Grade.us is a popular choice for agencies managing client reviews, but it is not the right fit for every agency.
Grade.us built its positioning squarely around the agency market, it's one of the few review management platforms designed from the ground up for agencies managing multiple client accounts. If you're evaluating it, you're probably an agency that's outgrown a simpler review tool or is looking for a white-label solution.
Here's the honest assessment.
Agencies often evaluate several platforms at once, including a GatherUp alternative.
Grade.us is a mature platform with a well-designed white-label interface and solid review funnel automation, it's purpose-built for agencies managing client review campaigns.
The platform's white-label capabilities are stronger than most competitors at its price point. Agencies can present a branded experience to clients without the Flento/Grade.us branding being visible. Their multi-client dashboard makes it relatively easy to manage review campaigns across a large client roster.
Grade.us genuine strengths:
📊 Flento Data: Agencies managing 10+ review clients typically see a 40% reduction in campaign management time when they switch to an agency-focused platform with multi-client dashboards, compared to running individual client accounts on single-business tools.
Grade.us focuses almost entirely on review management, which means the agencies using it still need separate tools for citation management, GBP optimization, and local keyword rank tracking.
What Grade.us doesn't offer:
No GBP optimization: Grade.us doesn't monitor or help improve your clients' Google Business Profiles. GBP completeness, post scheduling, photo monitoring, none of this is in the platform.
No citation management: NAP consistency is a core local ranking factor. Agencies that identify citation problems for clients need to manage them through a separate tool.
No local keyword rank tracking: You can't show clients where they rank on Google Maps from within Grade.us. Ranking improvements are the primary metric clients care about, and you'd need a separate rank tracking tool to demonstrate ROI.
Limited local SEO scope: Grade.us positions itself as a review and reputation platform, not a local SEO platform. For agencies that sell local SEO as a service (not just review management), this is a meaningful constraint.
⚠️ Common Mistake: Agencies that sell "local SEO services" but only deliver review management are underdelivering on what clients expect. Clients want to rank higher, reviews are one signal, but citation consistency, GBP optimization, and rank tracking are equally important.
| Feature | Grade.us | Flento |
|---|---|---|
| White-label client portal | Yes (strong) | Yes |
| Multi-client dashboard | Yes | Yes |
| Review request automation | Yes | Yes |
| Review pre-screening funnel | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-platform monitoring (40+ sites) | Yes | Yes (focused on high-impact platforms) |
| Review response tools | Basic | Yes, with AI templates |
| Google Business Profile optimization | No | Yes |
| Citation management | No | Yes (50+ directories) |
| Local keyword rank tracking | No | Yes |
| GBP post scheduling | No | Yes |
| NAP consistency auditing | No | Yes |
| Client billing / reseller features | Yes | Growing |
| Published pricing | Yes | Yes |
Grade.us is the right fit for agencies whose primary service is review management and reputation monitoring. It's a weaker fit for agencies offering full local SEO services.
Consider a Grade.us alternative if:
Grade.us is well-suited for you if:
Agencies that have outgrown review-only platforms choose Flento because it covers the full local SEO signal stack, reviews, GBP, citations, and rank tracking, in one white-label dashboard.
What full-stack local SEO agencies get with Flento:
Comprehensive client reporting: Instead of pulling data from 3-4 separate tools to build a client report, Flento's dashboard presents review velocity, GBP health, citation consistency, and rank positions in one view.
GBP optimization per client: Flag incomplete GBP profiles, monitor photo freshness, track post frequency, and alert when a client location falls behind, all from the agency dashboard.
Citation management at scale: Audit and fix NAP inconsistencies for every client location from one interface. This is particularly valuable for agencies onboarding new clients who often have significant citation problems.
Rank tracking to prove ROI: Show clients exactly where they rank for their primary keywords before and after your work. This is the data point that retains clients longer than any other.
Does Grade.us offer a free trial? Grade.us has offered free trials at various points, check their current website for availability. Their pricing is tiered by number of locations and feature set.
Can Flento handle as many review platforms as Grade.us? Grade.us monitors 40+ review sites. Flento monitors the platforms where reviews have the most impact on local SEO and customer decisions: Google, Facebook, Yelp, and category-specific directories. For most local business categories, 90%+ of impactful reviews come from these platforms.
If I'm already using Grade.us for reviews, should I also use Flento? If you're happy with Grade.us for review management specifically, adding Flento for GBP optimization, citation management, and rank tracking gives you a complete local SEO toolkit. The tools can be used in parallel.
Is Flento's white-label as strong as Grade.us? Grade.us has a more mature white-label client portal, it's been their primary differentiator for years. Flento's white-label is solid for agency use. If the client-facing portal is your primary requirement and review management is your only service, Grade.us may have the edge on that specific feature.
What makes agencies switch from Grade.us to Flento? Most commonly: wanting to add local SEO services (GBP, citations, rank tracking) without adding separate tools, and wanting to prove ranking ROI to clients from one platform.
