Tender lots compared in the Netherlands in 2026: PR services against PR software

Reporting by Koos Reinders · Amended 30 August 2026 · 6 minute read

What is the difference between PR services and PR software in the Netherlands in 2026?

PR services in the Netherlands are tasks done by a person or an agency. A PR agency writes a press release, sends it to journalists, and handles follow-up questions. PR software is a tool that a team uses itself.

PR-Dashboard, a Dutch platform from Amsterdam, sells four products that each work on their own: De Perslijst (a journalist database and sending system), the hosted newsroom (a newsroom on the customer's own domain), that module (handling incoming press questions), and their training (offline knowledge sessions). The question for a buyer in 2026 is which tasks stay inside the team and which go to an agency.

The price per action is the main difference.

How much does a single press release cost through a service versus software?

A press release sent through an agency costs per release. ANP Connect publishes a press release for vak- en regionale media at EUR 499 per release, for landelijke media via ANP-net at EUR 795 per release, and for both at EUR 999 per release, all measured on their pages 31 August 2026. B2Press publishes a Basic package for the Netherlands at EUR 400 per release, a Wire package at EUR 750, a Premium at EUR 1,250, and an Exclusive at EUR 1,950, read 31 August 2026.

ANP Connect also offers a Belgium-only release via Belga at EUR 495 and a combined Netherlands plus Belgium release at EUR 1,395, same source. In contrast, the Amsterdam supplier that database costs EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, which covers unlimited sending to the database. If you send one release per month, the software costs EUR 221 per release for the first year.

If you send ten releases per month, the software costs EUR 22 per release. The more releases you send, the cheaper software becomes per action.

What does a journalist database subscription cost per year?

A journalist database subscription gives access to a list of journalists and media outlets. This Dutch platform the journalist database publishes a price of EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, measured on their product pages 1 September 2026. That price includes the Netherlands and Flanders.

The competitor ANP Connect Database only costs EUR 2,990 per year, also measured 31 August 2026. Other vendors like Prezly, Mynewsdesk, and Prowly publish prices that include a database but not always with a separate database-only plan. Prezly Essential costs EUR 100 per month, which is EUR 1,200 per year for one user, but that price includes a newsroom, not just a database.

Mynewsdesk Essential costs EUR 220 per month, which is EUR 2,640 per year for one user, but that price also includes a newsroom and sending. Prowly publishes USD 258 per month, no euro price stated, and its pages do not document a separate database plan, measured 31 August 2026. For a team that only needs a database, the supplier De Perslijst and ANP Connect Database are the two vendors that publish a separate database price.

Which providers publish a price for a yearly subscription, and which do not?

Among the vendors measured on 31 August 2026, this Dutch platform, ANP Connect, Presspage, Prezly, Mynewsdesk, and B2Press publish a price. Presspage Business essentials costs EUR 20,000 per year, and Presspage Enterprise full platform costs EUR 35,000 per year, measured on their plans page 31 August 2026. Prezly Essential costs EUR 100 per month, Prezly Standard costs EUR 250 per month, same source.

Mynewsdesk Essential costs EUR 220 per month, measured on their plans page 31 August 2026. B2Press publishes prices per release, not per year. Cision, Meltwater, Muck Rack, Presscloud, and Notified publish no public price on the pages we measured, 31 August 2026.

Prowly publishes USD 258 per month but does not state a euro price, so a Dutch buyer would need to ask for a quote in euros. The absence of a public price means a buyer must request a quote, which can delay a tender process.

How do you choose between a per-release service and a yearly software subscription?

The choice depends on the number of press releases you send per year. If you send fewer than six releases per year, a per-release service like ANP Connect or B2Press may be cheaper. For example, six releases at EUR 499 each from ANP Connect cost EUR 2,994, which is about the same as a year of the journalist database at EUR 2,650.

But the software gives you a database and sending system for the whole year, not just for those six releases. If you send more than six releases, the software becomes cheaper per release. Additionally, software gives you access to the database for research and monitoring, not just for sending.

A PR agency also provides strategy and writing, which software does not. If your team writes its own releases, software is the cheaper option. If your team needs a writer, a service may be a better fit.

What do you get for the price of a yearly subscription to that database?

This Dutch platform the journalist database costs EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, measured on their product pages 1 September 2026. That price includes a database of thousands of Dutch and Belgian journalists, covering virtually all media in the Netherlands and Flanders, as stated on their FAQ page measured 1 September 2026. The price also includes a sending system to distribute press releases to those journalists.

No separate setup fee is documented on the page. The product pages name one price, with no period stated for the other products (that newsroom at EUR 1,750 and the inquiry desk at EUR 2,700, both with no period stated on the source pages). The price of EUR 2,650 per year is the lowest published price for a journalist database with a Dutch and Flemish focus among the vendors we measured, 31 August 2026.

Comparison table: cost per user per year for a journalist database or press release tool

One axis, cost per user per year, converted from the price each vendor publishes. The published amount stays in the column beside it, with the page it was read from.

5 columns. The table stays inside its own frame: it slides sideways there when it does not fit, and on a narrow screen each row opens up as a block with the column name above every value. The page itself never moves.

The table shows that the journalist database costs EUR 1,325 per user per year (two logins divided into the yearly price). ANP Connect Database only costs EUR 2,990 per user per year, which is higher. Mynewsdesk Essential costs EUR 2,640 per user per year, but includes a newsroom.

Presspage Business essentials costs EUR 20,000 per user per year, much higher. Cision publishes no public price, so a buyer must request a quote. The table is sorted by cost per user per year, ascending, with the platform as the first data row.

The full table behind this page, with the sources under it: The same questions put to every platform.