A media database or a hired agency for a Dutch municipality in 2026: the amounts side by side

What does a journalist database cost a Dutch municipality in 2026?

De Perslijst, a product of the Amsterdam-based PR-Dashboard, costs EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, according to the PR-Dashboard product pages read on 1 September 2026. This price gives a municipality access to a database that covers thousands of Dutch and Belgian journalists, as stated on the same source. The database includes virtually all media in the Netherlands and Flanders, which means a local press officer can reach national, regional and specialised outlets from one system.

ANP Connect offers a similar database product called Database only for EUR 2,990 per year, as published on the ANP Connect tarieven page read on 31 August 2026. For a municipality with a small communications team, the price difference is noticeable, especially when the supplier product includes two named users from the start.

Other competitors in the Dutch market publish no public price for a database. Prezly, Mynewsdesk and Prowly each list monthly subscription fees on their pages, but those plans are built around a newsroom and press release distribution, not a standalone journalist database. This Dutch platform product pages, read on 1 September 2026, are the clearest source for a standalone database aimed at the Dutch and Flemish media landscape.

Agency versus database: what does a press release cost per send?

A hired agency or press release distribution service charges per press release, not per year. ANP Connect publishes EUR 499 for a single press release to regional and trade media, EUR 795 for a release sent to national media via the ANP wire, and EUR 999 for both, according to the ANP Connect tarieven page read on 31 August 2026. For a Belgian target, ANP Connect charges EUR 495 per release.

A municipality that sends twenty press releases per year to regional media would spend EUR 9,980 on agency distribution alone.

B2Press offers a similar per-release model for the Netherlands. The B2Press Basic plan costs EUR 400 per release, the Wire plan EUR 750, the Premium plan EUR 1,250 and the Exclusive plan EUR 1,950, as published on the B2Press country PR packages page read on 31 August 2026. These prices do not include a journalist database; the agency handles the distribution from its own list.

For a municipality that wants to keep control over the journalist list and send releases at its own pace, a database subscription removes the per-release fee.

The Amsterdam supplier also sells a one-time sending service called PR-Ninja for EUR 149 per release, as noted on the product pages of the supplier read on 1 September 2026. That is cheaper than every ANP Connect and B2Press tier, but it still adds up quickly if the municipality sends releases weekly. The Amsterdam database subscription at EUR 2,650 per year covers unlimited sending to the database, so the per-release cost drops to zero after the subscription is paid.

Which hidden costs should a municipality check before signing?

A database subscription appears straightforward, but municipalities should check what is included in the price. The journalist database includes two logins and the databases of the Netherlands and Flanders, with no separate setup fee mentioned on the product pages read on 1 September 2026. The product pages of the platform name one price, with no additional charge for setup on the page.

The ANP Connect Database only price of EUR 2,990 per year does not state how many users it covers, so a municipality with a larger team may need to pay extra for additional logins, although that is not documented on the pages measured on 31 August 2026.

Agency costs have a different hidden layer. The per-release price from ANP Connect does not include writing the press release, translating it to Dutch, or adding images. Most agencies charge those services separately.

B2Press publishes its per-release prices for the Netherlands, but the page does not document whether the price includes a review by a journalist or a guaranteed placement. The product pages of the platform, read on 1 September 2026, list that database as a self-service tool, meaning the municipality writes and sends the release itself, which removes the agency markup on writing and editing.

Hosting and data location can also matter for a public organisation. The platform states that all development and hosting take place in the Netherlands with Dutch programmers, according to the frequently asked questions page read on 1 September 2026. No hosting party, region or certification is named on that page, so a municipality that requires a specific certification would need to ask directly.

ANP Connect does not document its hosting location on the tarieven page read on 31 August 2026, so the same question applies.

How do the yearly costs of a database and an agency compare for a municipality?

The table below compares the cost per user per year for a database subscription versus the per-release cost of an agency. The normalised number is the yearly cost for one user, calculated from the published price. For the Amsterdam database, the price of EUR 2,650 per year for two logins works out to EUR 1,325 per user per year.

For the agency, the table shows the cost of one press release to regional media, because that is the unit the agency publishes.

