Free vs. Paid Versions

The free plan lets you try every core feature with monthly limits. Paid plans remove the caps and add team collaboration. The decision is mostly about volume and whether you work alone or with others.

The quick comparison

The numbers above are the published defaults — exact limits can shift, so verify on the pricing page if a limit matters to your decision.

When the free plan is enough

You run fewer than 2 projects per month and use the platform to explore rather than as a daily workhorse. Free works for occasional concept validation, testing what the platform can do, or one-off projects. You won't be able to create private personas, so your personas come from the public catalog only.

When to upgrade to Professional

You use the platform weekly or run multiple projects in parallel and need unlimited usage. Common triggers:

• You hit the 5-interview or 3-report cap and it's blocking your work
• You need private personas built from real interviews you've done
• You want more than one Sage expert
• You upload larger files (specs, transcripts, datasets)

Professional is the right plan for solo practitioners — product managers, marketers, consultants, researchers — who treat this as a regular tool.

When you actually need Team

You collaborate with others, not just in parallel but on shared artifacts. The Team plan adds:

• Up to 20 people on one bill
• Shared custom personas (everyone uses the same library)
• Shared research projects (read or edit depending on permission)
• Shared Sage experts (one expert, consulted by many)
• Usage visibility for the admin

If two or more people would each buy Professional separately, Team usually costs less and gives you shared assets.

A few honest trade-offs

Free isn't permanently useful for serious work. The monthly caps will run out within a week of regular use. The plan exists to let you evaluate, not to be a long-term option.

Professional has a soft cap on custom personas. 50 sounds like a lot until you realize each project tends to generate several. If you're researching a new market every quarter, you'll bump into the cap within a year. Workaround: archive old personas you no longer use.

Team plan features are still rolling out. Some "shared" features (shared research projects, shared Sage experts) may not be live yet depending on when you read this. Check the latest release notes.

How to upgrade and downgrade

Upgrades take effect immediately and pro-rate the price difference for the current billing period. Downgrades take effect at the end of the current period. Your data is preserved either way — no risk of losing projects or personas when switching plans.

The Team plan adds the wrinkle of seat count. Adding members mid-cycle increases the bill; removing them doesn't reduce the current cycle's charge but lowers future cycles.

Annual vs. monthly billing

Annual billing on Professional and Team plans gets a 20% discount. If you're sure you'll keep using the platform for 6+ months, annual is the right move. If you're still evaluating, start monthly.

Common questions

Can I try Professional features before paying? No trial period for paid plans. The free plan is the trial. Use it for 2-4 weeks to understand your usage, then upgrade if the caps are blocking you.

What if I downgrade and lose access to features? Already-created custom personas and reports stay readable. You just can't create new ones beyond the free plan limits.

Does the Team admin see everything members do? Admins see aggregated usage (how many interviews each person ran, total cost) and team-shared content. Admins don't see private personas or non-shared research by default — Team respects individual work alongside the shared library.

Related

• Viewing your usage and billing
• Inviting colleagues to a team