A research comparison, not a performance verdict. The records below retain original plan conditions, metric dates, and source limitations. Choose the platform that demonstrates your required workflow under a documented quote.
AppFolio
AppFolio · Est. 2006
Professional residential and mixed-portfolio property managers
Professional managementWeb + mobile ecosystem
Entry pricingCustom quotePlan, modules & portfolio determine price
OwnershipPublic companyPublic company
Buildium
RealPage / Thoma Bravo · Est. 2004
Professional managers of smaller and midsize residential portfolios
Professional managementWeb + mobile ecosystem
Entry pricingFrom $62/moEssential starting price · portfolio-scaled
OwnershipPrivate groupPrivate RealPage subsidiary
How to read this comparison
AppFolio and Buildium should be evaluated against the same portfolio brief and representative operating scenarios. The original research records their product categories, customer descriptions, plan boundaries, and app-role caveats rather than assigning unsupported feature-performance scores.
Public company scale and operating populations describe different evidence from a subscription quote. Ask each provider to demonstrate the proposed configuration and itemize the required recurring and implementation charges. Preserve historical source dates when interpreting customer, unit, or financing figures.
Side-by-side source data
| Research field | AppFolio | Buildium |
|---|---|---|
| Platform overview | ||
| Corporate group | AppFolio | RealPage / Thoma Bravo |
| Product category | Cloud property-management operating system | Property management for small and midsize professional portfolios |
| Founded / approximate age | 2006 · approximately 20 yearsCompany founding year Sources S013 | 2004 · approximately 22 yearsCompany founding; current homepage states product launch in 2008 Sources S053, S054 |
| Typical customer | Professional residential and mixed-portfolio property managers | Professional managers of smaller and midsize residential portfolios |
| Pricing & fees | ||
| Starting subscription | Custom quotePlan, modules & portfolio determine price · Quote-based Core, Plus and Max plans Sources S019 | From $62/moEssential starting price · portfolio-scaled · Tiered subscription, increasing with portfolio size Sources S057 |
| Plans & billing basis | Current dollar rates not publicly posted; Core, Plus and Max require a sales quote | Essential from $62/month; Growth from $192/month; Premium from $400/month |
| Minimums & commitments | Core has a 50-unit minimum and a minimum-spend condition; current dollar minimum not disclosed Sources S019 | Essential advertised starting price; actual charge depends on unit count Sources S057 |
| Screening charges | No universal screening fee verified Sources S019 | No universal screening fee verified Sources S057 |
| Payment fees | Payments, screening and other value-added services may have separate fees; obtain written quote | Incoming EFT, card, screening and electronic-signature charges vary by plan; current card rate listed at 2.99% |
| Setup & contracts | Implementation, modules and contract terms require quote review | Onboarding required for Growth and Premium; verify portfolio-specific quote and service charges |
| Apps & access | ||
| Website / web application | Website: Yes · Web app: Yes | Website: Yes · Web app: Yes |
| iOS app names | AppFolio Property Manager; Online Portal by AppFolio | Buildium; Resident Center |
| Android app names | Online Portal by AppFolio (resident app verified) | Buildium; Resident Center |
| Manager mobile access | AppFolio Property Manager native iOS app verified; browser application; separate resident mobile ecosystem | Buildium web app and native manager app |
| Resident web access | Online Portal by AppFolio | Resident Center |
| Important app caveat | Android availability is directly verified for the resident portal; no unsupported claim of full manager-app feature parity. | Manager and resident apps have different permissions; free app download does not make the manager subscription free. |
| Operating scale | ||
| Customers | Exact reported count 22,751Property-management customers · 2026-06-30 Sources S016, S017, S018 | More than 17,000Customers reported at acquisition; historical, not verified current count · 2019-12-18 Sources S056, S054 |
| Operational properties | Not disclosedNot publicly disclosed / not verified Sources S016, S017, S018 | Not disclosedNot publicly disclosed / not verified Sources S056, S054 |
| Advertising properties | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S016, S017, S018 | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S056, S054 |
| Active rental listings | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S016, S017, S018 | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S056, S054 |
| Units | Approximately 9.6MUnits under management on the property-management platform; not tenants · 2026-06-30 Sources S016, S017, S018 | Approximately 2MResidential units reported at acquisition · 2019-12-18 Sources S056, S054 |
| Leases | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S016, S017, S018 | Not disclosedNot verified as a separate numeric population Sources S056, S054 |
| Residents / tenants | Not disclosedNot publicly disclosed / not verified; units are not converted to people Sources S016, S017, S018 | Not disclosedNot publicly disclosed / not verified; units are not converted to people Sources S056, S054 |
| Comparability & overlap | A customer can manage many units. Unit and customer totals are dated June 2026 and do not represent distinct resident people. | Precise numeric figures are from 2019. Current homepage is qualitative. Do not label this 2026 scale or add it to parent RealPage totals. Wholly owned by RealPage; separate product row within the same corporate group. |
| Value & funding | ||
| Public company / parent cap | $7.38BAppFolio corporate equity, not a separate product valuation · snapshot 2026-09-12 · not live Sources S002 | No public-market snapshotPrivate RealPage subsidiary Sources S055 |
| Historical value reference | Not establishedNo completed numeric historical valuation recorded Sources S002 | $580MAcquisition purchase price · 2019-12-18 · Historical completed RealPage acquisition; not current standalone value Sources S055 |
| Disclosed financing | $30MApproximate historical pre-IPO private rounds; secondary reconstruction Undisclosed does not mean zero. Acquisition and IPO proceeds are not automatically venture funding. Sources S014, S015 | $65MAt least one disclosed $65M growth investment; not a complete lifetime VC total Undisclosed does not mean zero. Acquisition and IPO proceeds are not automatically venture funding. Sources S053 |
| Investors | IGSB; other historical investors not exhaustively verified | Sumeru Equity Partners; earlier financing not exhaustively quantified |
| Reported exit target | Not recordedAn exit target is not a completed valuation | Not recordedAn exit target is not a completed valuation |