. I also liked that the conversation moves from the web to the phone. Review Source Marketing Manager Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Great app, not great customer service" December 13, 2024 4.0 Great. As previously stated it is easy to use to great to have all the conversations in their own categories Pros How easy everything is to use. Getting client information as well as responding to their inquiries is a breeze Cons Not being able to contact a person with issues. Their website does not have a contact me phone number Alternatives considered [Birdeye](https://www.capterra.com/p/152997/BirdEye/) Reasons for choosing Podium gave us an initial discount and because of this they were the best priced at the time. Review Source Scott S. Owner Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Horrible to deal with! " March 3, 2025 1.0 Pros There initial sales guy was great but went downhill from there! Cons the worst company I've ever dealt with! They don’t connect to Shopify, fail to send abandoned cart texts as promised, and never notify when an order ships. When you need help, they’re MIA! But they have no problem Charging $635 per month. stay away, or you’ll regret it! Review Source Director of Institutional Sales Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Podium--Reliable and Easy to Use" October 28, 2022 5.0 As explained, I have been a Podium customer for quite a while. My company actually dropped Podium for a hot minute and used a program called Swell. The employees and I complained so much about the glitch issues of Swell that our company returned to Podium. That's not to say Podium is "glitch-free," but it far outways the issues we had with Swell. I will note that something has changed with Podium's customer service. When I first began using Podium, the customer service chats almost felt like you were talking to a friendly developer, eager to help. Now the customer service help feels like I'm chatting with overworked, underpaid, and uninterested grumpy teenagers. Pros Podium is incredibly user-friendly. Our store has a wide range of computer knowledge--from advanced to those who struggle to find the back button. Podium has been a good fit for all levels. Cons I'm not a fan of pulling the photos from my photo album or seeing that the pictures I take through the app are stored in my phone's photo album. I take many photos of products for customers and am very busy, so I often forget that they are there. I've used Podium for so long that when I look back at my years of personal photos I still find a picture of some random product that I forgot to delete. Switched from [Swell](https://www.capterra.com/p/196277/A-more-creative-way-sell-and-ship-your-products-more-efficiently/) Swell may have been less expensive, but the glitchiness of the product became too frustrating. Everything from conversations not loading to pictures posting several times in a row. Eventually, the "powers that be" heard the employees' moans and moved us back to Podium. Review Source Jennie Z. Marketing Manager Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Interesting mesh of a review and communication service" July 23, 2021 4.0 Originally, I was looking for a reputation management service, but turns out, that's our least used feature for Podium. Instead, we've really been using Podium as a communication tool for our loan officers and new leads. I like that everything is done through SMS and allows our LOs to call the lead right away. Our business is closed mainly through phone, so Podium works well for us. However, I don't recommend for all industries. Pros \-Chats with customers are through texts -Different sales agents can answer, and there is no limit to how many sales agents are allowed on 1 account Cons \-Does not integrate to our CRM tool (Hubspot) -Not really using the review portion of Podium -No automatic chatbot integration Alternatives considered [GetMoreReviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/168691/GetMoreReviews/)[Trustpilot](https://www.capterra.com/p/169618/Trustpilot/) Reasons for choosing Podium Podium had an interesting SMS chat feature that I wanted to try. Review Source Owner Used the software for: 1-3 years ### "Better options are available" January 3, 2025 3.0 We used Podium as a start-up company, but as we grew, we found that it did not have enough features to meet our needs Pros It was the most cost-effective option at the time we purchased Cons Did not like the features, felt like customer service was lacking Alternatives considered [Lighthouse 360](https://www.capterra.com/p/141843/Lighthouse-360/) Reasons for choosing Podium It was the most cost-effective option at the time and was recommend by a colleague Review Source Gregg T. Marketing Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Podium Rocks & The Product Works " March 25, 2021 5.0 They are amazing and I am looking forward to see where the product will go in the future. Pros It is easy to use, easy to train people, and it works to get customer reviews in the right place on the internet. Google reviews are king and the Podium works great with Google Reviews. Cons The customer support could be better and more knowledgeable. The company is growing fast and they have a lot of new people who do not know the product. Alternatives considered [Broadly](https://www.capterra.com/p/161326/Broadly-Reviews/)[Birdeye](https://www.capterra.com/p/152997/BirdEye/) Reasons for choosing Podium They are the best and most reliable. Also, they have the tightest partnership and integration with Google. Review Source