Up Review: The Best Alternative to Malou in 2026

Updated on 20 July 2026

Looking for a more accessible alternative to Malou to manage your Google reviews, build customer loyalty and grow your business's local visibility?

Up Review is an alternative to Malou built for local businesses that want to focus on the essentials: collecting more Google reviews, improving their rating, re-engaging their customers...

Is that exactly what you're looking for? In this comparison article, we break down the differences between Malou and Up Review to help you choose the solution best suited to your goals, your industry and your budget.

Up Review vs Malou: the 30-second verdict

👉 Up Review

If your priority is an all-in-one tool to actively collect Google reviews in-store, build customer loyalty with SMS campaigns and improve your online reputation.

👉 Malou

If you're a restaurant or restaurant group that wants to manage presence across 50+ platforms, social media and online reputation from a single tool.

Up Review vs Malou: the comparison

Up Review in 2 minutes

Why look for an alternative to Malou?

Malou is a leading name in the restaurant industry.

Still, several reasons push business owners to explore other solutions:

1. A solution built for restaurants: Malou targets restaurants and restaurant groups first and foremost. For other local businesses, Up Review is more universal.
2. An entry price of €100 excl. VAT/month billed annually, with no free plan. The Booster (NFC, QR code, spin-to-win wheel) isn't included in the Essential plan, it's a paid add-on. So is the Store Locator.
3. No native CRM or loyalty features: Malou focuses on local visibility. No built-in SMS, email or loyalty card module.
4. A solution that can be overkill: for businesses that only want to collect reviews and build customer loyalty, Malou comes with features they don't need (social media, unified messaging, store locator).

Up Review: the alternative focused on Google review collection and loyalty

Up Review is a French SaaS platform specialising in Google review collection, local reputation management and customer loyalty for local businesses and franchise networks. The solution supports more than 400 businesses across France, across every sector, and is rated 4.9/5 on Google. Notable clients: McDonald's, Quick, Marie Blachère, Pain du Jour, Italova.

Key features

• Collect customer reviews and followers (Google, TikTok, Instagram): prize game, QR code, NFC plate.
• Review management: centralisation, real-time alerts on negative reviews, personalised AI replies.
• SMS campaigns, email campaigns, event-based automation (birthday, inactivity, post-visit).
• CRM and customer database: segmentation, contact history, campaign targeting.
• Multi-location dashboard: manage all your locations from a single view (Custom plan).

Coming soon:

• Multi-platform review management (TripAdvisor, Uber Eats, Facebook, etc.)
• Google Business Profile optimisation and local SEO.
• Loyalty programme, digital loyalty card and discount coupons.
• Multi-platform Presence Management (Google, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc.)

Strengths:

• Prize game, NFC and QR code included in the Pro plan at €89 excl. VAT/month.
• Native CRM and SMS/email campaigns, no third-party tool needed.
• Free plan with no card required and no long-term commitment.
• Covers every sector: restaurants, retail, hospitality, opticians, hairdressers, franchises, etc.
• Active product roadmap: loyalty, GBP and Presence Management currently in development.

Limitations:

• A newer solution (launched 2023), with fewer real-world references than Malou.
• No social media management (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook).
• Presence Management and GBP optimisation not yet available.
• 2,000+ Malou clients vs 400+ Up Review businesses.

Pricing:

• Free: 1 dynamic QR code, 50 scans/month, no card required.
• Starter: €29 excl. VAT/month billed annually (€39 billed monthly).
• Pro: €89 excl. VAT/month billed annually (€119 billed monthly).
• Custom: custom quote for networks with more than 10 locations.

Malou: the all-in-one marketing platform for the restaurant industry

Malou is a French solution with 2000+ restaurant clients. It positions itself as the most complete local marketing platform for restaurant professionals. Malou raised €10 million in November 2023 to expand its presence in Paris and New York. Notable clients: Groupe Bertrand, La Criée, Del Arte, Indiana Café, Côté Sushi.

Key features:

• Presence Management: synchronised updates across 50+ platforms (Google, TripAdvisor, Foursquare, TheFork, Uber Eats).
• Social media: scheduling and publishing on Instagram, TikTok and Facebook.
• Online reputation: review collection, one-click AI replies.
• Booster (add-on): QR codes, NFC totems, gamified spin-to-win wheel for review collection.
• Store Locator (add-on): SEO-optimised local pages for Google and AI search engines.
• Unified messaging: centralised inbox across all platforms.
• Multi-site analytics: dashboards by location and overall.
• COPILOT: dedicated manager, editorial content plan and photo shoot included.

