BestTimeQuick answer
Short answer: Placer.ai has a free limited version, and every paid plan is a custom quote. Public city records show one year of Placer.ai access costing between $18,522 and $125,686. There is no free trial of the full platform, and API keys are given on request.
If what you need is busy and quiet hours for venues inside your own app, not visit counts, BestTime is a self-serve API you can test for free. Paid use starts at $29 a month including 1,200 credits.
Start free with BestTime See BestTime pricingWhat cities paid for Placer.ai
Government purchases are approved in public meetings, so they are the clearest view of real Placer.ai prices. These are the records we could open and confirm.
| Buyer | Date | What they bought | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City of Muskegon, Michigan | March 10, 2026 | 12 months of platform access, April 14, 2026 to April 13, 2027. | $18,522 (list price $22,750, less a $4,228 discount) | City Commission agenda |
| City of Hialeah, Florida | 2024 | Placer.ai Civic, with competitive bidding waived. | Up to $37,000 | Resolution 2024-031 |
| A Utah public body | April 2026 | One-year renewal of Placer.ai platform access. | $52,462 | Utah Public Notice Website |
| City of Frisco, Texas | September 15, 2026 | Three-year renewal through September 2029, widening a contract that was limited to 10 users. | $345,136: $99,750, $119,700 and $125,686 a year | Community Impact |
Your quote will depend on the package you choose. Placer.ai does not publish list prices, so treat these as examples, not a price list.
Is Placer.ai free?
Partly. Placer.ai offers a free version that its pricing page describes as a small display of the full platform. Paid access is sold as customized subscription packages that you request through a form. The same page says there is no free trial of the full suite.
Does Placer.ai have an API?
Yes. Placer.ai sells API access for pulling its data into your own tools, but you request a key through a form on its API page rather than signing up and testing on your own. API pricing is part of the custom quote.
Placer.ai vs BestTime on price
| Criterion | Placer.ai | BestTime |
|---|---|---|
| Published prices | No. Custom quote. | Yes, on the pricing page. |
| Start for free | Limited free dashboard. No free trial of the full platform. | Free API test without a credit card. |
| Smallest paid option | Annual access by quote. Public examples start at $18,522 a year. | $29 a month including 1,200 credits, then $0.04 a credit. |
| Fixed price for a venue list | By quote. | Pro Venues: $96 a month for 50 venues, $119 a month for 100 venues, $149 a month for 500 venues, $249 a month for 1,000 venues, with unlimited forecasts. |
| API access | Key on request. | Self-serve key when you sign up. |
| Data | Visit estimates, trade areas and visitor demographics. | Relative 0-100 busyness for every hour of the week, venue search and filters. No visitor counts. |
A year of BestTime Basic Usage costs $348 if you stay within 1,200 credits a month. Pro Venues for 1,000 venues costs $2,988 a year. The two products answer different questions, so compare them on what you need, not on price alone.
When Placer.ai is worth the price
- You choose sites for new stores and need estimated visit counts and trade areas.
- You track a chain's or a competitor's store visits over months and years.
- You need visitor demographics and ready-made dashboards for stakeholders.
- You work for a city or a property owner that reports on district visits.
When BestTime is the cheaper fit
- Your app or guide shows when a place is usually busy or quiet, for every hour of the week.
- You want to filter venues by predicted busyness for a day and hour, such as busy bars on Friday night.
- You need data for restaurants, bars, attractions, museums and other public venues worldwide, not only US retail.
- You want to test before you pay, and pay monthly at a price you can see.
What other foot traffic providers cost
Placer.ai is not alone in pricing by quote. Advan Research sells after a demo, Pine59 (formerly Unacast's location insights) after an access request and contract, Veraset by quote with a sample dataset, and Foursquare Attribution through sales. None of them publish prices. See foot traffic data pricing for what each provider costs, from contracts and marketplace listings.
Questions about Placer.ai pricing
How much does Placer.ai cost?
Placer.ai does not publish prices; paid plans are custom quotes. Public city records show one year of Placer.ai access costing between $18,522 and $125,686.
Is Placer.ai free?
Placer.ai has a free version that shows a small part of the full platform. Full access is a paid, custom subscription.
Does Placer.ai have a free trial?
No. Placer.ai says there is no free trial of the full suite. You can use the limited free version or request a demo.
Does Placer.ai have an API?
Yes. Placer.ai offers API access, but you request a key through a form and the price is part of a custom quote.
What is a cheaper alternative to Placer.ai?
If you need busy and quiet hours for venues in your own app rather than visit counts, BestTime is a self-serve API you can test for free, then from $29 a month including 1,200 credits. For estimated visit counts, other providers such as Advan Research and Pine59 also sell by quote.
Who are Placer.ai's main competitors?
For visit counts: Advan Research, Pine59 (formerly Unacast), Veraset and Foursquare. For hourly venue busyness in an app: BestTime.
How we checked
- On October 20, 2026 we opened Placer.ai's pricing and API pages, and on October 27 added the Frisco renewal.
- We searched public government records for Placer.ai purchases and list only the ones we could open and read.
- BestTime prices come from BestTime's own pricing page on the same day.
Test BestTime before you pay
Create a free account, forecast a few venues you know, and see if busy and quiet hours answer your question before you talk to any sales team.
Start free Read API docs