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Developer Tools · head to head

ConfigCat vs Drift

ConfigCat logo

ConfigCat

Developer Tools

Feature flag service priced per flag and environment with unlimited seats and unlimited monthly active users

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Drift logo

Drift

Technology

The Conversation Cloud

From
$2500/month
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only ConfigCat has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ConfigCat there is no experimentation or statistical analysis engine, so teams wanting real A/B tests with significance testing must buy and integrate a separate analytics or experimentation product.; Drift product is being sunset by Salesloft with successor service (1mind) recommended
  • They diverge on capability: ConfigCat covers Feature flags and configuration, Drift covers Live chat.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ConfigCat and Drift actually diverge.

Attributes where ConfigCat and Drift differ
AttributeConfigCatDrift
Starting priceFree$2500/month
Pricing modelPer month by feature flag and environment countUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, GoWeb
CategoryDeveloper ToolsTechnology
FoundedUnknown2015

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 ConfigCat

  • Feature flags and configuration
  • Percentage rollouts
  • Targeting rules and segments
  • Unlimited seats
  • Global CDN delivery
  • Audit log
  • Public API and webhooks
  • SDKs across languages

Only in Drift

  • Live chat
  • AI chatbots
  • Meeting scheduling
  • Email sequences
  • Visitor intelligence
  • Conversation routing
  • Mobile app
  • Analytics dashboard

What people use each for

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

ConfigCat

  • A consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-MAU flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worthnot Drift
  • A team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seatnot Drift
  • Decoupling deployment from release with percentage rollouts and a kill switch, without buying an experimentation platformnot Drift
  • A small team that needs ten flags permanently and can run indefinitely on the free tiernot Drift

Drift

  • Lead qualificationnot ConfigCat
  • Meeting bookingnot ConfigCat
  • Customer supportnot ConfigCat
  • Account-based marketingnot ConfigCat
  • Sales accelerationnot ConfigCat

Where each one falls short

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

ConfigCat

  • There is no experimentation or statistical analysis engine, so teams wanting real A/B tests with significance testing must buy and integrate a separate analytics or experimentation product.
  • Pricing by flag count punishes exactly the hygiene you want: the Pro tier caps at 100 flags, so teams that do not aggressively retire stale flags are pushed to the 325 dollar Smart tier for housekeeping reasons rather than growth.
  • The free tier allows only 2 environments, which does not cover the common development, staging and production split, so almost any real deployment starts on a paid plan.
  • It is a smaller vendor than the category incumbents, so enterprise procurement teams will find less depth in compliance attestations, contractual terms and reference architecture than LaunchDarkly offers.
  • Flag evaluation relies on SDK-side caching of a CDN-delivered config, which is fast but means propagation of a change is eventually consistent rather than instant, something to understand before relying on it as an emergency kill switch.

Drift

  • Product is being sunset by Salesloft with successor service (1mind) recommended
  • Mandatory bundling within Salesloft increases cost
  • No free tier available
  • Customer support and knowledge base have been deprioritized
  • Limited to enterprise B2B pipeline generation focus

Pricing, plan by plan

ConfigCat

Free
  • Forever FreeFree
    • 10 feature flags
    • 2 environments and 2 products
    • 2 segments
  • Pro$110/month
    • 100 feature flags
    • 3 environments and 3 products
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Smart$325/month
    • Unlimited feature flags
    • Unlimited environments, products and segments
    • Unlimited seats and MAUs
  • Enterprise$900/month
    • Everything in Smart
    • Enterprise support and controls
    • Unlimited everything on flag counts

Drift

$2500/month

No published plan breakdown. See the Drift review.

Which should you pick?

Choose ConfigCat if

  • You need feature flags and configuration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, Go.
  • You also want percentage rollouts.
ConfigCat review

Choose Drift if

  • You need live chat.
  • You also want ai chatbots.
Drift review

Questions people ask

Is ConfigCat or Drift better?
Neither clearly leads. ConfigCat starts at Free and Drift at $2500/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ConfigCat or Drift?
ConfigCat has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for ConfigCat and $2500/month for Drift.
Does ConfigCat or Drift run on more platforms?
ConfigCat runs on Web, API, iOS, Android, Node.js, .NET, Java, Python, Go. Drift runs on Web.
Can I use ConfigCat for free?
Yes. ConfigCat has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Drift starts at $2500/month.
What is ConfigCat best used for?
ConfigCat is most often used for a consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-mau flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worth, a team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seat, decoupling deployment from release with percentage rollouts and a kill switch, without buying an experimentation platform, a small team that needs ten flags permanently and can run indefinitely on the free tier. Of those, a consumer or mobile app with millions of users where per-mau flag pricing would cost more than the flags are worth and a team that wants every engineer, product manager and support agent to have a login without paying per seat are not what Drift is typically brought in for.
What can ConfigCat do that Drift cannot?
ConfigCat covers Feature flags and configuration, Percentage rollouts, Targeting rules and segments, Unlimited seats. Drift covers Live chat, AI chatbots, Meeting scheduling, Email sequences.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ConfigCat: How is ConfigCat priced?

By feature flag, environment and product count. Seats, monthly active users and flag reads are unlimited on every plan.

Drift: What is the current status of Drift in 2026?

On March 6, 2026, Clari and Salesloft announced the gradual sunset of Drift's conversational marketing solution, with 1mind named as its exclusive AI successor. Drift remains available but its future is limited.

Source
ConfigCat: Is the free tier usable?

For small projects yes, but at 10 flags and 2 environments it will not cover a dev, staging and production setup.

Drift: How much does Drift cost?

Drift pricing starts around $2,500/month ($30,000/year) for Premium chat-only capabilities, with Enterprise plans exceeding $80,000/year. Drift is bundled within Salesloft and billed annually only.

Source
ConfigCat: Can it run A/B tests?

It can split traffic, but there is no statistics engine. You need a separate analytics tool to decide a winner.

Drift: What features come with Drift Premium?

Premium plans include live chat widget, custom chatbot flows, meeting scheduling with calendar integration, basic playbooks, email sequences, and standard integrations.

Source
ConfigCat: How fast does a flag change take effect?

SDKs poll and cache, so changes propagate on the polling interval rather than instantly.

Drift: Does Drift offer a free plan?

No, Drift no longer publicly advertises a free plan as of 2026. All plans require annual billing through Salesloft.

Source
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