Owner Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "They took our money and disappeared. " June 3, 2020 1.0 they took our money. Pros They were very responsive up until they got payment. I cannot get a response, cannot login to the software, can't even see any kind of portal. Just a receipt for over $500, and the next one will be coming soon. I have left message after message, left voicemail, nothing. Do not send them your money. Cons No response from the company, they just charged our card, software does not allow login, screen just spins. Switched from [Broadly](https://www.capterra.com/p/161326/Broadly-Reviews/) Podium supposedly integrates with our new dispatch software. Review Source Insurance Agent Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Podium use for office ;Made easy" July 29, 2025 5.0 Overall having this one number linked to all of our locations makes it easy for any one here to search a client and look at previous conversations , being able to pick up where the last employee left off also helpful to verify staff conversations with needed documents to match our Hawksoft notes and uploads. Pros At our Agency we all have access to Podium letting us send messages to clients /saving their contact info and allowing us to communicate with them efficiently when we are unable to get a hold of them over a phone call or Via email. We all have access to see customer reviews and see any incoming information regarding the agency I work for. Cons I have yet to come across something I dislike using Podium. I have worked in this industry for years and have never until now found something that helps all staff members be able to have access to all text messages being sent in and out with clients. Review Source Marketing Director Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Professional customer messaging that feels personal." April 24, 2025 5.0 Within a matter of weeks of implementing Podium, we had doubled the amount of Google reviews for our store! That also added more visibility for our brand, especially locally. It also allowed us to make up some missed sales by answering questions about fit or availability quickly over text, something email just doesn’t do. Pros Podium assisted us in being able to touch base with shoppers; very much on a personal level, particularly for reviews and text messaging. I love that I can respond to customer inquiries via SMS quickly, while not switching between platforms including sending reviews requests directly after making a sale while the luster of excitement is still there. Cons It’s obviously designed with service businesses in mind, so some features that are common in retail, like inventory integration or product-oriented messaging aren’t exactly on point. We had to work around that a little bit to shape it to our flow. Review Source Marketing Manager Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Very good at what it does" June 9, 2020 5.0 Overall I'm very pleased with Podium. Despite the few shortcomings it alowed us to acheive our goals in a relatively short time frame and within budget. Pros The ability to send Google review requests directly to customers via SMS was amazing. It was exactly what we needed to get our review score up to, and past, our target score within the space of only a few months. The interface is incredibly user friendly and managing teams is about as simple as it gets. Cons I found that a lot of the time it wouldn't correctly tag who within our team was resposible for receiving reviews. There's also no ability to customise reports. It owuld be great if there could also be more integrations with additional review platforms, as we were stuck with only being able to provide the option for Google reviews as we don't accept Facebook Reviews. This caused us to miss a few reviews as customers didn't have Google accounts. Alternatives considered [Broadly](https://www.capterra.com/p/161326/Broadly-Reviews/)[Birdeye](https://www.capterra.com/p/152997/BirdEye/)[Trustpilot](https://www.capterra.com/p/169618/Trustpilot/) Reasons for choosing Podium Price and features best matched our needs and staff were incredibly helpful. Review Source ZD Zach D. director Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Awesome service for schools!" April 14, 2025 4.0 It has been a really positive experience. Our customer service and communication has improved drastically. Pros We are able to send bulk messages as well as easily communicate with members of our school. Cons The interface can be a little overwhelming at times. Review Source Michael L. President and Physician Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Functional platform when it works, but customer service is very poor." September 5, 2023 3.0 It was good until I stumbled upon problems on their end, and they do not respond to these problems in a timely fashion. I hope they iron out their problems so I don't ever have to speak to anyone at Podium Customer Service. They very rarely respond in a timely fashion. Pros I like the ability to integrate my business landline number with SMS capability. It's easy to send text review links to customers. Cons Customer service is horrific. Let me repeat--horrific! I rarely leave reviews but the inconveniences afford to me deserve a stern warning to others considering this platform. I am fairly tech savvy and a good problem solver. However, problems, server disconnects, software glitches occur from time-to-time, and customer service contacts cannot be reached, are unreliable, and human customer service is lacking! Switched from PatientPop was a bit pricey, and