Planful is a budgeting and planning software that streamlines financial processes through automation and collaboration. It best serves mid-sized businesses and large enterprises, particularly in industries like SaaS, healthcare, and manufacturing, supporting finance teams and departments. Planful simplifies complex budgeting and forecasting, enhancing decision-making with real-time data insights.
Planful addresses common pain points like manual data entry, lack of integration, and forecasting errors for finance and accounting teams. In this article, I'll cover Planful's features, pros and cons, use cases, pricing, etc. so you can decide if this software aligns with your FP&A goals.
Planful Evaluation Summary
- Pricing upon request
- Free demo available
Why Trust Our Software Reviews
We’ve been testing and reviewing financial software since 2023. As finance specialists ourselves, we know how critical and difficult it is to make the right decision when selecting software.
We invest in deep research to help our audience make better software purchasing decisions. We’ve tested more than 2,000 tools for different finance use cases and written over 1,000 comprehensive software reviews. Learn how we stay transparent & our software review methodology.
Planful Overview
In my opinion, Planful is a solid choice for businesses looking for reliable budgeting and dynamic planning software. It excels in providing a user-friendly interface and comprehensive features that cater to mid-sized and large enterprises. The onboarding process is smooth, though it could be more robust in terms of tutorials. Compared to competitors, Planful stands out with its intuitive design and effective forecasting tools.
However, its customer support could be more responsive. It's best suited for finance teams aiming to improve efficiency and accuracy in financial planning. If you're choosing a tool that balances functionality with ease of use, Planful should be on your list.
pros
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Planful's interface is intuitive, making it easy for your team to navigate and use.
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It offers powerful forecasting tools that enhance your financial planning accuracy.
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The automation features save your team time by reducing manual data entry.
cons
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Customer support can be slow to respond when you need help.
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Some users find the reporting tool less customizable than they'd like.
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Your team might need more in-depth tutorials during onboarding to fully grasp all features.
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How We Test & Score Tools
We’ve spent years building, refining, and improving our software testing and scoring system. The rubric is designed to capture the nuances of software selection and what makes a tool effective, focusing on critical aspects of the decision-making process.
Below, you can see exactly how our testing and scoring works across seven criteria. It allows us to provide an unbiased evaluation of the software based on core functionality, standout features, ease of use, onboarding, customer support, integrations, customer reviews, and value for money.
Core Functionality (25% of final scoring)
The starting point of our evaluation is always the core functionality of the tool. Does it have the basic features and functions that a user would expect to see? Are any of those core features locked to higher-tiered pricing plans? At its core, we expect a tool to stand up against the baseline capabilities of its competitors.
Standout Features (25% of final scoring)
Next, we evaluate uncommon standout features that go above and beyond the core functionality typically found in tools of its kind. A high score reflects specialized or unique features that make the product faster, more efficient, or offer additional value to the user.
We also evaluate how easy it is to integrate with other tools typically found in the tech stack to expand the functionality and utility of the software. Tools offering plentiful native integrations, 3rd party connections, and API access to build custom integrations score best.
Ease of Use (10% of final scoring)
We consider how quick and easy it is to execute the tasks defined in the core functionality using the tool. High scoring software is well designed, intuitive to use, offers mobile apps, provides templates, and makes relatively complex tasks seem simple.
Onboarding (10% of final scoring)
We know how important rapid team adoption is for a new platform, so we evaluate how easy it is to learn and use a tool with minimal training. We evaluate how quickly a team member can get set up and start using the tool with no experience. High scoring solutions indicate little or no support is required.
Customer Support (10% of final scoring)
We review how quick and easy it is to get unstuck and find help by phone, live chat, or knowledge base. Tools and companies that provide real-time support score best, while chatbots score worst.
Customer Reviews (10% of final scoring)
Beyond our own testing and evaluation, we consider the net promoter score from current and past customers. We review their likelihood, given the option, to choose the tool again for the core functionality. A high scoring software reflects a high net promoter score from current or past customers.
Value for Money (10% of final scoring)
Lastly, in consideration of all the other criteria, we review the average price of entry level plans against the core features and consider the value of the other evaluation criteria. Software that delivers more, for less, will score higher.
Core Features
Budgeting
Planful lets you create and manage detailed budgets with ease. Your team can adjust figures in real-time, enhancing accuracy and tracking cash flow efficiently.
Forecasting
This tool provides powerful forecasting capabilities, helping you predict financial outcomes. You’ll make informed decisions with its scenario planning.
Reporting
Generate standard financial reports quickly and customize them to fit your team's needs. It helps you gain insights into your financial data with visualization features.
Dashboards
Planful offers interactive dashboards that display key financial metrics. You can visualize data trends and make decisions at a glance.
Collaboration
Your team can collaborate seamlessly within Planful, improving communication and workflow. It centralizes your financial data, keeping everyone aligned.
Automation
Reduce manual tasks with Planful's automation features. It saves your team time and minimizes errors in data entry.
Ease of Use
Planful is easy to use, with an intuitive user interface that helps your team navigate without hassle. The layout is clean, making the budgeting and forecasting process simple. Users appreciate its straightforward design, which reduces the learning curve and allows your team to get up and running quickly. Compared to other software, the Planful platform stands out for its user-friendly experience, making it accessible even if you’re not tech-savvy.
Integrations
Planful offers extensive integration capabilities through its RESTful APIs, file-based data uploads, and a wide range of prebuilt connectors. The platform provides native integration with Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets through its Spotlight add-ins, and it supports direct connections with systems such as NetSuite, Salesforce, and Microsoft Dynamics.
Planful also connects with other major ERP, CRM, and HCM platforms including Oracle, SAP, and Workday via connector packs or third-party integration tools.
Planful Specs
- 2-Factor Authentication
- Accounts Payable
- Accounts Receivable
- API
- Approval Workflows
- Balance Sheet
- Billing/Invoicing
- Budgeting
- Calendar Management
- Comparative Reporting
- CRM Integration
- Custom Reports
- Customer Management
- Dashboard
- Data Export
- Data Import
- Data Visualization
- Expense Tracking
- External Integrations
- Forecasting
- General Account Ledger
- Historical Data Analysis
- Inventory Tracking
- Multi-Currency
- Multi-User
- Notifications
- P&L
- Payroll
- Scenario Planning
- Scheduling
- Supplier Management
- Tax Management
- Time Management
