CounselMore

What CounselMore does

CounselMore is an all-in-one SaaS platform founded in 2016 and headquartered in Redwood City, California, that serves Independent Educational Consultants (IECs), high school counseling departments, and multi-counselor enterprise practices managing the U.S. college application process. The platform combines a College List Builder (3,800+ schools, 300+ data columns each), a per-requirement Application Tracker, branded Student and Parent Portals, billing and time-tracking tools, and a College Readiness Curriculum of 20+ sequenced assignments. Its core data asset is 500,000+ anonymized student outcomes accessible through the OutcomesIQ feature, which classifies colleges as Net, Fit, or Reach for a given student profile using documented historical results rather than predictions.

The company operates a hybrid go-to-market: a self-serve product-led motion with a 30-day free trial targets individual counselors, while a dedicated enterprise sales motion with Calendly-booked discovery and scoped proposals serves multi-counselor organizations. Pricing is largely quote-based with publicly disclosed tiers only for add-ons (custom solutions start at $1,500, Highlands Consultant Certification at $2,050, curriculum as a one-time purchase). Additional revenue comes from one-time curriculum sales, custom development work, and a referral-driven Member Benefits Program. CounselMore is bootstrapped, privately held, and emphasizes that it has no external investors, does not train AI on counselor data, and does not sell student data - positioning itself as an independent, counselor-aligned platform against potential VC-backed competitors.

CounselMore claims 3,000+ counselors using the platform, 1M+ applications prepared and tracked, 1,600+ curriculum practitioners, and 100% year-over-year renewal, supported by a community layer of weekly events, peer mentorship circles, and a weekly TikTok show reaching 5,000+ families. Technology integrations include Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Calendly, Acuity, Zoom, Stripe, Zapier (5,000+ apps), Naviance, and several CRM platforms; the platform is FERPA-compliant and offers native iOS and Android apps. AI Assist automates student record population from unstructured documents. The company is led by founder Margaret Rothe alongside other practicing-IEC co-founders, and has been recognized by EdTech Digest, Forbes, Associated Press, and Fox 5 San Diego.

Name

CounselMore

Legal name

CounselMore

Website

https://counselmore.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CounselMore is a bootstrapped SaaS platform founded in 2016 that provides independent educational consultants and college counseling practices with an all-in-one system for college list building, application tracking, student/parent portals, curriculum delivery, and outcome analytics.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

College Planning Software

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

College & Career Counseling (Admissions, Scholarships, Pathways) (EDAJALAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Undergraduate (First-Year) Admissions Counseling (EDANAEAA)

Keywords

• College planning software
• Educational consulting platform
• Application tracking system
• Student outcomes database
• College admissions tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Redwood City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. Software Subscription (SaaS): Annual or monthly subscription to the all-in-one platform providing access to student management, college database, app tracker, portals, integrations, and community. Multiple plan tiers with different feature access. 30-day free trial with full feature access.
2. College Readiness Curriculum (One-time): One-time purchase of the curriculum package with 20+ assignments that auto-populate into the account. Includes counselor PDF reader with software hot tips and colleague advice. Financial package includes 15+ assignments, Comprehensive package includes 20+ assignments.
3. Custom Solutions: Custom technology solutions starting at $1,500 for custom builds including student portal dashboards, personalized assignment views, gamification, product selling automation, and smart auto-reminders. Scoped proposals with itemized costs.
4. Highlands Consultant Certification: $2,050 certification program for becoming a Highlands Aptitude Testing Consultant. Includes 16 hours of live training, 3-4 hour practicum, and must take the assessment firsthand. $100 discount for CounselMore members.
5. Peer Mentor & Training Sessions: Included with subscription but also drives community engagement. Premium advisory sessions on practice development, product building, and growth through peer and senior peer mentors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

CounselMore is an all-in-one college planning SaaS platform built for independent educational consultants (IECs), high school counselors, and enterprise college advising organizations. The platform combines a 3,800+ school college database with curriculum, application tracking, student/parent portals, AI-assisted record generation, billing, and a 3,000+ counselor community in one integrated system. It is sold as a recurring subscription (with optional one-time curriculum purchases and custom development services).

