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Platforms and similar companies offering lifetime deals like AppSumo

10 Best AppSumo Alternatives in 2025

Updated on January 24, 2025

AppSumo invented the concept of SaaS lifetime deals and has been delivering some great deals for the past decade.

But when companies scale aggressively they have steep revenue and growth targets to meet. This rush to achieve financial goals can result in questionable quality offerings being presented to customers.

AppSumo, today is a directory site with hundreds of deals listed and it is now up to the customers to do the due diligence regarding the quality of products they purchase.

Recognizing this shift, several new LTD platforms have emerged, striving to rectify this issue in their way and have been secretly offering bangers.

What is AppSumo?

AppSumo is a marketplace for buying lifetime deals, its a platform where software companies offer lifetime deals on their products. Think of it as Amazon of buying lifetime deals on SaaS platforms, business apps and plugins, usually at jaw-dropping price.

AppSumo was founded by Noah Kagan in March 2010, AppSumo started as a way to offer entrepreneurs and small businesses affordable tools for growth. Over the years, the platform has grown into a massive marketplace, partnering with thousands of software companies

How AppSumo works?

AppSumo connects software creators with buyers by listing lifetime deals on SaaS products, tools, and plugins. Startups offer one-time purchase options on their software, allowing them to reach a large user base quickly. 

Buyers gain lifetime access to these tools, often at a lower price than typical subscriptions. Users browse available deals on the platform, research the product’s value, and make a purchase if it meets their needs.

Types of deals on AppSumo

AppSumo offers multiple types of deals, including:

Lifetime Deals (LTDs)

One-time purchases for lifetime access, popular for SaaS products.

Annual/Monthly deals

Discounted yearly or monthly deals on tools and software.

Exclusive Deals

AppSumo Plus users get offers that include added perks or discounts.

Flash Sales

Limited-time deals on popular tools, typically lasting few days.

Freebies

Free lifetime access to basic versions of certain products.

AppSumo Pros and Cons

Like any marketplace, AppSumo comes with its share of benefits and drawbacks. We have highlighted a few of them below and you can find more of them later in the article.

PROS

Pros

CONS

Appsumo cons
Best Appsumo Alternatives

Here’s a thoughtfully curated list of some strong AppSumo alternatives:

BEST
Prime Club

Lifetime deals on established SaaS companies.

Stack Social

Lifetime deals on software, apps and other tech products.

RocketHub

Lifetime deals on software for Agencies.

SaaS Mantra

Affordable lifetime deals on SaaS platforms.

Earlybird

Lifetime deals on early stage SaaS companies

SaasZilla

Lifetime deals on software, tools and plugins.

Dealify

Lifetime deals on multiple SaaS categries.

DealMirror

Lifetime deals on creatives, plugins and other tools.

DealFuel

Lifetime deals on apps, tools and OS-based applications.

EarlyShark

One of the best multi-platform LTD curator.

Why look for Appsumo alternatives?

Here are 11 reasons to consider

AppSumo has faced criticism over the years for not thoroughly vetting the companies before running their lifetime deals on their platform.

There have been cases where startups that created a SaaS using CodeCanyon script, with the sole intention of earning quick bucks from an Appsumo launch were promoted.

These companies then shut down a few months after the lifetime deal was done, leaving the LTD buyers feeling betrayed.

This hurts those buyers the most who stack multiple codes and pay a big amount hoping to use the software for their business.

The result is that buyers have become skeptical about the reliability and authenticity of many AppSumo lifetime deals. There are now concerns over whether customers get full value from their lifetime deals or are left high and dry when the startup fails. This has dented trust in the AppSumo brand.

poor vetting of deals

Reason #1

Poor Vetting.

AppSumo is often caught with SaaS founders using fake accounts to leave positive reviews for their own deals. Certain lifetime deals seem to get a suspicious number of extremely positive 5-star reviews very quickly after launching a deal.

There have been multiple instances where the software founders have requested customers to leave positive reviews in exchange for free Lifetime accounts. This casts doubt on the authenticity of reviews on AppSumo as some appear to have been bought through incentives rather than earned naturally through good products or services.

Such reviews can steer buyers towards buying substandard deals. It takes away transparency for you to make well-informed decisions. AppSumo needs more mechanisms to ensure reviews are from genuine experiences.

Allowing fake reviews diminishes the trust and credibility of any marketplace. More neutrality in reviews would help users judge deals more accurately.

spam and fake reviews

Reason #2

Paid/Fake Reviews.

high failure rates

Reason #3

High Failure Rates.

