Bynder DAM alternatives: Which is best for your brand?

Bynder is one of the most well-known digital asset management (DAM) systems. Launched in 2013 as Bynder Webdam (it's now just Bynder), it has a huge list of features and is used by global companies like Puma and Five Guys.

But if you work for a growing brand or a small business, you could be overwhelmed by Bynder's complexity, extensive features (not all of which you'll use) and expensive price tag.

If that rings true, you've come to the right place. We regularly talk to customers comparing Bynder to Dash (our DAM system) and other competitors.

So keep reading if you're considering Bynder for your growing brand's digital media files but want to brush up on alternative options before taking the plunge. We've got some pointers for you!

What is digital asset management (DAM)?

Digital asset management (DAM) is a solution to help you manage, search and share your digital assets. Think of it as a central library where all your digital content – images, videos, documents and audio files – are stored, organised and easily found. A DAM system not only helps you with important DAM workflows in the content lifecycle, but also ensures your digital assets are usable across multiple locations. By using a DAM you can maintain brand consistency, collaborate better and manage digital assets more efficiently.

Check out our full breakdown of digital asset management for more information.

What are the features of a DAM platform?

A good DAM platform has all the features to make managing digital assets easy. Here are the key ones to look for when you're comparing vendors:

• Advanced search: Find and access your digital assets in seconds with AI tags and keywords search
• Brand guidelines and templates: Keep brand consistency across all marketing with pre-set guidelines and templates. In Dash, for example, you can integrate with Corebook to create a beautiful, interactive barnd book.
• Content creation and collaboration: Your teams can work together on content projects and boost productivity and creativity. For example,  you can create collections of assets to use for an upcoming campaign which you can all contribute to. Or add feedback to assets uploaded by your designer.
• Digital asset storage and organisation: Store your digital assets and marketing resources in one place and keep everything tidy. You can also save and send all those large files that Gmail refuses to. 👀
• Workflow automation: Simplify the content lifecycle and reduce manual work. Our article about DAM workflows covers all the handly tasks you can automate in Dash.
• Integration with marketing tools: Use your digital assets across all channels by integrating with other marketing tools. For example, in Dash you can connect with Shopify and Hootsuite to drag and drop product images into your landing ages and campaigns.

Bynder pros

Bynder has a lot going for it. If you have the budget, it could be a good option when looking to build a digital library for your business. Here's some of the main benefits customers talk about in Bynder Webdam reviews.

Lots of features

At last count, Bynder talks about 9 main feature modules on their website, all of which cover a range of different use-cases - from creative workflow management to brand templates for printing materials. It's one of the most extensive feature lists provided by a digital asset management platform (ourselves included).

Brand templating options for brand consistency

Bynder's templating platform is one of its biggest selling points. We know because we're regularly talking to people comparing Dash, our own platform, against Bynder - and it's an area we don't support (yet). Using Bynder's brand template can help your marketing team with content creation, whilst locking down style elements to make sure they stay on brand. It's a great feature if you're a large brand with multiple teams all over the world needing to create marketing content.

Great fit for large brands

From the client logos they feature on their site, it's clear Bynder's target market is big brands. It's a reputable enterprise DAM tool designed to help global businesses organise and use their visuals across many different teams and locations. And it's darn good at it. The bottom line: if you're a large company, Bynder's probably right up your alley.

Bynder cons

Like with any software decision, there's drawbacks to weigh up before deciding on which to go with. Here's what we hear from Dash customers (who are mostly SMEs / SMBs) when they've been looking into Bynder.

Bynder pricing is expensive

Finding pricing information from most digital asset management software can be incredibly frustrating. Bynder is no exception: they keep their pricing secret until you book a call with them. However, from what we're able to tell, Bynder's pricing starts at $450 a month for its most basic package. The costs grow as you add more users and features to your subscription. This means it's not necessarily the right fit for small businesses with tighter budgets.

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It can be difficult to use the search functionality

Some DAMs make it easier than others for you to find the content you're looking for. While Bynder scores highly on this overall, some reviewers (like this one) suggest searching for digital media is tricky.

Bynder can get complicated

Remember all those features we mentioned? That's great if you're going to use all of them. However, for a growing brand with less complicated requirements, features you don't need can get in the way and make the product difficult to use. And that's especially true if not all of your team are tech-savvy.

It can be time-consuming to set up

The more complicated a product, the harder it is to get it embedded in your business and train your colleagues. If you're a larger brand with complex requirements, spending that time will be well worth it. But if you're a smaller business, it could slow you down and get in the way of the work you're trying to do. As one small business Bynder reviewer on G2 said:

“[There was a] drawn out onboarding process. Could have probably condensed into 4 fewer weeks of regular meetings.”

