TL;DR: Pencil is a powerful AI creative platform built for enterprise brands with custom pricing and agency contracts. Benly delivers similar AI creative capabilities plus integrated ad intelligence at transparent pricing starting at $99/month. Choose Pencil if you're a Fortune 500 brand with dedicated agency support. Choose Benly if you want enterprise-grade AI creative with competitive intelligence at SMB-friendly pricing.
Why Teams Look for Pencil Alternatives
Pencil (by Brandtech) pioneered AI-powered ad creative generation, using machine learning to optimize video and static ads at scale. Major brands like Unilever and Nestlé use Pencil to generate thousands of ad variations with AI-driven performance predictions. For enterprise teams with dedicated budgets, Pencil delivers impressive results.
But as AI creative tools mature, friction points emerge for many teams:
- Enterprise-only pricing: Pencil requires custom quotes, typically starting at several thousand dollars monthly. No transparent pricing means lengthy sales cycles and budget uncertainty.
- No competitive intelligence: Pencil generates creatives but doesn't show you what competitors are running. You create in a vacuum without insights into winning patterns.
- Agency-focused model: Pencil's service model assumes agency partnerships and dedicated account management—overkill for lean teams who want self-service.
- Siloed from analytics: Creative generation happens separately from performance tracking. No connected view of what you made and how it performed.
These gaps don't diminish Pencil's AI capabilities. But teams without enterprise budgets—or who want competitive intelligence integrated with generation—often find Pencil inaccessible or incomplete for their needs.
Benly as a Pencil Alternative
Benly takes a different approach: integrated creative intelligence accessible to all team sizes. Instead of enterprise-only AI generation, Benly combines a 50M+ ad spy database, AI creative generation, and cross-platform analytics—all at transparent pricing.
The practical difference: discover what competitors are running, analyze winning patterns, generate on-brand variations with AI, and track performance—in one platform starting at $99/month rather than negotiating enterprise contracts.
At-a-glance comparison
| Capability | Pencil | Benly |
|---|---|---|
| AI creative generation | Video and static with ML optimization | 100+ variations per brief, video and static |
| Ad spy database | Not available | 50M+ ads with AI search |
| Performance analytics | Separate integration required | Cross-platform connected analytics |
| Target market | Enterprise brands and agencies | SMBs, agencies, and enterprises |
| Pricing model | Custom enterprise quotes | Transparent from $99/month |
| Self-service | Agency-managed typical | Full self-service available |
Feature Comparison
AI creative generation
Pencil uses proprietary machine learning to generate video and static ad creatives at scale. Their AI predicts performance based on historical data, optimizing elements like pacing, text overlays, and calls-to-action. Enterprise clients generate thousands of variations with AI-driven recommendations.
Benly generates 100+ on-brand variations from any brief, supporting both static and video formats. The key difference: Benly's AI generation is informed by 50M+ real competitor ads, so recommendations reflect what's actually working in market—not just historical performance from your own account.
Bottom line: Both platforms offer powerful AI generation. Pencil optimizes based on your historical data; Benly adds competitive intelligence from millions of ads.
Competitive intelligence
Pencil focuses purely on creative generation without competitive intelligence features. To understand what competitors are running, you need separate ad spy tools like Minea, BigSpy, or manual research in Meta Ad Library.
Benly maintains 50M+ ads updated daily across Meta, TikTok, Google, and YouTube. Search using natural language to discover winning patterns before you generate. See what competitors run, analyze their creative strategies, then generate on-brand variations informed by market intelligence.
Bottom line: Choose Pencil if you have separate competitive research processes. Choose Benly if you want discovery and generation in one workflow.
Analytics and performance tracking
Pencil provides creative analytics but typically requires integration with separate analytics platforms for full performance visibility. The focus is on creative optimization rather than cross-platform reporting.
Benly connects to Meta, TikTok, and Google ad accounts for unified analytics. See which generated creatives win, identify patterns in top performers, and get AI recommendations. Natural language queries like "why is ROAS down this week?" provide instant analysis.
Bottom line: Choose Pencil if you have established analytics infrastructure. Choose Benly if you want generation and analytics in the same platform.
Accessibility and pricing
Pencil operates as an enterprise platform with custom pricing. Sales cycles typically involve demos, proposals, and contract negotiations. Pricing isn't publicly available but reports suggest monthly costs in the thousands of dollars for serious usage.
