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Porter Metrics alternative: connectors plus the team that runs and checks your reporting
If you are looking for a Porter Metrics alternative because you want cheap connectors and free Data Studio templates for your own team to work with, Porter is already one of the best-value options and may be the right pick. If you want the connectors and also the people who build the dashboards, check the numbers every day and draft the weekly client update, a managed service like reportfor.agency is the better fit.
Same starting point, different finish line
Porter Metrics and reportfor.agency start in the same place. Both move marketing data from platforms like Google Ads and Meta into tools such as BigQuery, and both can put client dashboards in Google Data Studio (formerly Looker Studio; Google renamed it in April 2026).
The difference is what happens next. With Porter, your team takes the data and the template from there. With us, a team of data engineers and marketing analysts builds and runs the reporting for you. Your team does the marketing. We do the client reporting.
We use connectors too. We use tools such as Supermetrics, Windsor.ai and Coupler.io to move data into BigQuery. So we are not saying connectors are the wrong idea. We are saying connectors are one layer of client reporting, and someone has to own the other layers.
The four layers of client reporting
It helps to split client reporting into layers. Then you can see what each option covers.
- Move the data. Pull spend, clicks, conversions and sessions from each platform on a schedule. Porter does this with its connectors. We do it with third-party connectors into your own cloud account, usually a BigQuery project.
- Show the data. Put it in a dashboard the client can read. Porter offers free Data Studio templates you copy and edit. We build a live white-label dashboard with your logo and colors.
- Check the data. Confirm it is fresh and complete, and that totals match the source platforms. With Porter, this is your team's job. With us, it is ours: we check every day and compare totals with Google Ads, Meta, GA4 and other sources on a fixed schedule.
- Explain the data. Say what changed, why, and what to do next, in words a client understands. With Porter, your team writes this, with help from its AI features if you use them. With us, code calculates every number, AI drafts the words (never the numbers), an analyst checks every report, and your account manager approves and sends.
Porter is built mainly for layers 1 and 2, and it does them at a very low price. reportfor.agency covers all four layers as a service.
What Porter Metrics does well
- Free templates. Porter says every Data Studio template on its templates page is "100% free" to copy, use and customize, with no card needed (templates page, checked 6 Oct 2026).
- Many destinations. It sends data to Data Studio (Looker Studio), Google Sheets, BigQuery and Power BI (templates page).
- Agency-friendly billing. Its pricing FAQ says one subscription covers all your clients, you can white-label, and paid plans have no Porter badge (pricing page, checked 6 Oct 2026).
- Low entry cost. There is a free plan after a 14-day full-access trial, with up to 30 days of historical data. Paid plans add unlimited history (pricing page).
- AI and automation options. Its higher plans list AI chats with your data, AI audits and automation features such as ad and social media management (pricing page).
- Done-for-you option at the top end. Porter lists "BigQuery & Managed Services", where its marketers and developers build a marketing data warehouse, custom dashboards and attribution measurement, with ongoing support. Price is on request (pricing page).
How Porter Metrics prices
Porter prices per connected account. Its FAQ defines an account as "whatever the platform itself calls an account": one ad account, one store, one page, one profile. A GA4 property counts as one account (pricing page, checked 6 Oct 2026).
The pricing page shows paid plans from $12.50 per account per month billed annually. Its monthly volume table, as listed on 20 Oct 2026, starts at $15 for 1 account and falls as you add accounts. For example: 5–12 accounts at $8 per account, 13–20 accounts at a flat $100 per month, 21–39 accounts at $5 per account, 50–69 accounts at $4 per account, and 200+ accounts at $2 per account. Annual billing gives 2 months off. Plan names on the page are Free, Build, Grow and Scale, with Enterprise and managed services priced on request.
This is a fair, transparent model for agencies with many accounts. Note one difference from ours: Porter counts GA4 as an account. We include GA4 and Search Console at no extra cost per client.
Porter Metrics vs reportfor.agency
| Porter Metrics | reportfor.agency | |
|---|---|---|
| Core offer | Data connectors, free templates and AI tools | Fully managed client reporting service |
| Connectors | Its own connectors | Third-party connectors such as Supermetrics, Windsor.ai and Coupler.io |
| Where dashboards live | Data Studio, Sheets, BigQuery or Power BI | A web page, Data Studio or the tool that fits the client, white-label with your logo and colors |
| Who builds the dashboard | Your team, starting from a template | Our data engineers and marketing analysts |
| Who checks the data | Your team | Us, every day: fresh, complete, totals compared with source platforms |
| Weekly client update | Your team writes it | Written report every Monday with key results, reasons, next actions and a ready-to-send client email |
| Monthly meeting pack | Not covered in the pages we checked | 1-page monthly review PDF |
| Team alerts | Not covered in the pages we checked | Daily Slack alerts on 20%+ moves in spend, cost per conversion or conversions |
| Guarantee | Refund within 14 days of purchase, per its pricing FAQ | If your client finds a wrong number for a finished day before we flag it, that client's month is free |
| Price model | Per connected account, from $12.50/account/month billed annually (20 Oct 2026) | $99 per client per month + $997 one-time setup; minimum 5 clients |
Cost example: 20 clients
Say each of your 20 clients has Google Ads, Meta and GA4. With Porter, that is 60 accounts. On its monthly volume table, 50–69 accounts cost $4 per account.