review requests via email were not very fruitful. Review Source Owner Owner Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "This company is a scam! " March 20, 2023 1.0 Absolutely the worst experience I’ve ever done with any company in my 15 years of business. Pros There’s absolutely no produce company. Other than the fact that they’re very good liars. They con you into signing up under false pretenses. They have zero communication. The only reason they have good reviews is because you can’t write -ones on any other social media accounts and I’d like to know where the reading five star reviews on Google when there’s no Google review to be found. Cons Yes, they are absolutely a con! They lied and misrepresented their business and strategies to me overcharged me. I had to dispute with my credit card company through several months, and now I’m being harassed by them for an outstanding bill of a month and a half of service that I never received. I’ve requested to speak to people and above positions with no luck and now I’m gonna have to have my attorney get involved. Do not do any business with this company. Reasons for choosing Podium I consider moving to this company to lower my rate on my text Marketing only to discover that I was paying less with my current company. Was told that I wasn’t going to have to pay anything or start anything until I receive a kick off call which was in forged and then instead of being charge $350 like I was told they were building me over $900 a month. I tried to cancel several times from the very beginning of receiving emails confirming that I had signed up when I had never agreed to move forward with this company or its over priced strategies. Funny enough I was contacted .I tried to cancel several times from the very beginning of receiving emails confirming that I had signed up when I had never agreed to move forward with this company or its over priced strategies. Funny enough, I was contacted by a different sales person, and offered an unlimited amount of text Marketing for the same dollar amount, what a joke of a company! Be ware! Review Source CFO Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Pointless application with non-customer-friendly service" May 18, 2022 1.0 Pros Good Sales Team and that's all. Don't trust them Cons I signed the contract, having listened to the beautiful promises of the sellers that everything would work perfectly and make it easier for me to communicate with clients. As a result, you can only interact with clients within this platform, you will never receive a notification that the client is waiting or the client has sent you a message. Only within the platform. If you missed the message - that's your problem. Given that my call center is still accepting messages from customers via phone, email, and Yelp, keeping another platform open is extremely inconvenient. As a result - a bunch of missed messages and dissatisfied customers. I was promised free text messages included in the price. As a result, I have to pay more than $1000 for mailings. When I tried to stop the service, the manager informed me that I had a contract for a year and I was obliged to pay for this year, even if the service did not perform its functions and promises. Review Source RH Robert H. Owner Used the software for: 3-5 years ### "Anti Gun Business" October 11, 2023 1.0 Never gives you the same rep, they constantly change people you talk to, customer service never follows up on anything, and they change their policies even though you have been paying for their services. Pros The program worked great and did it's job as advertised Cons This company is anti-gun. They suddenly changed this policy after 2 years of use and now we have to find another company to offer these service. They gave us 1 week to get off their platform with no notice of the change in their policy, or retro active support since we have been using their product for years.Would not recommend a company that will just kick you off with the level of integration this company has with your systems. Reasons for choosing Podium Big mistake will only user OtterText now Review Source Vice President Used the software for: Less than 1 year ### "Inadequate software support to what was proposed" August 28, 2024 1.0 The multiple challenges with getting this service on line, and the expectation to pay for the full year payment without the service being full filled in our contract. They did provide one less month payment , but that was not even close to many months with no proper service. We would have stayed through this trouble if they would have off set the many months of no full support, but they seem concerned with getting one more payment for us> I will keep reviewing and posting until I see podium doing a deep dive and understand from our point of view Pros The data analysis is easy to use and operate Cons Continuous IT tickets that had months with inadequate service. The lack of communication when the system was not working properly but yet still taking our payments. I have multiple documents and IT tickets to support our challenges. This year cost with not the ability to get Google reviews made the experience a failure Review Source Response from Podium August 28, 2024 Hi Sean, I'm sorry to hear about your experience. My name is Whitney and I'm digging into your account. Would you be able to send an email to support@podium.com so I can assist you more quickly? I will watch for your email. Similar Products Featured ## Send me user reviews about this product ### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox.