The best replacement is the one that matches how your customers already talk to you. If they like voting on a public board, choose a request board. If most feedback arrives through support, choose a tool that pulls it from conversations. Then check how requests are collected and voted on, and how updates reach the people who asked.
Frill puts five things in one box: an ideas board, a public roadmap, announcements, in-app surveys and a widget. If you've outgrown one of those pieces, or you only ever used two of them, there are plenty of customer feedback tools that do the job differently. Here are eight for product teams, in no particular order, starting with a quick comparison.
Eight feedback boards compared
| Tool | Type | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Canny | AI feedback platform | Capturing and analysing feedback tied to revenue |
| Featurebase | AI support with product signals | Support conversations and product feedback in one place |
| FeedBear | Feedback and ideas board | Collecting ideas and telling customers what changed |
| Nolt | Collaborative request board | A simple shared board from idea to release |
| Sleekplan | All-in-one feedback suite | Boards, roadmap, changelog and NPS together |
| Upvoty | Voting board | Prioritising requests by user votes |
| Userback | Feedback widgets and replays | In-app surveys, session replays and feature portals |
| UserVoice | Enterprise feedback platform | Weighing feedback by revenue at larger companies |
Requests in, updates out: where boards differ
Frill's own description is a feedback platform that bundles ideas, a roadmap, announcements, surveys and a widget. Almost every tool on this list claims a similar bundle, so the bundle itself won't help you choose. What separates them is the two ends of the loop: how a request gets in, and how the person who asked hears back.
On the way in, look at where requests are captured. Some tools rely on a public board that customers visit. Others catch feedback inside your app through a widget, from support chats or from your sales and success teams. If your customers never visit a board, a lovely board won't fill up.
Voting is the next thing to test. Votes are useful, but on their own they reward the loudest users. Check whether you can merge duplicates, add internal notes and see who voted, so a request from your largest customers doesn't get lost under a pile of single votes.
On the way out, check how updates reach people. When you ship a feature, does everyone who voted get told automatically? Can you post a changelog entry from the same place? Closing the loop is what keeps customers sending ideas, and it's the step most teams forget.
Who each board is built for
Simple public boards
Nolt, Upvoty and FeedBear keep things focused on collecting requests, letting users vote and telling them what changed. They suit small product teams and app makers who want a clean board they can set up in an afternoon.
Bigger bundles
Sleekplan adds a changelog and NPS surveys to its boards, and Userback adds widgets, session replays and in-app surveys. These suit teams that want feedback collection and a bit of research in one place.
AI and enterprise feedback
Canny and UserVoice lean on AI to analyse feedback and weigh it by business value, with the second aimed squarely at enterprise teams. Featurebase is the outlier here: its homepage now leads with AI customer support across chat, email and Slack, with product signals pulled out of those conversations.
All eight, A to Z
Sorted alphabetically and in no particular order. Every line reflects the vendor's own description.
Canny
Best for: Product teams wanting AI to capture, analyse and prioritise customer feedback, with the vendor framing it around building what drives revenue.
Featurebase
Best for: Software teams answering customers across live chat, email and Slack, with AI handling repeat questions and surfacing product signals, per the vendor.
FeedBear
Best for: App makers who want one place to collect ideas and requests, then keep customers informed about product changes; a free plan is named.
Nolt
Best for: Small product teams wanting a tidy, shared place for user requests where they collect feedback, plan the work and keep users in the loop.
Sleekplan
Best for: Teams wanting feedback boards, a roadmap, a changelog and NPS surveys in one place, with AI the vendor says turns signals into shipped work.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
Upvoty
Best for: Product teams who want to centralise feedback and let users vote, so the next thing to build is clearer, as the vendor puts it.
Userback
Best for: Teams collecting feedback inside the product itself, using widgets, in-app surveys, session replays and feature portals together, says the vendor.
UserVoice
Best for: Enterprise product teams capturing feedback from many places, weighting it by revenue and closing the loop with customers, according to the vendor.
Advice for product teams choosing a new board
Look at where your best feedback came from last quarter. If it came from customers posting ideas, pick a simple board and make it easy to find. If it came from support tickets and sales calls, pick a tool that pulls feedback out of those conversations, because a public board will sit empty. And whichever you choose, set up the update emails on day one, so the first feature you ship tells every voter.
Moving boards is a good moment to tidy up. Merge duplicates, close requests you'll never build and tell people why. For more ideas, see my roundup of the best customer feedback tools, and if your board feeds straight into planning, my list of the best roadmap software covers the next step.
Questions worth asking on a demo call
- Can we import our existing requests and votes, and keep the voter names?
- How do customers leave feedback without creating yet another account?
- Can we merge duplicate requests and keep all the votes?
- What happens to voters when a request moves to planned or shipped?
- Can internal teams add feedback on a customer's behalf?
- Which parts of the board can we keep private?
Do you make customer feedback software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
Want your tool on this list? Featured spots and reviews here are paid partnerships. Here's how to partner with me.
Frequently asked questions
What is a feature request board?
It's a page where customers post ideas for your product, vote on other people's ideas and follow progress. It gives product teams one list instead of feedback scattered across email and chat.
Should my feedback board be public or private?
Public boards build trust and cut duplicate requests, but they show competitors what customers want. Many teams keep the board public and hold sensitive or enterprise requests in a private view.
Are votes enough to decide what to build?
No. Votes show interest, but they don't show which customers matter most to your business or how hard an idea is to build. Use them as one signal next to revenue, effort and strategy.
How do I get customers to use a feedback board?
Link it from your app, help centre and support replies, and reply to the first requests quickly. People keep posting when they can see ideas being read and shipped.
Can I move my existing feedback to a new tool?
Most tools accept a file import of requests, and some import votes and comments too. Ask before you switch, and export everything from your current tool first.
What is closing the loop with customers?
It means telling everyone who asked for something when it ships or when you decide not to build it. Most feedback tools can send these updates automatically.