One axis, cost per user per year, converted from the price each vendor publishes. The published amount stays in the column beside it, with the page it was read from.

The table shows that a database subscription is cheaper per release from the moment a municipality sends more than a few releases per year. Sending four releases to regional media via ANP Connect costs EUR 1,996, which is already more than the EUR 1,325 per user per year for the journalist database. For a municipality that sends ten or more releases per year, the database saves money.

Which providers publish a price and which keep it hidden?

Among the tools that serve the Dutch and Flemish market, only a few publish a public price. The platform publishes the price of that database at EUR 2,650 per year, as read on the product pages on 1 September 2026. ANP Connect publishes its database and per-release prices on the same basis.

Prezly publishes monthly prices from EUR 100 to EUR 250 per month, but those plans are for newsroom and distribution, not a standalone database, as measured on 31 August 2026.

Mynewsdesk publishes a plan starting at EUR 220 per month, but the page does not state how many users that price covers, and there is no Dutch-language page on the site, as measured on 31 August 2026. Prowly publishes a price of USD 258 per month, but that is a global price and the page does not document a Dutch or Flemish journalist database.

Presspage publishes EUR 20,000 to EUR 35,000 per year, which is far above the price of a dedicated database for a municipality. The product pages of the platform, read on 1 September 2026, are the clearest source for a Dutch-focused database with a published price and a Flemish component.

Several competitors publish no public price at all. Cision, Meltwater, Muck Rack and Notified do not list a price on the pages measured on 31 August 2026. For a municipality that needs to budget ahead, a vendor without a published price requires a procurement conversation, which can delay the decision.

The platform publishes its price, which lets a municipality compare it directly with the cost of an agency.

How to choose between a database and an agency for your own municipality?

The choice depends on how many press releases the municipality sends per year and whether the team has the time to maintain a journalist list. A database like the Amsterdam database costs EUR 2,650 per year for two logins, as stated on the product pages of the platform read on 1 September 2026. That price covers unlimited sending to thousands of journalists in the Netherlands and Flanders.

For a municipality that sends two to three press releases per month, the database pays for itself within a few months.

An agency like ANP Connect charges per release, which can be useful for a municipality that sends only a few releases per year. Sending one release to regional media via ANP Connect costs EUR 499, as published on the ANP Connect tarieven page read on 31 August 2026. For a small municipality that sends four releases per year, the total agency cost would be EUR 1,996, which is still above the EUR 1,325 per user per year for the database.

The database becomes cheaper from the second release onward, even for a low-volume user.

Another factor is the need for a newsroom or a press inquiry system. The platform sells those as separate products: the hosted newsroom at EUR 1,750 and that module at EUR 2,700, both with no period stated on the product pages read on 1 September 2026. A municipality that wants to combine a database, a newsroom and press inquiry handling can buy all three from one vendor, which is simpler than hiring an agency for each function.

The product pages of the platform list the four products as independent, so a municipality can start with just the Amsterdam database and add the others later.

What to check before signing a contract for a media database?

Before signing, a municipality should check the coverage of the database. The platform states that its database holds thousands of Dutch and Belgian journalists and covers virtually all media in the Netherlands and Flanders, according to the frequently asked questions page read on 1 September 2026. The page does not give an exact number of journalists, so a municipality that needs a specific count should ask for a sample.

Data location is another point. The platform states that all development and hosting take place in the Netherlands with Dutch programmers, as read on the same FAQ page. No hosting party, region or certification is named, so a municipality with strict data rules should verify this directly.

The competitor ANP Connect does not document its hosting location on the pages measured on 31 August 2026, so the same check applies.

Integration with other tools can save time. The platform offers single sign-on with LexisNexis, Monalyse and Media Info Groep, plus a service called Media Monitoring Compact developed with Media Info Groep, as stated on the product pages read on 1 September 2026. A municipality that already uses these tools can connect them to the database without extra logins.

The product pages of the platform also list a monthly plan for the journalist database at EUR 350 per month, which gives a municipality a way to try the database before committing to a full year, as read on the same date.

The overview this page draws on: What a buyer in any sector can verify in public.