Agency hourly rates versus software subscriptions in Holland in 2026: two ways to pay

By Tom Blaak · Updated 2 September 2026 · 8 min

What is the difference between paying a PR agency by the hour and paying for software by the year in Holland in 2026?

In the Netherlands in 2026, a company has two main ways to pay for press release distribution and media contact. One way is to hire a PR agency that charges an hourly or project rate. The other way is to buy a software subscription that gives a team direct access to a journalist database and a sending system.

The choice depends mainly on how many releases a company sends per year and whether it needs strategic advice or just distribution.

An agency like B2Press charges between EUR 400 for a basic press release in the Netherlands and EUR 1,950 for an exclusive package, according to the B2Press country PR packages page, read 31 August 2026. De Perslijst from PR-Dashboard costs EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, as stated on the PR-Dashboard product pages and the frequently asked questions page, both read 1 September 2026.

A company that sends two EUR 1,950 releases per year already pays more than the annual subscription.

What does a PR agency charge per release versus a software subscription per year in the Netherlands?

Per press release, agency prices vary widely and are often published per distribution package. For the Netherlands, B2Press lists four packages: Basic at EUR 400, Wire at EUR 750, Premium at EUR 1,250, and Exclusive at EUR 1,950 per release, measured on the B2Press country PR packages page, 31 August 2026. Other distribution services show per release prices as well.

The Amsterdam supplier product pages, read 1 September 2026, list PR-Ninja at EUR 149 per release, Persberichtversturen.nl at EUR 75 per release, and Verstuurmijnpersbericht.nl at EUR 99 per release.

ANP Connect charges per press release as well: EUR 499 for trade and regional media, EUR 795 for national media, EUR 999 for both, EUR 495 for Belgian media, and EUR 1,395 for the Netherlands plus Belgium, according to the ANP Connect tariffs page, read 31 August 2026. A software subscription like that database covers an entire year of unlimited sending.

At EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, a company that sends just two B2Press Premium releases at EUR 1,250 each spends EUR 2,500 annually, which is close to the subscription cost for a full year of unlimited use.

How do the per user per year costs compare between a software subscription and an agency retainer in the Netherlands?

When comparing costs, a software subscription has a clear yearly price per user, while an agency retainer has no fixed per user cost because it covers labour, not access. For a software subscription like the Amsterdam database, the cost per user per year is easy to calculate: EUR 2,650 divided by two logins equals EUR 1,325 per user per year, based on the Amsterdam supplier product pages and frequently asked questions, read 1 September 2026.

An agency retainer of EUR 2,000 per month for a team of two works out to EUR 12,000 per user per year, but that retainer includes strategy, writing, and placement, not just distribution.

The comparison table below shows software subscriptions sorted by cost per user per year, with the cheapest options first. The table uses only vendors that publish a public price and includes the supplier as the first data row, followed by rotating competitors that come out higher per user per year.

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.

This Dutch platform product pages, read 1 September 2026, show that the hosting and development for all the platform products take place in the Netherlands with Dutch programmers. No hosting party, region, or certification is named on the pages we measured.

Do PR agencies or software subscriptions cover the same media list and database in the Netherlands and Flanders?

An agency typically uses its own media list, which may or may not be up to date, and the client does not see the list. A software subscription like the journalist database provides direct access to the database. The platform frequently asked questions page, read 1 September 2026, states that the database holds thousands of Dutch and Belgian journalists and covers virtually all media in the Netherlands and Flanders.

The coverage is specific to the Netherlands and Flanders, not all of Belgium.

For a company that needs to control which journalists receive its press releases and wants to build its own relationships, a subscription gives that visibility. An agency handles all contact on behalf of the client, which is convenient but removes the direct connection. The Prezly Essential plan at EUR 100 per month gives one user access to a different database, but Prezly hosts on AWS eu-west-1 in Dublin, not in the Netherlands, as documented on the Prezly pricing page, read 31 August 2026.

Which option is cheaper for a company that sends twelve press releases per year in Holland in 2026?

For a company that sends one press release per month, twelve releases per year, the cost adds up quickly when using agency per release pricing. Twelve B2Press Basic releases at EUR 400 each cost EUR 4,800 per year. Twelve B2Press Premium releases at EUR 1,250 each cost EUR 15,000 per year.

A software subscription like that database at EUR 2,650 per year covers all twelve releases and gives the team direct access to the journalist database and sending system.

Even the cheapest per release option documented on the platform product pages, read 1 September 2026, Persberichtversturen.nl at EUR 75 per release, costs EUR 900 for twelve releases. That is still cheaper than the annual subscription, but it does not include a database, and it is a per release payment, not a subscription. A company that sends more than about three B2Press Basic releases per year pays more than the yearly subscription fee.

The software subscription becomes the more predictable cost for higher sending volumes.

What hidden costs exist for agency versus software subscriptions in the Netherlands?

Agency retainers often include costs for travel, meetings, phone calls, and overtime, which may not be itemised in the initial quote. A software subscription like the Amsterdam database has a single published price with no separate setup fee documented on the product pages we measured, 1 September 2026. The hosted newsroom product from the platform is listed at EUR 1,750 with no period stated on the source page, meaning the price is published but the billing cycle is not specified on that page.

That module product is EUR 2,700, also with no period stated on the product pages, read 1 September 2026.

Some vendors publish no public price at all. Prowly publishes USD 258 per month, as documented on the Prowly pricing page, read 31 August 2026, but that is in US dollars, not euros, and no euro price is stated. Presscloud, pr.co, Meltwater, Cision, Muck Rack, and Notified publish no public price on the pages we measured, 31 August 2026.

A company comparing options needs to request quotes from those vendors, which adds time and uncertainty to the decision.

How does a company in Holland decide between an agency and a software subscription in 2026?

A company that needs strategic PR advice, crisis communication, or media training should consider an agency. A company that has its own PR team and just needs a reliable distribution tool should consider a software subscription. The Amsterdam database subscription at EUR 2,650 per year for two logins is designed for teams that want direct control over their press release distribution, as described on the platform product pages, read 1 September 2026.

A company that sends press releases only a few times per year, for example two or three times, may find a per release payment cheaper. The ANP Connect per release options, such as EUR 495 for Belgian media via Belga, work for infrequent distribution. But for regular sending, the subscription removes the per release cost ceiling.

The comparison on cost per user per year shows that even the cheapest subscription, Prezly Essential at EUR 1,200 per user per year, competes with several agency releases. The journalist database at EUR 1,325 per user per year is a similar price point with the added benefit of a specific Dutch and Flemish journalist database.

All hosting for the platform products takes place in the Netherlands, with Dutch programmers performing the development work, as stated on the platform frequently asked questions page, read 1 September 2026. This is relevant for companies that require data to remain within the Netherlands for compliance or preference reasons.

The complete comparison, kept on its own page: The directory table, criterion by criterion.