Product overview

CounselMore is a unified all-in-one college planning platform for educational consultants, high school counselors, and enterprise organizations. The core platform combines the College List Builder (3,800+ schools, 300+ data columns), App Tracker (per-school per-requirement tracking), Student/Parent Portals (mobile-responsive with native apps), and AI Assist (auto-populates records from documents). The platform integrates with Google Drive, Calendly, Zoom, Stripe, and Zapier for workflow automation. Key add-ons include the College Readiness Curriculum (20+ assignments), OutcomesIQ (outcome reporting feature), College Reports (summary reports with financial fit projections), and Custom Solutions (custom development). A partnership with The Highlands Company enables aptitude testing certification. The Educational Services Directory provides free counselor discovery, and free tools include a College Admissions Calculator and pricing guide. The platform operates as counselor-owned since 2016 with FERPA compliance and no data selling.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• OutcomesIQ: A feature within CounselMore that allows counselors to see real student outcomes - what happened to students with similar GPA, test scores, and profiles at specific schools. Shows acceptance rates for students who look like yours rather than overall published rates.

Products and services

• CounselMore Platform Core SaaS subscription that provides educational consultants with an integrated system combining curriculum delivery, the College List Builder, App Tracker, Student and Parent Portals, AI Assist, billing, and access to the counselor community. Sold via 30-day free trial with monthly/annual billing.
• College Readiness Curriculum One-time-purchase package of 20+ client-ready assignments written by practicing IECs covering junior and senior year phases. Runs inside the CounselMore platform with automatic task assignment and completion notifications. Financial package (15+ assignments) and Comprehensive package (20+ assignments) available.
• Custom Solutions Custom development service where CounselMore engineers build personalized features for individual counselor accounts, including dashboards, gamification, automated reminders, and branded portal experiences. Starting at $1,500 per scoped build.
• Highlands Aptitude Testing Certification $2,050 certification program delivered through partnership with The Highlands Company. Includes 16 hours of live training, a 3-4 hour practicum, and firsthand completion of the assessment. $100 discount for CounselMore members.
• Educational Services Directory Free directory listing service for educational consultants to be discovered by prospective families. Includes SEO optimization, booking links, and a Counselor Matchmaker service that connects families to listed counselors.
• College Admissions Calculator Free online calculator for families to estimate college admissions chances based on student profile data. Used as a top-of-funnel lead generation tool.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2x student capacity - counselors manage up to 15 active seniors where others manage 5
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration14 records