AppSumo has gained popularity over the years for the poor survival rate of startups that offer lifetime deals on their platform.

A significant number of companies providing lifetime deals on AppSumo have wound up failing or shutting down operations within a few months or years after launching.

This has left AppSumo customers helpless when the startup goes bust and withdraws support for the product customers paid lifetime access fees for. The lifetime deal essentially becomes worthless. This premature failure rate of SaaS on AppSumo offering these deals has been exceptionally high.

AppSumo has onboarded immature and new startups without adequate viability screening just to profit from the hype of lifetime deals.

The due diligence is not rigorous enough. Too many deals end up as dreadful losses for buyers who paid for lifetime access just because the startup could not survive with its flawed business model.

AppSumo needs to improve its lifetime deal failure and survival rates for customers by thoroughly reviewing startups beforehand. This will help minimize the risk of buyers paying for lifetime access to short-lived products headed for the lifetime deal graveyard

deal details

Reason #4

Deal Pages Disappear

When the SaaS company that launched a lifetime deal on AppSumo closes down, their Appsumo deal page magically disappears.

Vanishing the deal pages after the company fails appears like an attempt to erase any liabilities related to that deal.

Customers are generally kept in the dark about the status of the company. If the deal isn’t recent enough the buyers are not even notified about the company’s failure by Appsumo through an email or any form of communication.

AppSumo should maintain permanent archival records of past deal promotions and details, even if the company goes bust.

noah's appsumo

Reason #5

Unusable Deals.

AppSumo has been running lifetime deals on a variety of products. Many of these prove to be useful but many more are just hyped and eventually turn out to be completely ineffective or unusable for most customers in reality.

In fact, there’s a whole category of Appsumo deals termed “Shelfware” which consists of products that are unusable either because there are no real use cases for them and just end up as FOMO purchases or deals that are so buggy that it’s embarrassing to use them for your clients.

Customers discover after purchase that the product is still in nascent stages of development and core features are non-functional, despite being marketed as ready for business use.

This means buyers are unable to derive any real benefit out of the lifetime product they paid a good amount for. The deals end up being dummy purchases with buyers left stranded with unusable SaaS solutions.

appsumo removes deal terms

Reason #6

Hiding
Deal Terms.

AppSumo, over the years, has not been transparent enough about the details of many many lifetime deals offered on their platform.

The deal page containing the pricing and deliverables of the lifetime deal is removed for many of their deals.

This leaves buyers confused and frustrated as the key specifics regarding terms, limits, features, pricing etc. for the lifetime deal they paid for are no longer available to them. They are left guessing about the fine print of what they purchased. The Appsumo order history does not contain this information either.

By deleting pages, customers are left without any reference to what was promised versus what they received access to.

Refund Issues

Reason #7

Refund Issues.

AppSumo had the strongest refund policy. It still has the longest window of 60 days. Their “no questions asked” policy earned them a lot of confidence.

But lately requesting a refund often leads to endless back and forth with customer support or outright rejection using vague reasons like too many refunds requested in the past. In some cases refund was not issued and genuine customers were rejected a refund as Appsumo thought it was a spam purchase.  

Multiple users have had to go through email support for refund requests in spite of the no questions asked refund policy. These refund struggles have led to a bad image of AppSumo stalling valid refunds.

similar products

Reason #8

Listing Similar Products.

AppSumo floods its platform with lifetime deals on a similar software category at the same time. This confuses buyers and dilutes the appeal of the deals.

For example, there may be 4 to 5 lifetime deals live on different AI Writing Assistant tools or Social Media software. This confuses customers to scramble to pick the best deal among the bunch.

The deals end up competing with and cannibalizing each other’s sales.

This “more is better” approach reduces lifetime deal visibility for software founders and frustrates customers to compare nearly identical tools before buying. AppSumo needs better curation to space out launches of comparable lifetime deals. Bunching similar products together is useless to SaaS founders and LTD buyers equally.

AppSumo - No help for dishonored terms

Reason #9

No Accountability.

There have been hundreds of incidents where the lifetime deal terms offered at the time of purchase were later dishonored, features removed or limits altered without the buyer’s knowledge.

This also happened because Appsumo failed to map the lifetime plan with the actual recurring plans of the SaaS platforms. The “custom” Appsumo plan created by Appsumo for the sake of the deal was never updated and every LTD buyer suffered while Appsumo watched. 

