vs

DashboardFox vs Mode Analytics

Mode is a strong tool for SQL-native analysts — but it doesn't publish pricing, requires technical skills to use, and was acquired by ThoughtSpot in 2023. Here's an honest look at how we compare.

Start Free Trial Watch Demo

TL;DR — The key differences

Mode Analytics — where it falls short
$0 Published pricing Contact sales for any quote
$137K Avg. contract/yr Per 3rd-party procurement data
$0 Row-level security Collection permissions only
2023 Acquisition year Now under ThoughtSpot's roadmap
  • Transparent pricing Mode doesn't publish pricing — you have to call sales. Industry data puts average contracts around $137K/year. DashboardFox starts at $99/month, published on our website, no sales call required.
  • Built for your whole team Mode requires SQL, Python, or R proficiency to get real value. DashboardFox has drag-and-drop for business users AND raw SQL for analysts — same plan, same price.
  • Row-level security in every plan Mode has no row-level security — it relies on collection permissions and database-level access controls. DashboardFox includes Data Tags (configure once, applies everywhere) in every plan including the $99 Starter.
  • Full white-label included Mode offers limited White-Label Embeds with reduced interactivity — no custom domains, no branded login pages. DashboardFox includes full white-label in every plan.
  • Acquisition uncertainty ThoughtSpot acquired Mode for $200M in 2023 and is actively pushing customers toward its own platform. Mode's roadmap is now tied to ThoughtSpot's priorities, not yours.

Which one is right for you?

We're not going to pretend we're better in every scenario.

Choose DashboardFox if:

  • Your audience includes business users who don't write SQL
  • You need transparent, predictable pricing you can budget for without a sales call
  • White-label client-facing dashboards are a requirement
  • Row-level security is non-negotiable — even on your starting plan
  • You want to start a free trial in minutes, not schedule a demo
  • You need a self-hosted option for compliance or air-gapped environments

Choose Mode if:

  • Your team is SQL/Python/R-native analysts who value a code-first workflow
  • You need integrated Python and R notebooks for statistical modeling and ML
  • Your analysts collaborate heavily on ad hoc analysis with shared SQL workspaces
  • You want ThoughtSpot's AI and natural language query capabilities as part of a combined platform
  • You have the budget for enterprise-level analytics and are comfortable with opaque pricing

The pricing transparency problem

Mode doesn't publish pricing. You have to contact sales for a quote. Here's what industry data tells us about what teams actually pay.

DashboardFox

Growth Plan

$249
/month — up to 30 active users
  • ✓ Pricing published on our website — no sales call
  • ✓ Row-level security, white-label, SQL included
  • ✓ Business users and analysts on the same plan
Mode

Business Plan

Contact Sales
No public pricing available
  • ✗ Must contact sales for any pricing information
  • ✗ Industry estimates: $6K–$50K+/year for paid plans
  • ✗ Reports of 15–20% annual renewal increases

Annual comparison: DashboardFox Growth costs $1,788/year (or $1,428 on annual billing). Procurement intelligence platforms report Mode's average contract value around $137,000/year — often bundled with ThoughtSpot products after the acquisition.

See what DashboardFox costs for your team size View Pricing

Mode does not publish pricing publicly. Cost estimates on this page are sourced from third-party procurement platforms (Vendr, Spendflo) and industry research as of February 2026. Actual Mode pricing may vary — we recommend contacting Mode directly at mode.com for a current quote.

Feature comparison

Focused on where the two tools actually differ

Feature DashboardFox Mode
Pricing & Access
Published pricing ✓ On website ✗ Contact sales
Pricing model Monthly active users — $99/mo+ Custom quotes — est. $6K–$50K+/year
Free trial ✓ 90 days, full features, no credit card Studio: free but limited to 3 users, 10MB/query
Monthly billing ✓ Month-to-month available ✗ Annual contracts
Self-hosted option ✓ $4,995 one-time ✗ Cloud only
User Accessibility
Business user experience ✓ Drag-and-drop builder + visual query builder ✗ Requires SQL, Python, or R
SQL support ✓ All plans ✓ Core strength
Semantic layer / no-code data modeling ✓ Apps (unlimited, all plans) Datasets (analyst-created, shared to business users)
Security & Data
Row-level security ✓ All plans — Data Tags, configure once ✗ Collection and DB permissions only
Dedicated customer database ✓ All plans ✗ Shared infrastructure
SSO Session token (DoLogin API) + header-rewrite tools SAML/SCIM — Enterprise tier only
Branding & Delivery
White-label / remove branding ✓ All plans — full UI control Embeds only — reduced interactivity
Custom domain ✓ All plans ✗
Custom login page ✓ All plans ✗
Branding policies (per audience) ✓ ✗
Scheduled reports ✓ PDF/Excel/image, filters preserved ✓ Email/Slack — but filters not available in schedules
Where Mode leads
Python / R notebooks — ✓ Integrated, in-platform
Ad hoc SQL collaboration — ✓ Shared SQL editor with history
AI / natural language queries — On roadmap ✓ Via ThoughtSpot integration
Large dataset visualization — ✓ Tens of millions of rows (Enterprise)

Not sure we're the right fit? Before you decide, here's where we fall short for some teams. See the full breakdown →

  • Not for SQL or notebook-first analysts — Mode is built for teams who think in Python, R, and SQL notebooks. We're intentionally the other direction: non-developers build dashboards without code. If query-level control and exploratory analysis in a notebook is the core workflow, Mode is the better fit.
  • No associative cross-filtering — clicking a chart opens a drill report, not a cross-filter across the page.