With such an expensive price tag, any delays getting started will slow down the time it takes for you to see return on your investment.

The best Bynder alternatives

So with that being said, let's look at a handful of key Bynder competitors. You'll want to make sure these make it on to your shortlist when comparing digital asset management solutions:

Dash - for SMBs and ecommerce brands

If you're looking for a DAM for ecommerce, or a small business digital asset management tool, look no further than Dash. It's ideal if you're after a user friendly, modern DAM to organise and share your images, videos and marketing content. It's also a great fit if you're an ecommerce brand, as it's one of the only digital asset management systems to integrate with Shopify. That said, Bynder would be a better fit if you have a bigger budget and are looking for a DAM which goes beyond the usual requirements - like supporting creative project management.

Brandfolder - for middle market to enterprise companies

Brandfolder vs Bynder: who wins out? That'll depend on what you're looking for. Brandfolder most likely has the largest overlap with Bynder in terms of the companies that use their system. They're both designed for enterprise companies, although we personally prefer Brandfolder's more-refined user interface. However, it'll cost you! If review site ITQlick is correct, a Brandfolder subscription costs about $1,600 per feature.

Canto - for middle market companies

Canto is a solid option if you don't want to go with Bynder and you don't have the budget for Brandfolder. Although, starting at $600 a month (or $7,200 a year), it's still pricey and customer reviews cite a few issues with the platform, like its UX and ease-of-use. Check out our Canto alternatives article if you want to find out more.

Widen (now Acquia DAM) - for enterprise content management

The majority of Widen's customers work for companies with a thousand or more employees. That's according to their G2 profile at least. From what we're able to tell, their pricing matches their huge enterprise audience too, starting at an eye-watering $29,000 a year. But hey, enterprise brands have enterprise budgets right?

For further reading, we've also covered other Bynder alternatives - like Image Relay, MediaValet and Air - and how Dash stacks up against them.

How Bynder compares to Dash

Growing your brand and trying to decide whether to go with Bynder or Dash for your visual brand assets? Here's how the two DAM tools stack up for small businesses.

Bynder vs. Dash - features

Bynder is one of the most fully-featured DAM vendors out there. Going off their GetApp review profile, they list 99 features available for you to use. This includes the core DAM features as well as others, like marketing calendars, location control and multi-language support to name a few.

Straight up: Dash has half the features Bynder does. Our thinking is that adding extra features only a few customers would use detracts from the overall experience for everybody.

Instead, we focus on the key features a growing business needs to create the single source of truth for their digital files and marketing assets. Dash makes sure it covers all of the digital asset management features you'd expect, and do them well. You can organise and search for your content, use our asset sharing features, set up public portals, and get it ready for your marketing campaigns. Dash offers more advanced features important to growing brands too, like user permissions, version control and content upload approvals.

Take it from Theo, graphic designer for CBD brand Goodrays. In his words

“Dash is so much more functional than any shared drive for image assets I've experienced in the past. If we didn't have Dash, it'd slow me down and increase the repetitive tasks I have to do.”

Dash doesn't lock features behind expensive tiers, either. All our features, and unlimited users, are available from day one.

So if you're deciding which product to go with based purely on the number of features, Bynder wins out. But often with digital asset management software, lots of extra features = lots of extra complexity. Think about what you actually want your DAM to do, and be wary of paying more for bells and whistles you'll never use.

Bynder vs. Dash - user experience and usability

You can take a look around Bynder's site to get a sense of their visual environment. It feels similar to a shared drive in how it presents your creative assets. Although some G2 reviewers have complained about Bynder's interface feeling dated and difficult to use: but we'll leave it to you to be the judge of that.

Dash, on the other hand, has won awards for its user-friendly interface. Whether they're marketers or designers, every Dash user is a creative person. They're creating, using and sending visuals every day. They really care about their work. So why keep them in a tool that doesn't do their creative assets justice? We want Dash users to be inspired by their visual assets, so we've made sure our UX does their content justice. Here's what how Bynder's UX compares to Dash's:

Bynder vs. Dash - integrations

Dash and Bynder offer some of the same integrations with a few notable differences.

Bynder beats Dash on the number of integrations overall. They work with tools found in the tech stacks of bigger brands, like Getty Images, HubSpot and Mobius Labs.

For Dash, we focus on the tools most likely found in the tech stack of growing brands. Like Bynder, we integrate with tools which support content production and your creative team, like Canva and Adobe Creative Cloud. And you can also use Dash for your asset distribution by syncing up tools like Hootsuite to get your assets in front of potential customers. We also integrate with tools Bynder doesn't - such as Shopify.