Benly offers transparent pricing: $99/month (Starter), $249/month (Growth), $499/month (Scale). All features are available on all plans—no gated capabilities. Start immediately with a 7-day free trial, no sales call required.
Bottom line: Choose Pencil if you have enterprise budgets and prefer managed relationships. Choose Benly if you want transparent pricing and self-service access.
Pricing Comparison
Pencil pricing
| Plan | Price | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | Custom quote | Contact sales for pricing |
| Agency | Custom quote | Multi-client pricing available |
Note: Pencil does not publish pricing. Enterprise quotes typically range from $2,000-10,000+ monthly depending on usage and features.
Benly pricing
| Plan | Price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $99/month | Full platform: 50M+ ads, AI generation, analytics |
| Growth | $249/month | Additional ad accounts, team features, priority support |
| Scale | $499/month | Unlimited accounts, white-label, dedicated CSM |
Total cost comparison
The cost difference is substantial. Teams using Pencil at enterprise pricing often spend $3,000-5,000+ monthly for AI generation alone—without ad spy or unified analytics.
| Capability | With Pencil | With Benly |
|---|---|---|
| AI creative generation | $3,000-5,000+/month (Pencil) | Included |
| Ad spy database | $49-99/month (separate tool) | Included |
| Analytics dashboard | $72-199/month (separate tool) | Included |
| Total | $3,121-5,298+/month | $99-499/month |
For teams without Fortune 500 budgets, Benly provides comparable AI creative capabilities plus integrated features at 90%+ lower total cost.
Who Should Stay with Pencil
Pencil remains the right choice for specific scenarios:
- Fortune 500 brands with dedicated AI creative budgets and agency relationships
- Large agencies serving enterprise clients who expect Pencil's brand recognition
- Teams with massive creative volume generating 10,000+ variations monthly who benefit from Pencil's scale
- Organizations prioritizing managed service who want white-glove support over self-service
Ideal Pencil customer: A global CPG brand spending $1M+ monthly on digital ads, working with a media agency, who needs AI-powered creative at massive scale with dedicated account support.
Who Should Switch to Benly
Benly makes more sense when you need AI creative without enterprise barriers:
- SMBs and scaling brands who need enterprise-grade AI creative at accessible pricing
- Lean agencies who want self-service tools without lengthy sales cycles
- Performance marketers who want competitive intelligence integrated with generation
- Teams consolidating tech stacks who want spy, generation, and analytics in one platform
- Data-driven creative teams who want generation informed by what's working in market
Ideal Benly customer: A DTC brand or agency producing 100-500+ ads monthly who wants to discover winning patterns, generate on-brand variations, and track performance—all without enterprise pricing or managed service requirements.
Switching from Pencil
What transfers
- Creative assets: Export generated assets from Pencil, import to Benly's asset library
- Brand guidelines: Redefine in Benly's brand setup (typically 30 minutes)
- Creative learnings: Document top-performing patterns to inform Benly briefs
What needs configuration
- Ad account connections: Connect Meta, TikTok, Google for analytics
- Brand settings: Upload logos, define colors, set messaging guidelines
- Team setup: Invite team members with appropriate permissions
Migration support
Benly offers migration support for teams switching from Pencil:
- Onboarding call to set up brand guidelines and connections
- Best practice guide for transitioning creative workflows
- Typically complete in 2-3 hours
- Run parallel while completing Pencil contract if needed
What Customers Say About Switching
Switched from enterprise tools
"We evaluated Pencil but couldn't justify the enterprise pricing for our 50-person agency. Benly gives us the AI creative power we need plus competitive intelligence we didn't even know we were missing—at a fraction of the cost."— Creative Director, Performance Marketing Agency
"The ad spy database changed how we approach creative. Instead of generating blindly, we now see what competitors run, identify patterns, then generate informed variations. Pencil couldn't do that at any price."— VP Marketing, DTC Fashion Brand
Results after switching
- Performance agency reduced creative tooling costs from $4,200/month to $249/month
- DTC brand increased creative output 5x while cutting per-asset cost by 80%
- E-commerce team discovered 23 competitor patterns that improved ROAS 40%
Getting Started
Ready to explore Benly as a Pencil alternative? Start with a 7-day free trial:
- Full access to 50M+ ad database
- AI creative generation included
- Analytics connection available
- No credit card required
- No sales call needed—start immediately
The best way to evaluate: run your actual workflow through Benly. Search competitors, analyze winning ads, generate variations, connect your accounts. Most teams find they get more capability at dramatically lower cost within the first hour.