The bottom line

Mode is a genuinely excellent tool for SQL-native data teams. If your analysts live in SQL, Python, and R, need a collaborative code-first environment, and want integrated notebooks for statistical modeling — Mode is purpose-built for that workflow. The ThoughtSpot integration adds AI-powered natural language queries that can make the combined platform powerful for organizations with both technical and non-technical users.

But if you need pricing you can see before talking to sales, dashboards your business users can build without writing code, row-level security that doesn't require an enterprise contract, white-label branding for clients, or a self-hosted option — DashboardFox gives you all of that starting at $99/month. And our roadmap is ours — not tied to a parent company's acquisition strategy.

Start Your Free Trial No credit card required · 90-day Early Access · Full features

Compare with other tools

vs Power BI

Per-seat pricing

vs Tableau

Role-based complexity

vs Metabase

White-label pricing cliff

vs Domo

Transparent alternative

Common questions

Mode doesn't publish pricing. Their free Studio tier supports up to 3 users with a 10MB/query limit — it's essentially a sandbox. Paid plans (Business and Enterprise) require contacting sales. Third-party procurement data from platforms like Vendr estimates paid plans starting around $6,000/year and averaging approximately $137,000/year. Users have also reported that Mode typically applies 15–20% annual renewal increases. DashboardFox publishes all pricing on our website — four plans from $99/month to custom Enterprise — no sales call needed.
Barely. Mode added a Visual Explorer for drag-and-drop chart building, and Datasets let analysts create reusable data assets that business users can explore. But the core workflow — writing SQL queries, building Python/R notebooks, customizing reports with HTML/CSS/JavaScript — is built for technical users. Independent reviewers consistently note that Mode requires SQL, Python, R, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript proficiency to unlock its full capabilities. DashboardFox gives business users a drag-and-drop builder and visual query builder alongside full SQL access for analysts — on the same plan, at the same price.
ThoughtSpot completed its $200M acquisition of Mode in July 2023. Mode still operates as a standalone product at mode.com, but its roadmap is now part of ThoughtSpot's strategy. ThoughtSpot has been cross-selling its own platform to Mode customers and vice versa. If you're evaluating Mode today, it's worth understanding that product decisions — pricing, features, integrations — are now made by ThoughtSpot, not the original Mode team. DashboardFox is bootstrapped, independent, and our roadmap is driven by our customers, not an acquirer's growth strategy.
No. Mode's security model is based on collection permissions (grouping reports) and database connection permissions (controlling who can query which databases). There is no security at the schema, table, or row level within Mode itself. If you need row-level data isolation — showing different data to different users from the same report — you'd need to implement that in your database layer or use separate connections. DashboardFox includes Data Tags in every plan: assign tags to users, and every report auto-filters. Configure once, applies everywhere.
Not yet — and we're deliberate about that. We watched the first wave of "AI BI" produce hallucinated column names and misread data models. We're getting our core semantic layer right first. AI is next on our roadmap: query building in plain language, visualization suggestions, and analysis on your outputs. Model-agnostic — we're not locking into one provider. We'll ship it when it actually works, not when it makes a good headline.
Mode offers White-Label Embeds (WLE) that let you embed reports without Mode branding. However, WLE comes with reduced viewer interactivity — some drill-down features are disabled, and Mode's own support documentation notes known technical issues when report creators leave a workspace. There are no custom domains, no branded login pages, and no per-audience branding policies. DashboardFox includes full white-label in every plan: custom domain, branded login page, feature visibility controls, multiple branding policies, and zero "Powered by" badges — with full interactivity preserved.
Mode's Studio plan is free and includes SQL, Python, and R — but it's limited to 3 users and 10MB per query. There's no scheduling, no permissions, and no email/Slack sharing. It works as a sandbox for individual analysts exploring data, but it's not viable for team use or client delivery. DashboardFox offers a 90-day free trial with full features — no credit card, no restrictions, no 3-user cap.
Since Mode does not publish pricing, the cost estimates on this page are sourced from third-party procurement platforms (Vendr, Spendflo) and publicly available industry research as of February 2026. Actual Mode pricing will depend on your team size, usage, and negotiation. We recommend contacting Mode directly at mode.com for a current quote. DashboardFox pricing is always available at dashboardfox.com/pricing.