LocomotivevsSmartsites
Unbiased side-by-side comparison of verified reviews, user ratings, features, and pros/cons to help you decide which service fits your business needs.
Quick answer: Locomotive vs Smartsites
In our 2026 comparison of Locomotive and Smartsites, Locomotive comes out ahead overall (weighted score 89% vs 83% for Smartsites). Locomotive is rated 4.4/5 from 5 user reviews; Smartsites is rated 4.5/5 from 4 user reviews. Locomotive starts at $10000/month; Smartsites starts at $2000/month.
Last updated
| At a glance | Locomotive | Smartsites |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Web Design & Digital Marketing Agencies | Web Design & Digital Marketing Agencies |
| User rating | 4.4/5 (5 reviews) | 4.5/5 (4 reviews) |
| Starting price | $10000/mo | $2000/mo |
| Listed features | 25 | 16 |
| Integrations | 6 | 8 |
| Platforms | Web | Web |
| Ease of use | 4.5/5 | 4.5/5 |
| Customer support | 5.0/5 | 5.0/5 |
Locomotive
Starting Price
Paid
Community Pulse
Advanced Ratings
Pros
- It is a lightweight, powerful Ruby on Rails-based CMS that is simple to use but flexible for developers, using liquid templates for content management .
- It allows managing as many websites as you want with a single application instance, making it suitable for agencies or organizations with multiple projects .
- The CMS features a nice-looking user interface and supports flexible content types and content localization out of the box .
Cons
- It is based on MongoDB, which may not be the preferred database for all teams compared to more traditional relational databases like PostgreSQL.
- It relies on the older Rails 3.2.13 framework, which is significantly outdated, making it a less modern choice for new Rails projects .
- The project's development appears to have been stable for a long time, with the primary documentation referencing an older version, indicating that it may not be as actively maintained as other modern CMS platforms .
Smartsites
Starting Price
Paid
Community Pulse
Advanced Ratings
Pros
- Full-Service Digital Marketing: It is a full-service digital marketing agency offering a wide range of services, including SEO, PPC, email marketing, social media management, and web design .
- Proven Track Record: The agency has managed over $500M in paid search, won 30+ design awards, and received over 1,000 5-star reviews .
- Competitive Pricing: It offers competitive pricing across a broad budget range ($1,000 to $20,000+), catering to businesses with different needs .
Cons
- Service-Based Agency: It is a service provider, not a software product; you hire them to execute work, not to license a tool.
- Minimum Project Size: The agency's services are best suited for businesses with a clear marketing budget, as project sizes range from $1,000 to $20,000+ .
- Geographic Focus: They are headquartered in North America and primarily serve clients in that region .
Product Overview
What each platform does and who it's for
Primary Category
The main classification for each product
Editorial Quality Rating
Independent expert panel ratings and quality validations
Locomotive
Expert Score
Smartsites
Expert Score
Integration Ecosystem
Compare supported third-party apps and services
Locomotive Integrations
Smartsites Integrations
Platform Support
Supported platforms across each product
Locomotive
Smartsites
Sentiment & Feedback
Real-world pros and cons from verified users
Locomotive Feedback
User sentiment analysis
- It is a lightweight, powerful Ruby on Rails-based CMS that is simple to use but flexible for developers, using liquid templates for content management .
- It allows managing as many websites as you want with a single application instance, making it suitable for agencies or organizations with multiple projects .
- The CMS features a nice-looking user interface and supports flexible content types and content localization out of the box .
- It is designed to play smoothly with platforms like Heroku and MongoDB, making it a deployable and scalable option .
- It is based on MongoDB, which may not be the preferred database for all teams compared to more traditional relational databases like PostgreSQL.
- It relies on the older Rails 3.2.13 framework, which is significantly outdated, making it a less modern choice for new Rails projects .
- The project's development appears to have been stable for a long time, with the primary documentation referencing an older version, indicating that it may not be as actively maintained as other modern CMS platforms .
Smartsites Feedback
User sentiment analysis
- Full-Service Digital Marketing: It is a full-service digital marketing agency offering a wide range of services, including SEO, PPC, email marketing, social media management, and web design .
- Proven Track Record: The agency has managed over $500M in paid search, won 30+ design awards, and received over 1,000 5-star reviews .
- Competitive Pricing: It offers competitive pricing across a broad budget range ($1,000 to $20,000+), catering to businesses with different needs .
- Broad Industry Experience: They have worked across almost every industry imaginable, demonstrating versatility in handling different business needs .
- Service-Based Agency: It is a service provider, not a software product; you hire them to execute work, not to license a tool.
- Minimum Project Size: The agency's services are best suited for businesses with a clear marketing budget, as project sizes range from $1,000 to $20,000+ .
- Geographic Focus: They are headquartered in North America and primarily serve clients in that region .
