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Employee Engagement · head to head

Fond vs Viral Loops

Fond logo

Fond

Employee Engagement

Employee experience platform for modern teams

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite
Viral Loops logo

Viral Loops

Affiliate Marketing

Viral and referral marketing made simple

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Viral Loops has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fond fond.co redirects to Reward Gateway. No pricing plans or costs are published on Reward Gateway's website; Viral Loops pricing is relatively high for small startups and bootstrapped businesses ($35/mo minimum)
  • They diverge on capability: Fond covers Social recognition, Viral Loops covers Campaign templates.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fond and Viral Loops actually diverge.

Attributes where Fond and Viral Loops differ
AttributeFondViral Loops
Starting priceOn requestFree
Free tierNoYes
CategoryEmployee EngagementAffiliate Marketing
Founded20132016

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), platforms (Web), 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 Fond

  • Social recognition
  • Engagement tools
  • Culture programs
  • Mobile app
  • Analytics dashboard
  • Manager resources
  • Customizable workflows
  • Reporting

Only in Viral Loops

  • Campaign templates
  • Milestone rewards
  • Leaderboards
  • Referral widgets
  • Viral analytics
  • Shopify
  • Mailchimp
  • Klaviyo

What people use each for

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

Fond

  • Peer-to-peer recognition with points employees send each othernot Viral Loops
  • Redeeming points against a rewards cataloguenot Viral Loops
  • Corporate perks and discounts for staffnot Viral Loops
  • Running a recognition programme across international officesnot Viral Loops

Viral Loops

  • affiliate marketing managementnot Fond
  • Workflow automationnot Fond
  • Reportingnot Fond

Where each one falls short

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

Fond

  • Fond.co redirects to Reward Gateway. No pricing plans or costs are published on Reward Gateway's website
  • Requires contacting the company through demo request forms and ROI calculators for custom quotes

Viral Loops

  • Pricing is relatively high for small startups and bootstrapped businesses ($35/mo minimum)
  • Advanced features are only available on higher-tier plans, limiting smaller businesses
  • Limited customization without technical development for highly branded campaigns
  • Customer support response times may vary by region and time zone

Pricing, plan by plan

Fond

On request
  • Fond Platform$undefined/month
    • Recognition
    • Engagement tools
    • Culture building

Viral Loops

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1,000 participants
    • All templates
    • Basic features

Which should you pick?

Choose Fond if

  • You need social recognition.
  • You also want engagement tools.
Fond review

Choose Viral Loops if

  • You need campaign templates.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want milestone rewards.
Viral Loops review

Questions people ask

Is Fond or Viral Loops better?
Neither clearly leads. Fond starts at On request and Viral Loops at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fond or Viral Loops?
Viral Loops has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Fond and Free for Viral Loops.
Does Fond or Viral Loops run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Viral Loops for free?
Yes. Viral Loops has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fond starts at On request.
What is Fond best used for?
Fond is most often used for peer-to-peer recognition with points employees send each other, redeeming points against a rewards catalogue, corporate perks and discounts for staff, running a recognition programme across international offices. Of those, peer-to-peer recognition with points employees send each other and redeeming points against a rewards catalogue are not what Viral Loops is typically brought in for.
What can Fond do that Viral Loops cannot?
Fond covers Social recognition, Engagement tools, Culture programs, Mobile app. Viral Loops covers Campaign templates, Milestone rewards, Leaderboards, Referral widgets.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Fond: Is Fond still operating under that brand?

Fond.co redirects to Reward Gateway, suggesting Fond has been acquired or rebranded under the Reward Gateway brand.

Source
Viral Loops: What does Viral Loops pricing start at?

Viral Loops pricing starts at $35/month and ranges up to $208/month depending on the plan. The platform offers a 14-day free trial, flat-rate pricing (no per-campaign charges), and 30% discount for annual billing.

Source
Fond: How does Reward Gateway publish pricing?

Reward Gateway does not disclose specific pricing tiers or costs on their website. Prospective customers must contact the company through demo requests or ROI calculators.

Source
Viral Loops: What types of campaigns can Viral Loops create?

Viral Loops allows creation of referral programs, giveaways, waiting lists, and sweepstakes/competitions. Campaigns can be integrated into websites or mobile apps within minutes using pre-built templates.

Source
Viral Loops: Does Viral Loops offer custom pricing?

Yes. Beyond the standard $35-208/month plans, Viral Loops offers custom pricing for larger teams and enterprises with specific feature requirements.

Source
Viral Loops: What happens to campaigns after I cancel Viral Loops?

Users can export large files of mailing lists in several data formats, allowing campaign data to be migrated to another platform if needed after cancellation.

Source
Viral Loops: How quickly can I launch a campaign with Viral Loops?

Campaigns can be launched within minutes using Viral Loops' template-based, intuitive interface that requires no technical expertise or coding knowledge.

Source
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