Research · head to head
Labguru vs Zappi
Labguru
Research
Electronic lab notebook, LIMS and inventory in one system, now sold under the Cenevo group
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Zappi
Research
Automated consumer insights platform for testing advertising, product concepts and brand health
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Labguru ownership changed twice in short order, to Battery Ventures in 2024 and then into the Cenevo brand with Titian Software in 2025, so the medium-term roadmap is a group strategy decision rather than a product one and buyers should ask directly what happens to the notebook.; Zappi nothing is published: pricing is a platform subscription plus a prepaid credit bundle quoted per customer, so a buyer cannot benchmark the cost against agency research without going through sales.
- They diverge on capability: Labguru covers Combined ELN and LIMS, Zappi covers Validated study templates.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Labguru and Zappi actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Research).
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 Labguru
- Combined ELN and LIMS
- Validated cloud hosting
- Inventory and stock
- Chemistry module
- Equipment management
- Electronic batch records
- Label Wizard
- API and developer tools
Only in Zappi
- Validated study templates
- Respondent panel access
- Normative benchmarks
- Creative testing
- Brand health tracking
- AI analysis over history
- Unlimited users
- Exports and integrations
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Labguru
- A biotech that wants experiment records and sample inventory in one system instead of paying for an ELN and a LIMS separatelynot Zappi
- A chemistry group needing structure registration attached to the experiment rather than in a standalone databasenot Zappi
- A contract research organisation that must show sample traceability from receipt to reported result during a client auditnot Zappi
- An academic institute standardising dozens of small labs off shared spreadsheets and paper notebooks onto one searchable recordnot Zappi
Zappi
- A beverage brand screening thirty flavour concepts before committing to two for consumer testingnot Labguru
- A marketing team pre-testing three advertising edits in a day so a media booking deadline can be metnot Labguru
- An insights function replacing repeated ad-hoc agency studies with a comparable, accumulating body of test resultsnot Labguru
- A brand manager running continuous brand health tracking without negotiating a separate tracker contract each yearnot Labguru
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Labguru
- Ownership changed twice in short order, to Battery Ventures in 2024 and then into the Cenevo brand with Titian Software in 2025, so the medium-term roadmap is a group strategy decision rather than a product one and buyers should ask directly what happens to the notebook.
- The validated GxP hosting option is a separate commercial line, not a configuration setting, so a lab that discovers mid-project that it needs a validated instance faces a new contract and a new price rather than an upgrade.
- Being both an ELN and a LIMS means it is shallower than dedicated tools in each role; high-throughput sample management and deep bioinformatics workflows both hit limits that a specialist would not.
- No pricing is published at all, and modules such as chemistry, batch records and equipment are quoted on top, so the real annual figure only appears after a sales process.
- Validation, SOPs and periodic revalidation after vendor releases are the customer obligation on a regulated instance, and cloud release cadence means that revalidation is a recurring internal cost that never appears on the vendor quote.
Zappi
- Nothing is published: pricing is a platform subscription plus a prepaid credit bundle quoted per customer, so a buyer cannot benchmark the cost against agency research without going through sales.
- Credits are prepaid against a forecast of the year ahead, which means a team that overestimates research volume ends the year having paid for studies it never ran.
- The template model that makes studies fast also constrains them; a research question that does not fit a validated instrument either gets forced into one or goes to an agency anyway.
- Normative benchmarks are strongest in fast-moving consumer goods categories where Zappi has depth, and thinner in business-to-business, financial services and niche categories, where the comparison numbers mean less.
- Because respondents come from Zappi-sourced panels, sample composition is a vendor decision rather than yours, and any team that needs a bespoke recruitment specification or a low-incidence audience will find the automated route unsuitable.
Pricing, plan by plan
Labguru
On request- Labguru$undefined/year
- Priced per user per year on quotation with volume tiers
- ELN, LIMS and inventory in the base platform
- Chemistry, batch records and equipment modules quoted separately
Zappi
On request- Premium$undefined/year
- Platform subscription with unlimited users
- Access to all research solutions
- Credit bundle scoped to annual research volume
- Enterprise$undefined/year
- Platform subscription with unlimited users
- Multi-market and global organisation controls
- Connected insights across markets and brands
Which should you pick?
Choose Labguru if
- You need combined eln and lims.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android, On-premise.
- You also want validated cloud hosting.
Choose Zappi if
- You need validated study templates.
- You also want respondent panel access.
Questions people ask
- Is Labguru or Zappi better?
- Neither clearly leads. Labguru starts at On request and Zappi at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Labguru or Zappi?
- Labguru starts at On request and Zappi at On request.
- Does Labguru or Zappi run on more platforms?
- Labguru runs on Web, iOS, Android, On-premise. Zappi runs on Web.
- What is Labguru best used for?
- Labguru is most often used for a biotech that wants experiment records and sample inventory in one system instead of paying for an eln and a lims separately, a chemistry group needing structure registration attached to the experiment rather than in a standalone database, a contract research organisation that must show sample traceability from receipt to reported result during a client audit, an academic institute standardising dozens of small labs off shared spreadsheets and paper notebooks onto one searchable record. Of those, a biotech that wants experiment records and sample inventory in one system instead of paying for an eln and a lims separately and a chemistry group needing structure registration attached to the experiment rather than in a standalone database are not what Zappi is typically brought in for.
- What can Labguru do that Zappi cannot?
- Labguru covers Combined ELN and LIMS, Validated cloud hosting, Inventory and stock, Chemistry module. Zappi covers Validated study templates, Respondent panel access, Normative benchmarks, Creative testing.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Labguru: Who owns Labguru now?
Battery Ventures acquired it in April 2024. Since July 2025 it operates under the Cenevo brand following a merger with Titian Software.
Zappi: Does Zappi publish prices?
No. It publishes the structure, a platform subscription plus credits plus optional services, but not the numbers.
Labguru: Is it an ELN or a LIMS?
Both, in one product. That is the main reason labs choose it, and also why it is shallower than a specialist in each role.
Zappi: How fast do results come back?
Automated tests typically return within hours to a day, which is the main reason teams choose it over a commissioned study.
Labguru: Does it support GxP work?
Yes, through a separately contracted validated cloud instance. Validation for your intended use remains your responsibility.
Zappi: Do we still need an agency?
For standard concept, creative and brand tests, usually not. For bespoke methodologies and hard-to-reach audiences, yes.
Labguru: Is pricing published?
No. It is quoted per user per year, with modules and validated hosting priced on top.
Zappi: Is there a per-seat charge?
No. Both published tiers include unlimited users; the variable cost is research credits.
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