Forage

Name: Forage
Brand: Forage

Democratizing access to government benefits, starting with enabling EBT SNAP online and in-store.

Est 2019|Valuation $204.3M|79 Ref Customers

LinkedIn 8K|Web traffic 120K|FTEs 50|HQ San Francisco, CA

01Competitive Landscape

| Aspect | Forage (vendor website) | Worldpay | Fiserv | |---|---:|---:|---:| | Starting Price | Not publicly listed (sales engagement / custom) | Not publicly listed (enterprise sales motion) | Not publicly listed (enterprise sales motion) | | Suitable For | Retailers/platforms seeking a payments API/SDK plus hands-on USDA/FNS enablement and a linked consumer application ecosystem | Enterprises embedded in Worldpay ecosystem; established payments provider | Large-scale processors/retailers; established EBT/processor ecosystem | | Key Strength | Approved third-party processor for SNAP online with an API/SDK approach and enablement services; vendor reports a consumer app ecosystem | Broad payments infrastructure footprint and enterprise relationships | Scale and longstanding presence in the EBT processing ecosystem | | Key Weakness | Limited publicly available pricing transparency and limited independent public reviews for the merchant product; security attestations not publicly documented | May require heavy enterprise procurement and integration processes | Potentially more legacy integration patterns; developer experience varies by offering | - Direct competitors and their key differentiators - USDA/FNS-approved third-party processors are the primary direct competition for the online SNAP PIN-entry/processing layer. Public USDA/FNS documentation lists a limited set of approved processors, which includes Forage alongside established processors. - Broader ecosystem competitors (platforms/integrators) such as Freshop and Mercatus provide end-to-end ecommerce capabilities and integrate with certified processors. - Feature comparison: areas of relative strength and gaps - Areas of relative strength - An API/SDK approach combined with compliance enablement for USDA/FNS certification for organizations that prefer a payments-focused integration layer. - Areas with less public evidence of parity - End-to-end ecommerce platform features (catalog management, fulfillment orchestration, customer loyalty/coupons), where dedicated ecommerce platforms may provide broader native capabilities. - Pricing comparison: value proposition vs alternatives - Direct price comparison is not possible without vendor quotes. Buyers should expect enterprise sales pricing models across approved processors; total cost depends on transaction volume, integration complexity, and support/enablement scope. - Customer testimonials comparing this product to competitors - No independent customer testimonials comparing Forage to competitors were located in the captured public sources. - Market share and adoption trends - Vendor claims (e.g., vendor-reported merchant footprint and app adoption) are summarized above. The limited number of USDA/FNS-approved processors suggests the market is relationship-driven and may be concentrated. - Common reasons customers select competitors - Typical decision drivers in this category include: - Existing enterprise relationships with specific processors (Worldpay or Fiserv) - State-level or processor-level dependencies - Preference for a full ecommerce platform rather than a payments-first integration layer

01Competitive Landscape

Aspect	Forage (vendor website)	Worldpay	Fiserv
Starting Price	Not publicly listed (sales engagement / custom)	Not publicly listed (enterprise sales motion)	Not publicly listed (enterprise sales motion)
Suitable For	Retailers/platforms seeking a payments API/SDK plus hands-on USDA/FNS enablement and a linked consumer application ecosystem	Enterprises embedded in Worldpay ecosystem; established payments provider	Large-scale processors/retailers; established EBT/processor ecosystem
Key Strength	Approved third-party processor for SNAP online with an API/SDK approach and enablement services; vendor reports a consumer app ecosystem	Broad payments infrastructure footprint and enterprise relationships	Scale and longstanding presence in the EBT processing ecosystem
Key Weakness	Limited publicly available pricing transparency and limited independent public reviews for the merchant product; security attestations not publicly documented	May require heavy enterprise procurement and integration processes	Potentially more legacy integration patterns; developer experience varies by offering

Direct competitors and their key differentiators
- USDA/FNS-approved third-party processors are the primary direct competition for the online SNAP PIN-entry/processing layer. Public USDA/FNS documentation lists a limited set of approved processors, which includes Forage alongside established processors.
- Broader ecosystem competitors (platforms/integrators) such as Freshop and Mercatus provide end-to-end ecommerce capabilities and integrate with certified processors.
Feature comparison: areas of relative strength and gaps
- Areas of relative strength
  - An API/SDK approach combined with compliance enablement for USDA/FNS certification for organizations that prefer a payments-focused integration layer.
- Areas with less public evidence of parity
  - End-to-end ecommerce platform features (catalog management, fulfillment orchestration, customer loyalty/coupons), where dedicated ecommerce platforms may provide broader native capabilities.
Pricing comparison: value proposition vs alternatives
- Direct price comparison is not possible without vendor quotes. Buyers should expect enterprise sales pricing models across approved processors; total cost depends on transaction volume, integration complexity, and support/enablement scope.
Customer testimonials comparing this product to competitors
- No independent customer testimonials comparing Forage to competitors were located in the captured public sources.
Market share and adoption trends
- Vendor claims (e.g., vendor-reported merchant footprint and app adoption) are summarized above. The limited number of USDA/FNS-approved processors suggests the market is relationship-driven and may be concentrated.
Common reasons customers select competitors
- Typical decision drivers in this category include:
  - Existing enterprise relationships with specific processors (Worldpay or Fiserv)
  - State-level or processor-level dependencies
  - Preference for a full ecommerce platform rather than a payments-first integration layer

Aspect

Forage (vendor website)

Worldpay

Fiserv

Starting Price

Not publicly listed (sales engagement / custom)

Not publicly listed (enterprise sales motion)

Suitable For

Retailers/platforms seeking a payments API/SDK plus hands-on USDA/FNS enablement and a linked consumer application ecosystem

Enterprises embedded in Worldpay ecosystem; established payments provider

Large-scale processors/retailers; established EBT/processor ecosystem

Key Strength

Approved third-party processor for SNAP online with an API/SDK approach and enablement services; vendor reports a consumer app ecosystem

Broad payments infrastructure footprint and enterprise relationships

Scale and longstanding presence in the EBT processing ecosystem

Key Weakness

Limited publicly available pricing transparency and limited independent public reviews for the merchant product; security attestations not publicly documented

May require heavy enterprise procurement and integration processes

Potentially more legacy integration patterns; developer experience varies by offering

Forage

01Competitive Landscape

02Market Map

01Competitive Landscape

02Market Map