9 best Pusher Beams alternatives & competitors

The top Pusher Beams alternatives for push notification, compared on price, free tier, ratings and what each is best for, with Pusher Beams pinned so you can measure each option against it.

Updated August 2026

About Pusher Beams

Pusher Beams logo

Pusher Beams

Push

Pusher Beams is a cross-platform push notification API for iOS, Android, and web, with native client and server SDKs, topic-based targeting, and delivery tracking via webhooks. The catch is it is a narrow push API rather than an engagement platform, with no in-app messaging, journeys, or rules-based segmentation, now run by a small team inside Bird.

Best for

developer teams that want a simple, self-serve push notification API for iOS, Android, and web without needing a full customer-engagement or in-app-messaging platform

Starting price
$29/mo
Free tier
Yes
Rating
4.3 / 5
HIPAA
Unknown

Company profile

Founded
2011
Headquarters
London, UK
Funding
Not disclosed
Team size
~7
Ownership
Subsidiary of Bird
Reviews
4.3 / 5 on G2 (11)

Compliance

GDPRISO 27001

Official SDKs

iOS (Swift, also covers macOS via APNs)Android (Kotlin/Java)Web (JavaScript, Chrome/Firefox/Edge/Opera + beta Safari)FlutterGo (server)PHP (server)Node.js (server)Python (server)+3 more
Strengths
Simple, developer-first push API with native iOS, Android, Web, and Flutter SDKs
Seven official server-side libraries (Go, PHP, Node.js, Python, Ruby, Java/Kotlin, Swift)
Transparent, flat self-serve pricing tiers with no hidden usage fees
Built-in delivery and open tracking via webhooks
Free Sandbox tier for up to 1,000 subscribers to get started
Why teams look elsewhere
No in-app messaging, customer journeys, A/B testing, or geofencing, only push
Segmentation is limited to anonymous topic-based Device Interests, not rules-based audiences
Owned by Bird since 2020, with reported headcount shrinking to roughly 6 to 7 people amid Bird's 2025 layoffs
SOC 2 and HIPAA/BAA status are not clearly documented for Beams specifically

Side by side

Pusher Beams vs the alternatives

Sorted by rating · figures as of August 2026

Pusher Beams logo

Pusher Beams

You're viewing

Starting price

$29/mo

Free tier

Yes

Rating

4.3

Starting price

$249/mo

Free tier

Yes

Rating

5.0

Starting price

$19/mo

Free tier

Yes

Rating

4.7

Starting price

$13/mo

Free tier

Yes

Rating

4.4

Starting price

Free

Free tier

Yes

Rating

4.2

Starting price

Custom

Free tier

No

Rating

4.0

Starting price

Free

Free tier

Yes

Rating

N/A

Starting price

Free

Free tier

Yes

Rating

N/A

Starting price

Free

Free tier

Yes

Rating

N/A

Starting price

$4.99/mo

Free tier

Yes

Rating

N/A

ProviderStarting priceFree tierRating
Pusher Beams logo

Pusher Beams

You're viewing

$29/moYes4.3
$249/moYes5.0Compare →
$19/moYes4.7Compare →
$13/moYes4.4Compare →
FreeYes4.2Compare →
CustomNo4.0Compare →
FreeYesN/ACompare →
FreeYesN/ACompare →
FreeYesN/ACompare →
$4.99/moYesN/ACompare →

At a glance

What each Pusher Beams alternative is best for

MagicBell

5.0 / 5

MagicBell provides a drop-in in-app notification inbox and a multichannel delivery API. The catch is a very small company, narrow focus, and per-channel pricing that climbs at scale.
OneSignal Push

4.7 / 5

OneSignal is a multichannel platform best known for mobile push, with one of the market's most generous free tiers. The catch is per-MAU pricing that climbs at scale.
Pushwoosh

4.4 / 5

Pushwoosh is a cross-platform push platform with broad SDK coverage, including Unity. The catch is a 2022 Reuters report on its Russia-based development that drew US-agency and FTC scrutiny.
AWS SNS

4.2 / 5

Amazon SNS fans out mobile push across the AWS ecosystem at very low per-notification cost. The catch is raw infrastructure with no segmentation, templating, or analytics.
Airship

4.0 / 5

Airship is an enterprise engagement platform for mobile and web push with deep cross-channel orchestration. The catch is opaque, five-figure enterprise pricing and a steep learning curve.
Apple Push Notification

Not rated

APNs is Apple's free, unlimited native push transport for all Apple devices. The catch is transport only, Apple only, with no segmentation or analytics and a server you build.
Expo

Not rated

Expo is a free push relay unifying iOS and Android for React Native apps. The catch is a bare relay with no segmentation, scheduling, or analytics.
Firebase FCM

Not rated

Firebase Cloud Messaging offers free, unlimited push across Android, iOS, and web, and is Android's native transport. The catch is a low-level transport with no orchestration or segmentation.

FAQ

Common questions

The strongest Pusher Beams alternatives depend on what you need. MagicBell rates highest among the options here; the comparison table covers price, free tier, and rating, and the "what each alternative is best for" section matches each option to a use case.

One API, every provider

Switch or combine providers without rewrites.

Courier sits in front of Pusher Beams and every alternative above: route, fail over, and swap providers behind a single API.

Company facts, pricing and compliance were verified against each provider's public pricing and security or trust pages, plus G2 and Trustpilot, as of August 2026, and compiled by the Courier team. Details change often, so confirm with the provider before you buy.