AI capability5 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Highlands CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial partner enabling CounselMore counselors to become certified Highlands Aptitude Testing Consultants. Includes 16 hours of live training, practicum, and community resources. $2,050 certification with $100 member discount. Differentiates counselor practices with actionable aptitude data for student planning.
• LanguageBirdminorOthersAccredited one-to-one online world language instruction in 15 languages. Members can refer students for language courses, tutoring, and test prep. NCAA and UC approved with Cognia and WASC accreditation.
• Lumiere EducationminorOthersResearch opportunities provider for students. Members can offer Polygence programs at 10% discount. Focus on personalized research projects guided by graduate mentors.
• Social AssurityminorOthersDigital presence and social media training for college admissions. Alan Katzman-founded company featured in NYT, WSJ, Forbes. LinkedIn program at $249 (discounted) and social media training at $299 for members.
• Gap Year AssociationminorOthersNational nonprofit coordinating the Gap Year Movement. Offers Counselors Institute with discounts. Supports intentional gap years with practical outcomes.
• Compass Education GroupminorOthersThe Compass Guide to College Admission Testing - comprehensive resource on ACT, SAT, PSAT, AP Exams. Trusted by thousands of counselors worldwide as definitive testing resource.
• PolygenceminorOthersStudent passion project incubator with research programs. Members offer 10% discount to clients. Students create showcaseable final products for college admissions edge.
• Higher Scores Test PrepminorOthersOnline ACT and SAT courses with customizable strategies. COUNCEL10 code provides 10% discount for members. Consultant Guide to SAT and ACT available.
• Wow Writing WorkshopminorOthersApplication essay and resume writing assistance. Professional writers helping with college essays, business communication, and creative writing. Partnership benefits for members.
• Short Story MarketingminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWebsite building, hosting, and custom design for new education consultants. Strategic client-facing marketing support for solo-preneurs and small teams. Discounted pricing for members.
• Google WorkspacecoreTechnology or IntegrationBi-directional Google Drive integration. Auto-folders by graduation year. Document generation and storage. Seamless export of college reports and essay prompts to student Drive folders.
• ZapiercoreTechnology or Integration5,000+ app connections through Zapier automation. Enables CRM integrations, automated workflows, and custom data flows between CounselMore and other platforms.
• CalendlycoreTechnology or IntegrationScheduling tool integration with CounselMore portals. Embeddable scheduling in Student Portal. Auto-populated student records from meeting data.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationCredit card processing integrated directly into CounselMore. Invoicing and payment reminders. Family-friendly payment plans. Financial reports.
• ZoomcoreTechnology or IntegrationMeeting integration with automatic notes sent to CounselMore. Notes auto-populate student records, generate assignments, update college lists, and flag next steps.
• Microsoft 365coreTechnology or IntegrationOutlook Calendar sync and Microsoft Mail integration. Alternative to Google Workspace for calendar and email workflows.
• Campus Pride IndexminorOthersLGBTQ campus climate benchmarking tool integrated into college data menu. Enables side-by-side comparisons of school social climates for LGBTQ-inclusive counseling.
• CRM Platforms (Zoho, Dubsado, Kajabi, ActiveCampaign)coreTechnology or IntegrationAuto-generate complete client records in CounselMore from any CRM the moment a new lead converts. No copy-pasting. Seamless pipeline from prospect to enrolled student.
• Silicon Valley TherapyminorOthersMental health and relationship support for counselors' clients. Specializes in neurodiversity, trauma-informed care, and digital addiction. Educational consulting-focused mental health partner.
• J&J Test PrepminorOthersPersonalized SAT and ACT preparation. Customized learning plans for students. Programs tailored to specific goals with proven strategies.
• LegalZoomminorOthersBusiness formation and legal document services. LLC, corporation setup, trademark filings. Exclusive savings for members starting or managing businesses.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• MaiaLearning: MaiaLearning is a K-12 college, career, and life readiness platform serving schools and districts. While primarily school-based, it overlaps with CounselMore's college list builder and career planning functionality.
• Xello: Xello (formerly Career Cruising) is a K-12 college and career planning platform used by schools globally. It addresses similar college discovery, planning, and application tracking workflows that CounselMore offers to IECs.
• Naviance (PowerSchool): Naviance is the dominant K-12 college and career readiness platform owned by PowerSchool, serving schools and districts at scale. While it targets school-based rather than independent counselors, it competes for the same college planning workflow and student record.

Direct peers

• BridgeU: BridgeU is a university and careers guidance platform for international schools and counselors, with predictive matching and application tracking. It addresses the same counselor-led college planning workflow with strong international school penetration.
• Cialfo: Cialfo is a college application and counseling platform with strong international presence, offering student profiles, application tracking, and counselor tools. It overlaps directly with CounselMore's app tracker and student portal.
• Scoir: Scoir is a college admissions platform connecting high schools, students, and colleges with application management, document storage, and discovery tools. It competes for the application tracking and college list workflow that CounselMore serves.
• CollegePlannerPro: CollegePlannerPro is a workflow and CRM platform built specifically for independent educational consultants, with student management, scheduling, and document sharing features. It is the closest direct peer to CounselMore within the IEC vertical.

Emerging players

• PrepScholar: PrepScholar is a test prep and admissions counseling provider offering online tutoring, test prep, and admissions advice. While more consumer-facing, it overlaps with the broader college admissions support ecosystem that CounselMore serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/counselmore
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/counselmore

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CounselMore