Customers have found that in many cases usage limit was decreased, lifetime plan was altered and downgraded even after buying a lifetime deal.

In some cases, companies have tried forcing customers to pay recurring fees by eliminating key features from their lifetime accounts. This has led to perceptions of bait-and-switch tactics around AppSumo’s deals.

AppSumo needs strong compliance policies to ensure lifetime deal terms are upheld for the buying customer’s full lifetime period as promoted originally during purchase.

AppSumo doesn't give loyalty discounts

Reason #10

No Reward
for Loyalty

Until 2017 Appsumo gave a nice discount on your following LTD purchase. You could also buy gift cards at a discount. For example a $100 gift card at $90.

All that is gone now, Appsumo doesn’t offer discounts, giveaways or other loyalty perks to old customers of its platform anymore. On the other hand, they offer coupons or discounts to new customers.

This makes the platform seem rather indifferent towards customer retention. While new users may get the occasional joining deal, there is minimal effort to express gratitude towards loyal, high-value customers who have spent substantially over time to support AppSumo’s business.

Few deals are only available to Appsumo Plus customers (Appsumo Plus subscriptions cost $99/year)

AppSumo - Censorship in the Community

Reason #11

High Censorship.

AppSumo has faced criticism over aggressive policing and censorship by deleting reviews and questions that it doesn’t agree with. The same happens within its official Facebook group. Many members have been blocked, banned or removed for minor criticisms or negative experiences shared about deals.

There is excessive moderation by AppSumo to suppress any objective feedback, complaints or glitches faced by customers. Even constructive criticism seems to get censored through warnings, post deletions or bans.

This approach has created a culture of hesitation where members refrain from posting openly, restricting it mostly to praise. Some feel the review section has become an extension of AppSumo’s PR.

Such stringent censorship policies in the community defeat the purpose of an engaging forum. Not allowing any negative user opinions fosters distrust.

Quick Comparison of best AppSumo alternatives

Prime Club AppSumo StackSocial RocketHub SaaSMantra Earlybird SaasZilla Dealify DealMirror DealFuel
Deal Pricing High Medium Low⭐️ Medium Low Medium Low Low Low Low
Vetting of Deals High⭐️ Low Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Low Low
Refund Policy 30 Days 60 DAYS 30 Days 30 Days 60 Days 30 Days 60 Days 30 Days 30 Days 30 Days
Support for Dishonored Terms Good Poor Poor Good Good Good Good Good Poor Poor
Product Education High Low Low High Medium Medium High Low Low Low
Frequency of Deals Low High⭐️ High High High High Medium High High High
Stage of the Company Established⭐️️ Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage Early-stage
Authenticity of Reviews High Low High High Medium High Medium Medium Medium Medium
Mining Gems Occasional Frequent Rare Occasional Occasional Occasional Occasional Rare Rare Rare
Failure Rate of Deals Low High Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium
Transparency High Low Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Medium Low Low
Discounts and Offers Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Censorship Medium High Low Medium Medium Medium Medium Low Low Low
Similar Products No Yes No No No No No No Yes Yes
Table of Contents

Lifetime deals on Prime Club usually start from $69

Support is provided directly by the SaaS companies

Prime Club is better than Appsumo because of the meticulous vetting process.

The LTD fans trust them to launch nothing but high quality software.

This means the due diligence is already done on behalf of the LTD buyers.

Why Prime Club is the best alternative to Appsumo:

Due Diligence: Unlike Appsumo, Prime Club doesn’t expect the LTD buyers to research the company’s background before buying. Prime Club rigorously vets each product and company on behalf of the LTD fans so they can buy lifetime deals from Prime Club without needing to do extensive research themselves.

• Community-Centric Platform: Prime Club is a community-led platform, with a focus on building a community around lifetime deal enthusiasts and hence more user-influenced deals.

Product Education: Abandoning the purchases is a major problem in the lifetime deal space, to solve this Prime Club educates its users about the products with use cases instead of hyping the deals for quick sales. This helps LTD fans make informed decisions and understand how to use the deals they buy.

• Deal Transparency: Prime Club is known for its transparency regarding the deal terms. The deal pages are comprehensive, presenting key information about the product and the deal, which means that the necessary research has already been conducted for the user to make a decision.

Accountability: Prime Club takes an active role in resolving any deal-related issues, in contrast to platforms that promote a large number of deals but lack the bandwidth to address individual concerns.

• Better Deals: The key is cooler deals. Prime Club’s first deal was a lifetime deal on Spyfu and since then it has a 100% record of launching only great deals on some really successful SaaS products..

