Government · head to head
iCompass vs Periscope Holdings

Periscope Holdings
Government
Statewide e-procurement systems and supplier networks for large public agencies
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: iCompass iCompass (a Diligent Corporation product for local government agenda management) publishes no pricing on its own site; every call to action is Contact Us or Request a Demo, with no figures anywhere on the page.; Periscope Holdings it is scaled and priced for statewide programmes, so a single city or county typically finds both the implementation effort and the cost out of proportion to its needs.
- They diverge on capability: iCompass covers Agenda Creation, Periscope Holdings covers Sealed bid solicitation.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which iCompass and Periscope Holdings actually diverge.
| Attribute | iCompass | Periscope Holdings |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $400/month | On request |
| Pricing model | subscription | quote |
| Platforms | Web, Ios, Android | Web |
| Founded | 2001 | Unknown |
Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Government).
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 iCompass
- Agenda Creation
- Meeting Minutes
- Document Management
- Public Meeting Portal
- Voting Management
- Microsoft Office
- Video Streaming
- Document Storage
Only in Periscope Holdings
- Sealed bid solicitation
- Supplier registration network
- Contract catalogues
- Cooperative purchasing
- Spend and compliance reporting
- Supplier diversity tracking
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
iCompass
- Citizen Servicesnot Periscope Holdings
- Records Managementnot Periscope Holdings
- Public Safetynot Periscope Holdings
- Civic Engagementnot Periscope Holdings
Periscope Holdings
- A state building a central procurement portal serving many agencies and local entitiesnot iCompass
- A large agency needing statutory sealed bidding with a public opening recordnot iCompass
- A purchasing programme that must report spend and supplier diversity across entitiesnot iCompass
- A state wanting local governments to buy from its awarded cooperative contractsnot iCompass
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
iCompass
- iCompass (a Diligent Corporation product for local government agenda management) publishes no pricing on its own site; every call to action is Contact Us or Request a Demo, with no figures anywhere on the page.
Periscope Holdings
- It is scaled and priced for statewide programmes, so a single city or county typically finds both the implementation effort and the cost out of proportion to its needs.
- The interface reflects the age and regulatory weight of the platform, and suppliers routinely describe registration and bidding as harder than on newer portals, which can suppress bid response.
- Ownership has changed twice since 2021, from independent to mdf commerce to KKR, so roadmap and support continuity should be written into the contract rather than assumed.
- Sibling products inside mdf commerce cover adjacent procurement ground, which means an apparently competitive shortlist may contain two products with the same owner.
- Statewide implementations are multi year projects with heavy configuration and change management, and the professional services cost commonly exceeds the software over the contract term.
Pricing, plan by plan
iCompass
$400/month- Government$400/month
- Agenda Management
- Meeting Minutes
- Public Portal
Periscope Holdings
On request- BuySpeed$undefined/year
- Quoted per programme, scaled to entities served and transaction volume
- Multi year statewide contracts with implementation priced separately
- Supplier side registration fees form part of the commercial model on some programmes
Which should you pick?
Choose iCompass if
- You need agenda creation.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want meeting minutes.
Choose Periscope Holdings if
- You need sealed bid solicitation.
- You also want supplier registration network.
Questions people ask
- Is iCompass or Periscope Holdings better?
- Neither clearly leads. iCompass starts at $400/month and Periscope Holdings at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, iCompass or Periscope Holdings?
- iCompass starts at $400/month and Periscope Holdings at On request.
- Does iCompass or Periscope Holdings run on more platforms?
- iCompass runs on Web, Ios, Android. Periscope Holdings runs on Web.
- What is iCompass best used for?
- iCompass is most often used for citizen services, records management, public safety, civic engagement. Of those, citizen services and records management are not what Periscope Holdings is typically brought in for.
- What can iCompass do that Periscope Holdings cannot?
- iCompass covers Agenda Creation, Meeting Minutes, Document Management, Public Meeting Portal. Periscope Holdings covers Sealed bid solicitation, Supplier registration network, Contract catalogues, Cooperative purchasing.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Periscope Holdings: Who owns Periscope Holdings?
mdf commerce acquired it in 2021, and mdf commerce was itself acquired by KKR in 2024.
Periscope Holdings: Is it suitable for a single city?
Usually not. It is built and priced for statewide or very large agency programmes.
Periscope Holdings: What is BuySpeed?
The e-procurement platform behind its statewide deployments, covering solicitation through catalogue ordering and reporting.
Periscope Holdings: Can we see what a state paid?
Yes. State procurement awards are public records and typically disclose the full multi year contract value.
Related pages
More on Periscope Holdings
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