Feature Comparison
Detailed side-by-side capability checklist
Locomotive
25/30 features
- Conversion
- Custom web development
- Web development
- Digital production
- Digital strategy
- Google Premier Partner
- Modern frameworks
- User experience focus
- E-commerce
- Art direction
- Branding
- Content strategy
- Copywriting
- Digital marketing
- Email marketing
- Landing Page Builder
- Marketing automation
- PPC
- SEO
- SEO tools
- Social media scheduling and monitoring
- Animation
- Design
- Interactive animations
- Premium design
- Template library
- Web design
- Conversion optimization
- Reporting & Analytics
- Hosting
Smartsites
16/30 features
- Conversion
- Custom web development
- Web development
- Digital production
- Digital strategy
- Google Premier Partner
- Modern frameworks
- User experience focus
- E-commerce
- Art direction
- Branding
- Content strategy
- Copywriting
- Digital marketing
- Email marketing
- Landing Page Builder
- Marketing automation
- PPC
- SEO
- SEO tools
- Social media scheduling and monitoring
- Animation
- Design
- Interactive animations
- Premium design
- Template library
- Web design
- Conversion optimization
- Reporting & Analytics
- Hosting
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Pricing & Plans
Compare plans, features, and starting points side-by-side
Locomotive Pricing
PAIDAward-winning digital experiences.
Smartsites Pricing
PaidSEO and Web Design services.
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Community Intelligence
Real-time crowdsourced comparison feedback and buyer signals.
Community Matchup Voting
Real-time crowdsourced buyer signals
Community vs. Editorial Alignment
Agreement between algorithmic rating & user voting
Locomotive
Calculated by features, pricing, support & ratings.
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Head-to-Head Winner Analysis
Data-backed performance comparisons across pricing, features, usability, and support
Matchup Scoreboard
At-a-glance scorecard results
Weighted Overall Scorecard
Normalized composite performance scores
Smart Recommendation Matrix
Head-to-head decision matrix based on your business workflow
- Organizations requiring enterprise SLA support, governance, and custom security
- Users wanting a streamlined, user-friendly workspace interface
- Teams looking for native integration with core workflow tools
- Budget-conscious teams seeking competitive entry pricing ($2000/mo)
- Users wanting a streamlined, user-friendly workspace interface
- Teams looking for native integration with core workflow tools
Locomotive
Dimension scorecard
Multi-Dimension Performance
Winner Breakdown & Analysis
Locomotive wins overall with a weighted score of 89% based on user rating, pricing, features, usability, and support.
Comparable pricing accessibility ($10000/mo (No Free Trial)).
Locomotive lists the most features (25 features).
Strong usability with a user rating of 4.5/5 stars.
Reliable support with a user rating of 5.0/5 stars.
Tied on platform availability (1 Platform: Web).
Smartsites
Dimension scorecard
Multi-Dimension Performance
Winner Breakdown & Analysis
Smartsites is a runner-up with a composite score of 83%.
Comparable pricing accessibility ($2000/mo (No Free Trial)).
Offers 16 features (fewer than the category leader).
Strong usability with a user rating of 4.5/5 stars.
Reliable support with a user rating of 5.0/5 stars.
Tied on platform availability (1 Platform: Web).
Final Verdict:Locomotive
Locomotive scores higher across 1 of 11 key dimensions with a 6-point lead in our weighted analysis.
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Frequently asked questions: Locomotive vs Smartsites
Which is better: Locomotive or Smartsites?
Locomotive scores higher across 1 of 11 key dimensions with a 6-point lead in our weighted analysis. The best choice still depends on your team's workflow, budget and required integrations — use the side-by-side sections above to check the details that matter to you.
How do users rate Locomotive and Smartsites?
Locomotive is rated 4.4/5 from 5 user reviews. Smartsites is rated 4.5/5 from 4 user reviews. Ratings come from approved user reviews on SoftwareHope.
How much do Locomotive and Smartsites cost?
Locomotive starts at $10000/month. Smartsites starts at $2000/month. Smartsites has the lower entry price. Always confirm current pricing on the vendor's site, as plans change.
Which platforms do Locomotive and Smartsites support?
Locomotive supports Web; Smartsites supports Web.
Which is easier to use, Locomotive or Smartsites?
Locomotive has an ease-of-use rating of 4.5/5, Smartsites has an ease-of-use rating of 4.5/5. The difference is small, so both are similarly easy to adopt.
Most Helpful Reviews
Community-voted helpful feedback from verified users
Partnering with Locomotive accelerated our development timeline significantly. Their engineering team demonstrated strong technical depth, adhering strictly to milestones and clean coding standards.
Our enterprise infrastructure integration was handled seamlessly by Locomotive. Communication was transparent, sprint deliveries were predictable, and architecture reviews were comprehensive.
The technical team at Locomotive proved to be dependable and knowledgeable across our full-stack modernization project. They resolved complex integration bottlenecks with high efficiency.
High-caliber engineering services with dependable project management. Locomotive consistently delivered quality deliverables with thorough automated testing coverage.
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