FRONTLINE HQ
ISSUE 06 ·VOL 01 ·COMPARE
§01 · HOW WE'RE DIFFERENT
Same job. Different price, different loop.
Feature-by-feature, against the two things every campaign actually weighs this against: a legacy voter-file platform, or no dedicated tool at all. No client names, no invented stats — just what each approach includes.
| FrontlineHQ | Legacy voter-file platform | Spreadsheets & separate vendors | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $149/mo per cycle (Starter), unlimited canvassers | Typically $5K+ per cycle, often bundled through party/committee access rather than sold direct to a single campaign | $0 in software — cost shows up as volunteer hours and re-keyed data |
| Setup time | FL/NC voter file pre-loaded; other states via BYO upload, geocoded on import (10–20 min) | Voter file access is usually already provisioned, but turf/program setup is a manual build | However long it takes to hand-cut turfs from a raw voter file export |
| Field data | GPS-verified door knocks, logged in one tap, streamed live to a dashboard | Varies by platform — check what your specific tool logs and how fast it syncs | Paper walk sheets or a spreadsheet, reconciled by hand at day's end |
| Mail / text / email | Built-in add-ons that write back to the same voter ID — a text opt-out suppresses the next mail drop automatically | Usually separate vendors per channel — reconciliation is a manual, human step | Separate vendors or DIY, no shared record between channels |
| Contract | Billed per cycle (primary and general billed separately), 14-day free trial, cancel in one click | Often an annual or multi-cycle commitment — confirm with your specific vendor | No contract, but no support either |
| Who it's built for | Candidates who can't justify a $5K+ voter-file license for one race | Larger campaigns and committees with the budget and staff to run it | Anyone, by default, when there's no budget for either |