Join Prime Club for free – Join Prime

2. Stack Social

Alternative

Lifetime and annual deals start from as low as $19

Chatbot & email support

StackSocial is one of the oldest alternatives to AppSumo.

They have a broad range of products and deals that extend beyond just software to include gadgets, online courses, and lifestyle items.

Why Stack Social is a good alternative to AppSumo:

Personal and Professional Growth: The platform caters to both personal interests and professional development, offering tools and resources for a broader audience beyond just businesses.

Tech Hardware and Gadgets: Unlike AppSumo, StackSocial also offer deals in tech hardware and gadgets, appealing to tech enthusiasts looking for the latest devices.

Educational Content: Stack Social has a vast selection of online courses and educational content, supporting learning and skill development.

Visit: stacksocial.com

3. RocketHub

Alternative

Lifetime deals on tools and SaaS starting from $29

Email support at support@rockethub.com

RocketHub is a professionally run LTD platform that does a good job of distributing the deals they list.

The founder Charlie Patel is transparent with his communication.

Why RocketHub is a good alternative to AppSumo:

Curated Selection: They focus on curating high-quality niche deals that are highly relevant to their user base, ensuring LTD fans find and grab genuinely useful software.

• Community Engagement: They have built a strong community around their platform for feedback and interaction among professionals and savvy tech-users.

Visit rockethub.com

4. SaaS Mantra

Alternative

Lifetime deals on SaaS starting from $39

Email support at saasmantra.com

SaaSMantra was one of the first LTD communities on Facebook.

They have launched some rare lifetime deals that never reappeared on any LTD platform, so if you miss out on their deals, they aren’t coming back.

Why SaaS Mantra is a good alternative to AppSumo:

Cost-Effective Deals: SaaSMantra offers affordable deals, making it a great platform for users looking for cost-effective software and tools to integrate into their businesses or workflows.

High Frequency of Deals: SaaSMantra consistently introduces new deals ensuring that users have regular access to a variety of fresh and appealing software options. This benefits users who are always on the lookout for the latest tools to enhance their operations or productivity.

Visit: saasmantra.com

5. Earlybird

Alternative

Freebies and lifetime deals start from $59

Chat & email support at support@earlybird.so

Earlybird  has launched some high-value deals. This indicates they have a good eye for products.

Why Earlybird is a worthy alternative to AppSumo:

•  Vetting Process: Earlybird is a fairly new LTD platform and has launched some amazing lifetime deals and their vetting process is top notch.

•  Avoiding similar products: Earlybird avoids listing the same product in the category, this removes the confusion LTD fans might have when picking 1 deal from 2 similar deals.

Visit earlybird.so

6. SaasZilla

Alternative

Lifetime deals starting from $29

Email support at support@saaszilla.co

SaasZilla is a new LTD platform. They have clean branding and are ambitious about their platform.

Sessions was one of their first deals which was later relaunched by Appsumo.

Why SaasZilla is a good alternative to Appsumo:

Customer Support and Education: SaasZilla provides excellent customer support and educational resources to help users maximize the benefits of their purchases.

Startup-Friendly Solutions: SaasZilla features software and tools that are ideal for businesses in their early stages, bloggers, and entrepreneurs.

Visit: saaszilla.co

7. Dealify

Alternative

Lifetime deals start from $27

Email support at info@dealify.com

Dealify is the best among the trio of Dealify, DealFuel and DealMirror.

They have a promising platform infrastructure.

They are like a lite version of Appsumo with occasional good deals.

Why Dealify is a good alternative to Appsumo:

Focus on Digital Marketing Tools: Dealify primarily targets digital marketers and online businesses, offering deals on tools specifically designed to boost online presence and sales.

Visit dealify.com

8. DealMirror

Alternative

Pricing for deals starts from $19

Chat & email support at support@dealmirror.com

DealMirror is a better alternative if you’re a graphic designer or a solopreneur looking for resources and tools to aid your business.

They usually have affordably priced deals.

Why DealMirror is a good alternative to Appsumo:

Multiple Deal Categories: DealMirror caters to a wide range of audiences who are looking for deals on design creatives, hosting, SEO, VPN/security, education, CRM, and ChatGPT AI tools.

• Pricing Options – Pricing is based on monthly, yearly and lifetime subscriptions. They also offer bundled deals offering multiple products at discounted rates.

Visit dealmirror.com

9. DealFuel

Alternative