Referral Factory vs Smile.io
Six of fourteen models named Referral Factory first on the direct prompt; zero named Smile.io. Referral Factory was named by twelve of the fourteen models and Smile.io by ten and Referral Factory carries 29 labels and Smile.io 12, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in two categories this edition.
Named in four categories this edition.
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the referral and partner programs page.
By framing
Referral FactoryFirst choices, of fourteen modelsSmile.io
Across every category in the November 2026 Edition, Referral Factory and Smile.io were named in the same answer thirty-two times, of the 159 answers naming Referral Factory and the 118 naming Smile.io. In those answers Smile.io took the first choice nine times and Referral Factory two.
Every model, every framing
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | | | ||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | |||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | |||||
| Perplexity Sonar | | | ||||
| Grok 4.20 | | | | | ||
| Mistral Small | | | | |||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | | | |
| Llama 4 Maverick | | | ||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | ||||
| Kimi K2 | | | ||||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | ||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | |||
| GPT-6 Luna | ||||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | | |
Referral Factory Smile.io first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Referral Factory on the left and Smile.io on the right.The direct prompt
Referral Factory first, Smile.io not the choice
6 of 14 modelsSmile.io was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Neither was the first choice, one was named
6 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Neither was named
2 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
Referral Factory3%#8 of 9Smile.io3%#– of 9Referral Factory12%#3 of 13Smile.io12%#4 of 13Referral Factory12%#3 of 14Smile.io0%#– of 14What the models said about Referral Factory
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of four in this category shown.
“Referral credits may not always update, and there's no manual option to correct referral records” Claude Haiku 4.5 · negative prompt · soft negative
“Predictable flat pricing and templates, though generally more expensive than Smile.io.” Perplexity Sonar · budget prompt · soft negative
“Referral Factory stands out as the best overall referral program software for a mid-market B2B company” Grok 4.20 · direct prompt · first choice
“The best referral program software for a mid-market B2B company is Referral Rock or Referral Factory.” Llama 4 Maverick · direct prompt · first choice
What the models said about Smile.io
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of three in this category shown.
“Noted for billing complaints (charges after cancellation) and poor customer service.” Mistral Small · negative prompt · hard negative
“Best Overall (Free Plan): Smile.io ... widely considered the best option for small businesses because it offers a genuine free plan” GLM 4.7 FlashX · budget prompt · first choice
“Best Overall Free Option for E-Commerce: Smile.io ... widely considered the best starting point for small e-commerce businesses” Qwen 3.7 Flash · budget prompt · first choice
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.