AppDeck vs OnBoard
A mid-market board portal from Passageways (now OnBoard, headquartered in Indianapolis). Founded 2003. Popular with credit unions, community banks, healthcare boards, and mid-sized nonprofits.
Last updated: May 20, 2026
About this comparison:AppDeck is pre-product as of May 2026 — we're building toward general availability. OnBoardis an established, shipping product. This comparison uses publicly disclosed competitor information and AppDeck's published roadmap. No fabricated specifics, no feature-parity claims we can't back. Join the waitlist to be notified when AppDeck ships.
When to choose which
Choose OnBoard if…
- •You are a mid-market board (500–5,000 employees)
- •You operate in a regulated industry (financial services, healthcare) and value industry-specific feature depth
- •You need annual contracts with dedicated CSM support
- •Your annual board technology budget is $5,000–$15,000
Choose AppDeck if…
- You are an SMB or small-nonprofit board (under 500 employees)
- You prefer month-to-month billing over annual contracts
- Your industry doesn't require deep compliance features
- You want self-serve setup, not a 30-day implementation
About OnBoard
OnBoard is a category specialist with deep mid-market roots. Strong in financial services (credit unions, community banks), healthcare boards, and growing nonprofits. Less aggressive on enterprise than Diligent.
What OnBoard does well
- Strong mid-market presence — particularly in financial services and healthcare
- Mature meeting management, document distribution, and voting features
- Established customer support and onboarding programs
- Industry-specific feature depth (compliance for credit unions, banks)
- SOC 2 Type II certified
Where AppDeck differs
- SMB pricing rather than mid-market (under-$500-employee organizations specifically)
- Faster self-serve onboarding (no implementation manager required)
- Simpler UI optimized for boards that aren't industry-regulated
- Credit-card billing model rather than annual contracts
Pricing
OnBoard
OnBoard does not publicly publish all pricing tiers. Public sources and customer reviews cite ranges from $4,000 to $15,000+ per year depending on board size, features, and contract length.
AppDeck
AppDeck plans to publish pricing starting at $199–$999/month at general availability. Monthly billing model designed for SMB.
Feature comparison
| Feature | AppDeck | OnBoard |
|---|---|---|
| Target customer | SMB + small nonprofits | Mid-market boards (credit unions, healthcare, mid-sized nonprofits) |
| Pricing transparency | Published starting tier | Quote-based; some reseller pricing public |
| Implementation | Self-serve, hours (post-GA) | Guided implementation, 2–4 weeks typical |
| Board pack distribution | Yes | Yes |
| Meeting management | Yes | Yes — strong |
| Voting & resolutions | Yes | Yes |
| Industry-specific compliance modules | No | Yes — credit union / banking / healthcare |
| Annual contract requirement | No (monthly billing) | Typically yes |
| SOC 2 Type II | On roadmap | Yes |
Migration considerations
- OnBoard customers happy with industry-specific compliance modules should generally stay.
- AppDeck is most likely a fit for boards currently using OnBoard if they're overpaying for features they don't use, or want to drop annual contract commitments.
- Migrate at renewal; export board materials early so re-upload to AppDeck is smooth.
Frequently asked questions
- What's the difference between AppDeck and OnBoard?
- OnBoard is a mid-market specialist with deep industry-specific compliance (credit unions, healthcare). AppDeck is SMB-priced with simpler features designed for non-regulated small boards. Different target customers, different price points.
- How much does OnBoard cost?
- OnBoard does not publish full pricing. Public sources and customer reviews cite ranges from $4,000 to $15,000+ per year depending on board size, features, and contract length. Custom quotes are standard.
- Is OnBoard better than Diligent?
- They target different markets. Diligent is enterprise-focused with the deepest feature set. OnBoard is mid-market-focused with strong industry-specific depth (especially financial services and healthcare). Neither is "better" universally — fit depends on board size and industry.
- When would I move from OnBoard to AppDeck?
- When your board is in the SMB band (under 500 employees), you're not in a regulated industry that needs OnBoard's industry modules, and you want monthly billing rather than annual commitments.
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