License Options

CitySoft offers CE in two primary licenses to meet client needs.

1. Subscription License

With the CE Subscription License (also known as SAAS or ASP), clients pay a low monthly fee (of $250 or $500) for use of CE and CitySoft takes care of important management tasks such as hosting, monitoring, patches, upgrades, backups, disaster recovery, security, and more. This option is especially good for clients who want the advantages of Software-As-A-Service (automatic upgrades and patches, no maintenance) or who don’t want to pay high fees for technology.

Support Included - The Subscription License includes free email support as well as the use of other support and training resources such as manuals, online demos, and a staffed support forum.

Includes Integrated Fusetalk Forums / Blog / List Serve License - In addition to all the features of CE, the Subscription License includes a license to the highly acclaimed Fusetalk forum software.  CitySoft has created a close integration between CE and Fusetalk and provides clients with a free license.  Fusetalk provides a forum, a blog, and even email list serve functionality.

Automatic and Easy Upgrades - One of the central benefits of the Subscription License is the automatic upgrades and patches.  In contrast to messy, customized open source implementations that are difficult to upgrade, CE is built with upgrades as a core principle.  So, for one low price you never have to worry about getting the latest code and features, the latest security, the latest patches, and so forth.  If you try to create the same kind of multi-module integration with stand alone applications (e.g. Drupal for CMS, CiviCRM for contact management, and other systems for email, store, and event registration features), you end up with data silos, costly integrations that are prone to break as changes are made, and no one point of contact that is responsible for making sure that you have the latest code and features.  Without clear accountability and responsibility for upgrades, your systems will likely fall behind the latest security and features even if those features become available in the larger community.  In our experience, this approach provides more value to clients than open source implementations which are often hyped as being "free" but in reality provide less ongoing value for more money with more risk of problems.

Bug Fixes - If you find a bug, we'll fix it and patch it to your site right away.

Open Source Option - Even if you choose the Subscription License with CitySoft managing the system, you get a lease-to-own open source option.  In this feature, monthly fees accrue towards the purchase of the system in which you own all the open source code of CE.

For more information on CE and the Subscription License option, browse this site, review the pricing details, or contact us.

2. Purchase License

With the CE Purchase License, clients purchase the CE software including all source code and can host anywhere (including with CitySoft). This option is especially good for clients who want the:

  • full, open source code
  • flexibility to add customizations directly into the base code
  • option to host internally, or
  • option to host with a third party

Open Source - Open source is one of the most popular technology innovations in recent years.  It's value is often misunderstood and it is often over-hyped, but open source is undeniably important for some kinds of clients who are in a position to manage their own software in house over the long term.  The CE Purchase License provides this access which is unique among SAAS providers serving the social sector.

Ongoing code updates and upgrades for the Purchase License are also available and can be purchased separately.

For more information on CE and the Purchase License option, browse this site, review the pricing details, or contact us.

Donation Program Option

In addition to our two primary license options described above, smaller non-profit organizations can access the full CE system including all open source code through CitySoft's donation program.  The CE donation is essentially the same as the Purchase License, except that it if completely free.

For more information on the CitySoft donation program, see the Donation Program Overview and the Donation Program FAQ.