Why brands switch from Instant
Dashboard ROI vs actual business impact.
Instant reports 30–90x ROI on their dashboards. But multiple brands have found that these numbers don't translate to actual top-line revenue growth. Paire's founder put it directly: "Dashboards showed improvements but no meaningful lift in top-line revenue or efficiency." Upstack focuses on metrics that match your Shopify reports — actual incremental flow revenue, actual CAC reduction, actual EMQ improvement. If it doesn't show up in your P&L, it doesn't count.
First-party identity resolution vs cross-brand data sharing.
Instant's core promise is identifying anonymous visitors using data shared across their network of brands. The pitch sounds compelling: "people who visited other websites would come to you and you would have their email right away." In practice, this means relying on third-party data in a privacy landscape that's rapidly eliminating it. Upstack uses only first-party data — your visitors, your events, your identity graph. No cross-brand data, no deliverability risk, no privacy gray areas.
Half the cost, measurable results.
Instant's pricing is opaque (no public pricing page), but customers report costs around $1,500/month — nearly 2x Upstack. And Instant is focused on Klaviyo flow enrichment only. Upstack includes server-side tracking, identity resolution, Klaviyo flow enrichment, AND attribution reporting for $299/month. Paire switched from Instant to Upstack and saw 20% CAC reduction, 24% MER improvement, and $28K in incremental revenue.
Upstack vs Instant: Feature by feature
| Feature |   | Instant |
|---|---|---|
| Identity & Data Approach | ||
| Identity resolution method | First-party only — your data, your visitors | Cross-brand data sharing network |
| Server-side tracking (CAPI) | ||
| First-party edge proxy | ||
| Cross-device identity resolution | Unclear — limited technical disclosure | |
| Behavioral analysis & intent scoring | Session and page-level context | |
| EMQ optimization | Core feature — 4.5 → 7.5+ EMQ | |
| Privacy compliance approach | First-party data only — zero cross-brand sharing | Cross-brand visitor data sharing (privacy implications) |
| Klaviyo & Email | ||
| Klaviyo abandonment flow enrichment | 30–40% more flow entries (verified) | 2–3x claimed (dashboard metrics) |
| Flow conflict risk | Aligned with Klaviyo best practices (7-day window) | Can conflict with existing flows (14-day vs 30-day timing) |
| Deliverability impact | No risk — first-party data only | Some customers report deliverability issues |
| Browse abandonment flows | ||
| Cart abandonment flows | ||
| Checkout abandonment flows | ||
| Attribution & Reporting | ||
| Multi-touch attribution | Basic (Instant Attribution product) | |
| nCPA / nROAS in Meta | ||
| Contribution margin tracking | ||
| Creative analytics | ||
| LTV cohort analysis | ||
| EMQ monitoring dashboard | ||
| Unified reporting (one source of truth) | ||
| Onboarding & Support | ||
| Setup time | Under 20 minutes — white-glove by US-based rep | 2–15 minutes (claimed) |
| Personal onboarding | Every plan — dedicated setup call | Self-serve |
| Free trial | 21 days, full features | Trial available (length varies) |
| Company type | Founder-led, independent | VC-backed |
| Pricing & Transparency | ||
| Public pricing page | Yes — transparent order-based pricing | No — pricing page returns 404 |
| Reported pricing | $299/mo (Starter) | ~$1,500/mo (per customer reports) |
| What’s included | Tracking + identity + flows + attribution | Klaviyo flow enrichment (tracking/attribution separate) |
| Contract | Month-to-month. Cancel anytime. | Not publicly disclosed |
| Money-back guarantee | 60-day ROI guarantee | Not publicly disclosed |
More features, lower price
Upstack
$299/mo
Tracking + identity resolution + Klaviyo enrichment + attribution. All included.
Instant
~$1,500/mo
Estimated from customer reports (no public pricing page). Klaviyo flow enrichment only — server-side tracking and attribution require separate tools ($200–950+/mo additional).
Instant (~$1,500/mo) covers Klaviyo flows only. Upstack ($299/mo) includes flows + tracking + identity + attribution. Paire switched and saw 20% CAC reduction.
What brands say about switching
“Instant dashboards showed significant improvements, but further analysis showed no meaningful lift in top-line revenue or efficiency. The cost was also nearly 2x that of Upstack.”
Nathan Yun
Founder, Paire
Switched to Upstack → 20% CAC reduction
“We did something with some group called Instant Audiences. And so it was trying to basically enrich our flows... I think that hurt our deliverability a little bit.”
Kaylah Hall
Shopify Brand Operator
“Moved from a competitor to Upstack and have a very clear picture that Upstack is a faster setup, with a much more competent team, amazing customer service, and better performance, for a cheaper price — it's not even close.”
Giant Hoodies
Shopify Brand
41x ROI
Switching from Instant is easy
No developer needed. No downtime. No data loss.
- 1
Install the Upstack Shopify app (4 minutes)
- 2
Connect Meta, Google, TikTok, and Klaviyo (5 minutes)
- 3
Upstack configures identity resolution, CAPI, and Klaviyo flow enrichment automatically
- 4
Remove Instant from your Klaviyo flow setup — Upstack’s flows don’t conflict
- 5
See improved EMQ within the first week. Klaviyo flow volume increases within 2–3 weeks.
Upstack vs Instant FAQ
Ready to outgrow Instant?
Start your free 21-day trial. Setup takes under 20 minutes — and our 60-day ROI guarantee means you have nothing to lose.
Cancel anytime
Not ready for a trial? Book a 15-minute walkthrough or read our DTC tracking guide.