Comparison

Recast vs Northbeam vs Triple Whale

A comparison of the three dominant commercial MMM platforms for DTC and mid-market brands. Methodology, AI variable support, integrations, and pricing.

By Ramanath, CTO & Co-Founder at Presenc AI · Last updated: May 17, 2026

Three Commercial MMM Platforms

Recast, Northbeam, and Triple Whale are three of the most widely adopted commercial MMM platforms for DTC and mid-market brands as of 2026. All three offer continuous Bayesian MMM with web-based dashboards, ad platform integrations, and budget allocation features. The differences are in methodology depth, brand fit, and pricing tier.

Recast

Recast is the most methodology-rigorous of the three, originally founded by marketing scientists with academic Bayesian backgrounds. The platform runs continuous Bayesian MMM with weekly updates, supports custom channel additions including AI visibility, and exposes methodology details to the customer in a way that finance and marketing science teams can audit. Strong for brands with internal marketing science capability that want to review the model.

Northbeam

Northbeam combines MMM with multi-touch attribution in a unified platform. The MMM side is competent if less methodology-exposed than Recast; the MTA side is among the strongest in market. Strong for DTC brands that want one platform for both strategic and tactical measurement. The integrated reporting is operationally simpler than two-vendor stacks.

Triple Whale

Triple Whale started as an ecommerce analytics platform and added MMM through 2024-2025. The MMM offering is newer and less mature than Recast or Northbeam but the broader analytics platform is strong, and the integration with ecommerce data (Shopify, retail platforms) is best-in-class. Strong for Shopify-native DTC brands that want a unified analytics layer with MMM as one feature.

Feature Comparison

DimensionRecastNorthbeamTriple Whale
MMM methodologyBayesian, exposedBayesian, less exposedBayesian, newer
MTA includedNoYesYes
AI visibility variableYes (custom channel)Yes (custom channel)Custom build
Lift testingSupported workflowIntegratedPartner
Refit cadenceWeeklyWeeklyWeekly
Shopify integrationStandardStrongNative (best)
Methodology transparencyHighMediumMedium
Best brand size$10M-$500M revenue$5M-$200M revenue$1M-$50M revenue
Pricing tierMid to highMidLow to mid

How to Choose

For brands with internal marketing science capability and a need for methodology audit: Recast. For DTC brands wanting unified MMM and MTA in one platform: Northbeam. For Shopify-native brands wanting integrated ecommerce analytics with MMM as a feature: Triple Whale. The choice is mostly about brand size, stack integration needs, and how much methodology rigor matters versus operational simplicity.

AI Visibility Integration

All three platforms accept Presenc AI data as a custom channel input. The mechanical integration is CSV upload or API connection; the platforms then treat AI visibility as a media variable with their default adstock and saturation handling. Recast exposes the prior settings for analyst review; Northbeam and Triple Whale apply more opinionated defaults.

How Presenc AI Helps

Presenc AI integrates with Recast, Northbeam, and Triple Whale via documented connectors. The AI visibility data layer is the same across all three platforms; switching vendors does not require switching AI visibility data sources. This vendor-neutral position is the cleanest setup for brands evaluating MMM platforms.

Frequently Asked Questions

Recast and Northbeam are both viable shortlists. Recast for methodology depth and audit capability; Northbeam for integrated MMM+MTA simplicity. The choice depends on whether marketing science capability exists internally (Recast) or whether the team needs the platform to absorb more of that capability (Northbeam).
For Shopify-native DTC brands under $50M revenue, yes. The MMM is newer but functional, and the broader analytics platform is best-in-class for Shopify. For larger brands or non-Shopify ecommerce, Recast or Northbeam offer more methodology depth. Triple Whale is improving rapidly through 2025-2026.
Recast supports lift test workflows for calibration. Northbeam has integrated lift testing as part of the MTA module. Triple Whale partners with specialist vendors. Brands with serious lift testing programs typically pair the MMM platform with a dedicated lift testing vendor (Measured, Haus) regardless of which MMM they use.
Six to twelve weeks for a clean migration including parallel operation, model validation, and dashboard rebuild. The data is portable in principle but the methodology details differ, which means the new platform's output will not perfectly match the old. Plan a parallel operation period to reconcile differences before fully cutting over.

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