# Planful vs Cube: which do AI models recommend for FP&A platforms, October 2026

Finance AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, FP&A platforms. Two of fourteen models named Planful first on the direct prompt; two named Cube. Page: https://finance-ai-index.com/planning/fpa-platforms/planful-vs-cube/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Planful | 20% | #1 of 18 | 18% | 60 | 14 of 14 |
| Cube | 7% | #4 of 18 | 16% | 51 | 13 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- GPT-5.4 mini: planful first (first choices: Planful) (alternatives: Pigment, Vena)
- Perplexity Sonar: planful first (first choices: Abacum, Planful) (alternatives: Vena, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: cube first (first choices: Aleph, Cube) (alternatives: Pigment, Prophix, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Kimi K2: cube first (first choices: Cube) (alternatives: Aleph, Datarails, Drivetrain, Jirav, Vena)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Vena) (alternatives: Aleph, Bob Finance, Cube, Pigment, Planful)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: Vena) (alternatives: Centage, Cube, Datarails, Planful)
- Mistral Small: neither first, one named (first choices: Centage) (alternatives: Abacum, Drivetrain, Planful, Prophix, Vena)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Datarails, Drivetrain) (alternatives: Cube, Jirav, Planful, Prophix, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Vena) (alternatives: Aleph, Cube, Planful)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: Abacum, Drivetrain) (alternatives: Cube, Vena)
- GPT-6 Luna: neither first, one named (first choices: Abacum) (alternatives: Planful, Vena)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: neither first, one named (first choices: Pigment) (alternatives: Abacum, Aleph, Centage, Cube, Datarails, Planful, Vena)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named
- MiniMax M2.5: neither named (first choices: Vena) (alternatives: Drivetrain, Parse)

## What the models said about Planful

- "Another enterprise-grade solution that may be unnecessarily complex and expensive for smaller teams." (Mistral Small, negative prompt, hard negative)
- "Planful, Pigment, and Oracle Essbase generated the most negative feedback overall" (Claude Haiku 4.5, negative prompt, hard negative)
- "should be avoided or approached with caution... 3. Planful" (Llama 4 Maverick, negative prompt, hard negative)

## What the models said about Cube

- "Options to Avoid on a Limited Budget ... Cube — Starts around $1,250–$2,000/month" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, budget prompt, hard negative)
- "These are usually priced per *user*... For 10+ users, the cost will escalate rapidly" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, budget prompt, soft negative)
- "Best for: Lean finance teams ($20M–$150M in revenue) looking for rapid implementation... exceptionally fast "time-to-first-forecast"" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "Cube is the strongest default recommendation because it is repeatedly positioned as the best small-business FP&A option" (Perplexity Sonar, budget prompt, first choice)

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. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.