Should I launch fast with Go or custom-build with Flex?
Choosing the right marketplace solution depends on your idea, feature requirements, budget, timeline, and technical skills. Here are the main differences between Sharetribe Go and Sharetribe Flex.
When to choose...
Choose Go if...
You can build your Minimum Viable Platform with Go's feature set.
Go is the easiest, fastest, and most affordable way to get your marketplace idea out into the world. After you have validated your idea and know what your customers need, moving to Flex is simple.
You're not a developer and don't have the time or budget to hire one.
Go lets you create a complete marketplace website without any coding. Working with Flex always requires some development work. The minimum budget needed for launching a Flex marketplace is typically around $5K.
You want to launch your marketplace as fast as possible.
Setting up a marketplace with Go only takes a couple of minutes. Some of our customers have gone from idea to launch in a single day! With Flex, the build time is typically around one month or longer.
Ps. You can launch with Go and move to Flex later!
Choose Flex if...
You know you need more than Go's essential marketplace features.
Go has an extensive feature set, but for some marketplace ideas, it might not be enough for a Minimum Viable Platform. With Flex, you can build the missing features on top of Flex's APIs yourself. You can also integrate third-party apps or your own back-end.
You have specific requirements for design and UX.
Thanks to Flex's headless approach, you can design and develop your marketplace user experience according to your specs. This is great for established brands or entrepreneurs who know exactly how their UX should look, feel, and function.
You want to build a mobile app.
Flex gives you full freedom to build any kind of user interface, in web or mobile. Flex offers templates for both web and native mobile apps. With Go, you can only build a marketplace website (though it works great on mobile, too).
Basics
Time to market
1 day
1 month
Customizability
Adjustable look & feel
Full flexibility
Price
Starting at $79/mo
Starting at $299/mo
Supported payment providers
Stripe & PayPal
Stripe (but you can build a custom integration to any payment provider)
API
Hosting & server monitoring
(but you need to host your front-end)
Backups
Software updates
Legal/regulatory compliance
Scalability
1,000,000 users
Unlimited
Customer support
Marketplace type
Renting products, vehicles, or spaces
Booking services
Selling tickets to events
Selling physical products
Free sharing of goods and services
Reverse marketplace
Essential marketplace features
User management
Listing management
Location search
Booking & scheduling
Online payment
Reviews
Messaging
Booking calendar
Stock/Inventory Management
Multiple languages
Custom-build more features
Advanced marketplace features
Integrating third-party software
Customizable transaction process
Possibility to build a mobile app
Connect to Zapier
Flex functionality has been built with specific focus on "regular" marketplace flow (customers browse offerings and book). You can build a "reverse" marketplace (customers place requests, providers browse these and bid on them) with Flex too, but this requires a bit more development work, as Flex doesn't have a standard template for a reverse flow.
Always included in both Go & Flex
When you create a marketplace with Sharetribe, here's what you can always count on.
All essential marketplace features
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Listings and profiles. Multiple different transaction flows. Search engine. Availability management. Messaging, reviews, email notifications, and a lot more. Because you don’t have to sweat the basics, you can focus on what counts: your brand and your user community.
Secure online payments
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Sharetribe’s built-in payment system allows you to process payments between your users, delay payouts, and collect your commission automatically. Without compromising user experience or security compliance.
Powerful admin tools
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Have a 360° view of what goes on in your marketplace. User management, content moderation, transaction monitoring, and a lot more – all the tools you need to be in complete control of your platform.
Regular updates & new features
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Sharetribe makes your business more powerful every day. In addition to keeping your platform up to speed with the latest security and regulatory advancements, our team adds lots of new functionality to your marketplace every month.
Carefree infrastructure
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Wherever your growth takes you, your Sharetribe-powered platform can handle it. You never need to worry about traffic spikes or site performance. Our solutions support your marketplace at any stage of your business lifecycle.
Legal & regulatory compliance
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Local payment regulation? Data security protection? Regulatory changes and updates? With Sharetribe, your payment and data processing is always compliant with the latest regulatory standards such as GDPR and PSD2.
Maintenance & backups
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Scratch backups off your todo list. Sharetribe keeps your platform and data storage working reliably and securely according to the latest industry best practices. If you ever want to leave, your data is yours to keep.
Expert support 7 days a week
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Sharetribe’s support team consists of marketplace business and platform technology experts – all extremely friendly folks to boot. We’ll help you get the most out of our products and share Sharetribe’s decade-long marketplace experience to support your business.