Porter Metrics, 60 accounts
$240 /month60 accounts × $4, billed monthly, from the volume table as listed 20 Oct 2026 (pricing page). Annual billing is lower. Your team still builds dashboards, checks data and writes client updates. Add the cost of that time.
reportfor.agency, 20 clients
$1,980 /month$99 per client per month, plus $997 one-time setup. Up to 4 ad platforms per client; GA4 and Search Console at no extra cost. Includes building, daily checks, weekly reports and monthly PDFs.
Porter costs much less. That is expected, because it is a data product and we are a service. The question is who does layers 3 and 4. A data engineer plus an analyst cost about $190,000 per year in US base pay (US Bureau of Labor Statistics medians, May 2024: data scientists, market research analysts). If you do not plan to hire them, compare our price with the hours your team spends checking and writing up reports today. Full details on our pricing.
When Porter Metrics is the better choice
- You have someone in-house who is comfortable in Data Studio and likes to customize templates.
- You mainly need data in Sheets, BigQuery or Power BI for your own analysis, not a finished client report.
- You want the lowest cost per account and you have many small accounts.
- You want to start free and grow slowly.
- You want AI chat over your data or ad and social management tools in the same product.
- You need a custom data warehouse or attribution model built for your business. Porter's managed BigQuery service is aimed at that.
When a managed service is the better choice
A template is a good start. But a template does not notice a broken connection on a Sunday. It does not explain why cost per conversion rose. Choose a managed service when:
Nobody owns the numbers
We check data every day. Totals are compared with Google Ads, Meta, GA4 and other sources on a fixed schedule.
Updates take too long
A written report arrives every Monday. Your account manager reviews, approves and sends. We expect under 1 hour per client per month of review. That is a goal, not a guarantee.
You want to stay in control
Read-only access. NDA and DPA signed first. Data in your own cloud account. We never contact your clients.
See how this works for paid media on our PPC reporting service page.
Switching from Porter Metrics, or using both
You do not have to drop Porter to try us. You can keep Porter for internal analysis or for clients you want to manage yourself, and start a pilot with us on 1 client: $199 setup plus $99 for the first month. The $199 is credited to the setup fee if you continue.
If you move all client reporting to us, onboarding takes 14 days for up to 20 clients: day 1–2 connect, day 3–7 first report, day 8–12 brand and tune, day 14 go live. Your first report arrives within 7 days of read-only access, or you get the setup fee back. Every setup is documented. If you leave, you keep the data, dashboards and documentation. Dashboards keep updating only if you take over the data connector subscription, and we help you move it.
Questions about Porter Metrics alternatives
Do you use Porter Metrics connectors?
We use connectors such as Supermetrics, Windsor.ai and Coupler.io to move data into your own cloud account, usually BigQuery. If you already pay for connectors, ask us on a call how that fits.
Are your dashboards in Data Studio like Porter's templates?
They can be. We build each client's live white-label dashboard where it fits the client (a web page, Data Studio or another tool), with your logo and colors. The difference is that we build it, update it and check it every day.
Porter also offers managed services. How are you different?
Porter lists BigQuery and managed services: a custom marketing data warehouse, custom dashboards and attribution, priced on request. We focus on the recurring client reporting cycle: daily checks, a weekly written report, a monthly review PDF and Slack alerts, at a published price of $99 per client per month.
Why is reportfor.agency more expensive than Porter?
Porter sells data access per account. We sell a service: a team that builds, runs and checks your client reporting. You pay for the work, not only the data pipe.
Will you change our campaigns?
No. We have read-only access. We cannot change campaigns, budgets or settings. AI sees campaign totals only, no personal data, and it is not used to train AI.
Can I try your analysis without sharing data?
Yes. Paste one campaign CSV export into the free demo. It shows changes, risks and next actions. It runs in your browser and nothing is uploaded.
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Keep the connectors. Add the team.
Book a 30-minute call to see how we would run reporting for your clients, or try the demo first.