Bynder vs. Dash - integrations

Dash and Bynder offer some of the same integrations with a few notable differences.

Bynder beats Dash on the number of integrations overall. They work with tools found in the tech stacks of bigger brands, like Getty Images, HubSpot and Mobius Labs.

For Dash, we focus on the tools most likely found in the tech stack of growing brands. Like Bynder, we integrate with tools which support content production and your creative team, like Canva and Adobe Creative Cloud. And you can also use Dash for your asset distribution by syncing up tools like Hootsuite to get your assets in front of potential customers. We also integrate with tools Bynder doesn't - such as Shopify

Bynder vs. Dash - customer service

Both digital asset management (DAM) vendors rank well in terms of the customer service they offer. According to G2's comparison report, reviewers ranked the quality of Dash's customer support score as 96 out of 100, while Bynder's was only slightly behind at 91.

That being said, Bynder focuses on providing support for big companies working across multiple locations. That often means a lengthy onboarding processes to get creative assets from their old home onto their new DAM system.

Dash is designed for SMB businesses. It's really easy to get in touch with us - you can just start a chat with us within the app and talk to an actual person. We'll also migrate your digital content from Drive orDropbox to your new asset library in Dash, and we'll do it for free. We'll also set up onboarding calls with you to make sure you're getting the most out of your Dash.

Our onboarding team makes sure 85% of customers are up and running with their account in less than a month, according to a G2 comparison report. Only 11% of Bynder customers said the same.

Bynder vs. Dash - pricing

Let's talk cold hard cash.

Most DAM vendors (cough - not us - cough 😇) are secretive about their pricing. It's like they got in a room one day and were like “hey, let's make people jump through loads of hoops before they can even figure out whether they can afford us or not”.

That makes things tricky when deciding which tool to go for.

From what we can tell, Bynder's basic package sets you back $450 a month or $5,400 a year. They have a traditional pricing model, where you'll be charged by user numbers and the additional features you decide to bolt-on to your subscription.

In the words of Matt, fwip's Head of Creative, who was comparing us against Bynder:

“Bynder is a great system and would have done the job. But it was just too expensive, especially since Bynder charges per user. Dash does the same job but is much better priced, especially for the size of our company.”

They also have other costs you'll be charged, depending on your needs - like fees for data migration, onboarding and training.

Dash does things differently. From $109 a month it's cheaper to get started, for one. You get unlimited users and access to every feature as soon as you sign up. Instead, our pricing is usage-based. It means you only pay for the downloads and asset storage you need so you can quickly earn back your DAM ROI.

Bynder vs. Dash - who owns what tool?

Bynder was acquired by a private equity firm, Thomas H. Lee Partners, in December 2022. It’s one of a handful of tools in the digital asset management industry to be bought in recent years, like huge tech company Smartsheet buying Brandfolder.

Dash, on the other hand, is owned by a small business, Bright, with over 20 years experience in the field. We’re privately funded and independently owned, meaning we don’t have to worry about shareholders or board members.

How to decide which DAM is best for managing digital assets?

Now you've got a view of how Dash compares to Bynder - and there's a lot to mull over, so let's summarise. Here's what to consider when deciding which DAM tool to go for:

• Talk to your marketing team, design team - everyone who will use your DAM - and ask them about their needs. Making a list of requirements will help you vet tools for teams across your business.
• What are your business goals? If you're a DTC brand looking to scale quickly, Dash will be a better fit. But if you're a large company looking to optimise the work of teams across the globe, you'll probably want to go with Bynder.
• What budget do you have to work with? And are you sure you've unearthed all the hidden fees you might get hit with later down the line? If you're worried about that, go with a DAM that is open and transparent about their pricing 
• What are your deal breakers? Is it essential that whatever DAM you pick integrates with your project management tool? If you're creating lots of video assets, then the amount of asset storage will be important. What about the quality of the customer experience? Making sure everybody agrees on what they need from your new DAM will make it easier for you later down the road.
• How much time and effort are you willing to invest in making your DAM a success? If you don't want to spend hours in onboarding meetings (thrilling though they sound 😇), go for a tool that lets you get started right away - like Dash!
• What's the quality of your interactions with the support and sales team? These are the people who you'll need to get in touch with if you need help.

To help you out, download our editable DAM comparison spreadsheet to whittle down your favourites.

If you're leaning more toward Dash, feel free to book a demo with one of our team - we'd be happy to chat! Or if you'd rather trial Dash yourself, you can create a free, no-strings trial