Strengths:

• 2,000+ restaurant clients, well-recognised national references.
• Native social media management (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook).
• Automatic synchronisation across 50+ directories.
• Claimed results: +350% people reached, +128% reviews, 28 hours saved per month (Malou internal study, 2025).
• COPILOT: dedicated manager, photo shoot and editorial content plan, unique in this comparison.
• €10M funding round: financial strength and international ambition.

Limitations:

• Focused on restaurants and hospitality.
• No free plan.
• No native CRM or loyalty programme.
• The Booster (NFC, QR code, wheel) is a paid add-on, not included in Essential.
• The Store Locator is also a separate add-on.
• COPILOT at €549 excl. VAT/month is out of budget for most independent businesses.

Pricing:

• APP Essential: €100 excl. VAT/month billed annually, 1 location (Presence Management + online reputation + local SEO). Booster and Store Locator as add-ons.
• APP Premium: €140 excl. VAT/month billed annually, everything in Essential plus social media, messaging and monitoring.
• COPILOT Premium: €549 excl. VAT/month, dedicated manager, photo shoot, editorial content plan.
• Multi-site, 2 to 14 locations: from €99 excl. VAT/month per location.
• 15+ locations: custom pricing.

Up Review vs Malou: who wins where

Malou and Up Review don't play in the same category.

Malou is a complete marketing platform for the restaurant industry.

Its main value: synchronisation across more than 50 platforms, social media management and multi-site analytics from a single back office. Review collection exists, through the Booster add-on, but it's part of a broader visibility strategy. It's the tool for a marketing manager at a restaurant group.

Up Review is built for a different goal: turning every visit into a Google review, then every review into a loyal customer.

Prize game, NFC, QR code, SMS, email: everything is centralised in a single interface, with no dedicated marketing team needed. Japan Burger generated more than 250 reviews in 1 month, after it had taken 4 years to reach 200. It's one of the few platforms on the market that combines gamification, native CRM and SMS campaigns in a single plan. It's accessible to any local business, not just restaurants.

The difference is structural: at Malou, the Booster, which includes NFC and the spin-to-win wheel, is an add-on on top of €100 excl. VAT/month. At Up Review, NFC, QR code and prize game are included in the Pro plan at €89 excl. VAT/month, and available across every sector.

Who is each tool for, really?

Up Review

• Who is it for? Shop owners, restaurants, opticians, garages, hotels, local franchises, mid-size networks and agencies that want to quickly generate more Google reviews and build customer loyalty.
• Why? Turn every customer visit into a review opportunity with the prize game, the spin-to-win wheel, the QR code, NFC, SMS and email. Everything is centralised in a single interface, with transparent pricing, a free plan and no long-term commitment.

👉 Up Review is built for businesses that want a simple, direct, results-driven tool: more Google reviews, a better rating, more local visibility and an activatable customer base to re-engage and build loyalty.

Malou

• Who is it for? Restaurants, restaurant groups, chains, franchises and multi-site marketing managers.
• Why? Manage the overall digital visibility of a restaurant or restaurant network: syncing information across more than 50 platforms, social media management, multi-site analytics and marketing oversight from a single back office.

👉 Malou mainly answers the needs of a marketing manager in the restaurant industry, with a broad approach to online presence, brand management and multi-site analytics.

Final recommendation: Up Review vs Malou

Choose Up Review if you want to improve your Google rating, collect more customer reviews and build customer loyalty by SMS and email from a single app. The tool is intuitive, saves you time and lets you focus on what actually drives revenue.

Choose Malou if: you manage restaurants with multi-directory presence and social media needs, you have the budget for Essential at €100 excl. VAT/month minimum, and managing Instagram and TikTok is central to your strategy.

👉 Book an Up Review demo or sign up for free

See other alternatives to Malou

If you're comparing several solutions, check out our other comparisons too:

• Up Review vs Guest Suite
• Up Review vs Riwil
• Up Review vs Basilyk
• Up Review vs Partoo
• The 8 best tools to boost your Google reviews in 2026