Softwr

Government · head to head

CitizenLab vs Polco

CitizenLab logo

CitizenLab

Government

Digital Democracy Platform

From
$500/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Polco logo

Polco

Government

Civic Engagement and Polling Platform

From
$300/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CitizenLab citizenLab has rebranded to Go Vocal and the product now sells under govocal.com; Polco interface has a formal, academic tone compared to modern civic engagement platforms
  • They diverge on capability: CitizenLab covers Participatory Budgeting, Polco covers Scientific Surveys.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CitizenLab and Polco actually diverge.

Attributes where CitizenLab and Polco differ
AttributeCitizenLabPolco
Starting price$500/month$300/month

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Government), founded (2015).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in CitizenLab

  • Participatory Budgeting
  • Idea Management
  • Online Consultations
  • Surveys & Polls
  • AI-powered Analysis
  • Single Sign-On
  • Open Data Portals
  • GIS Systems

Only in Polco

  • Scientific Surveys
  • Live Polling
  • Community Benchmarking
  • Priority-Based Budgeting
  • Demographic Analysis
  • NRC Surveys
  • ArcGIS
  • Social Media

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

CitizenLab

  • Running community consultation and participatory budgeting for a citynot Polco
  • Collecting resident input through surveys, ideation, mapping and votingnot Polco
  • Centralising engagement data across multiple municipal departmentsnot Polco

Polco

  • Citizen Servicesnot CitizenLab
  • Records Managementnot CitizenLab
  • Public Safetynot CitizenLab
  • Civic Engagementnot CitizenLab

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

CitizenLab

  • CitizenLab has rebranded to Go Vocal and the product now sells under govocal.com
  • No prices are published on the plans page; every tier requires scheduling a demo
  • The Essential plan allows only 1 active project and 1 admin seat, with no project manager seats
  • Standard is limited to 4 admin seats and 5 project manager seats, and Premium to 8 admin seats and 25 project manager seats
  • Standard restricts Sensemaking to Light, capped at 30 inputs; auto-insights require Premium
  • The integrated Konveio document annotation and Echo blended engagement methods are excluded from Standard and require Premium
  • Auto-translation on Premium is limited to 3 languages
  • Custom fonts and other premium styling options are Premium only
  • Priority support is Premium only
  • Plans are split by population band, with separate ladders for cities under and over 100K population

Polco

  • Interface has a formal, academic tone compared to modern civic engagement platforms
  • Emphasizes surveys and benchmarking over open discussion forums and idea boards
  • Pricing is custom quote-based without transparent pricing on the website

Pricing, plan by plan

CitizenLab

$500/month
  • Government$500/month
    • Participatory Budgeting
    • Idea Collection
    • Surveys

Polco

$300/month
  • Community Engagement$300/month
    • Community Surveys
    • Live Polling
    • Benchmarking

Which should you pick?

Choose CitizenLab if

  • You need participatory budgeting.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want idea management.
CitizenLab review

Choose Polco if

  • You need scientific surveys.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want live polling.
Polco review

Questions people ask

Is CitizenLab or Polco better?
Neither clearly leads. CitizenLab starts at $500/month and Polco at $300/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CitizenLab or Polco?
CitizenLab starts at $500/month and Polco at $300/month.
Does CitizenLab or Polco run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Ios, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is CitizenLab best used for?
CitizenLab is most often used for running community consultation and participatory budgeting for a city, collecting resident input through surveys, ideation, mapping and voting, centralising engagement data across multiple municipal departments. Of those, running community consultation and participatory budgeting for a city and collecting resident input through surveys, ideation, mapping and voting are not what Polco is typically brought in for.
What can CitizenLab do that Polco cannot?
CitizenLab covers Participatory Budgeting, Idea Management, Online Consultations, Surveys & Polls. Polco covers Scientific Surveys, Live Polling, Community Benchmarking, Priority-Based Budgeting. Both handle Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CitizenLab: How many projects can Essential tier teams manage?

The Essential tier is designed for teams starting small and is limited to 1 active project with 1 admin seat and no project manager seats.

Source
Polco: How does Polco ensure survey data quality?

Polco uses scientific survey methodology through the National Research Center, with pre-tested survey questions and verification that participants live in the surveyed area to eliminate outside interference and bad-faith responses.

Source
CitizenLab: How many projects can Standard and Premium tiers manage?

Both Standard and Premium tiers support unlimited projects. Standard includes 4 admin seats and 5 project manager seats, while Premium includes 8 admin seats and 25 project manager seats.

Source
Polco: What's the difference between Polco and open discussion platforms?

Polco emphasizes scientific surveys and benchmarking over open forums or suggestion boards, prioritizing rigorous data collection for policy decisions over broad community brainstorming.

Source
CitizenLab: Does Enterprise tier have any user seat limits?

No, the Enterprise tier is designed for organizations aiming to embed engagement deeply within their infrastructure and includes unlimited admin seats and project managers.

Source
CitizenLab: What are the specific pricing amounts for each tier?

Specific pricing amounts are not disclosed on the plans page. The company directs interested organizations to talk to their team for personalized pricing offers.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on CitizenLab

More on Polco

Keep looking

Other head to heads