MarkLayer

Feedbucket vs MarkLayer

By Vadym Rusin · Last updated: September 2026

MarkLayer and Feedbucket solve website feedback from opposite ends of who installs what. Feedbucket is a script you add once to a site you own, and from then on a feedback button lives there permanently: any visitor or client can trigger it, capture an annotated screenshot or video, and have it routed straight into one of 16-plus trackers. MarkLayer has no script and nothing to add to a site, because the page being annotated doesn't have to belong to you at all.

That one constraint, the script must be installed on the site, is the real dividing line, not price. It's a non-issue for a team reviewing its own product, where Feedbucket's standing widget and deep tracker routing genuinely earn the $49-89/month. It becomes a hard wall the moment the page in question is a client's production site you don't control, a competitor's checkout flow, or any third-party tool you need to annotate without asking someone else to add a script tag for you. MarkLayer's Chrome extension sidesteps the whole question: it overlays whatever the browser can already render, permission or not.

So the honest framing isn't "MarkLayer is the free Feedbucket," it's that they're built for opposite relationships to the site being reviewed. Own the site and want permanent visitor-facing intake: Feedbucket. Need to annotate a page you don't control, or don't want a script living there at all: MarkLayer, for free.

Bottom line

Choose MarkLayer to annotate any page, including sites you don't control, for free with no script install. Choose Feedbucket if you want a permanent feedback widget living on your own site with screenshot/video capture and native routing into 16+ trackers.

At a glance

FeatureMarkLayerFeedbucket
PriceFree, no tiersPro $49/month (2 members, 5 projects); Business $89/month; 14-day trial, no free plan
SetupInstall the extension once; works on every pageAdd a JavaScript snippet to each site you review
Works on sites you don't controlYesNo. The script must be installed on the site
Reviewer accountsNone, either sideUnlimited client reporters without accounts
CaptureAnnotations on the live pageAnnotated screenshots and video recordings
Console logsNoYes, on Business and up
Real-time live cursorsYesNo
IntegrationsNone. Paste the share linkJira, Linear, GitHub, GitLab, Asana, ClickUp, Trello, Basecamp, Monday, Notion, Slack, Zapier, webhooks
AI coding agent access (MCP)Yes. Live watch, acknowledge, resolve, replyNo
Open sourceYes (Apache-2.0)No
Best forAd-hoc feedback on any URLStanding feedback intake on sites you run

About Feedbucket

Feedbucket is a paid feedback widget you install on your own site with one line of JavaScript, capturing annotated screenshots and video from reviewers.

About MarkLayer

MarkLayer is a free, open-source web app for annotating any live webpage. Paste a URL atmarklayer.app and draw, comment, arrow, or highlight directly on the page in your browser — no install, no account, no sign-up. Share a single link and anyone can open the annotations in any browser. A free Chrome extension is available for the sites the web app cannot embed, such as pages behind a login, but it is optional and never required to view a share link. There is no paywall and no trial period.

Feedbucket's one-line install is honest positioning: it lives on sites you own. That's exactly the boundary MarkLayer doesn't have. A client's production site, a competitor's checkout, a page you'll never get a script tag onto: point the extension at it and annotate.

When to choose MarkLayer

When to choose Feedbucket

Frequently asked questions

Is MarkLayer a free Feedbucket alternative?
For annotating pages, yes, and it reaches pages Feedbucket can't (anything without the script installed). It does not replicate Feedbucket's tracker integrations, video capture, or console logs.
Does Feedbucket have a free plan?
No. As of August 2026 Feedbucket offers a 14-day trial, then Pro at $49/month ($39/month billed yearly) with 2 team members and 5 active projects, or Business at $89/month ($72/month yearly) with 25 members and unlimited projects.
Widget or extension: which model fits my workflow?
A widget suits standing intake: reviewers land on your site and the feedback button is already there. An extension suits ad-hoc review: you can open any URL and start annotating without touching the site's code. Many agencies need the second model for pages they don't host.
Do clients need an account with either tool?
No on both. Feedbucket allows unlimited client reporters without accounts on sites running its script. MarkLayer needs no accounts for anyone, on any page.
What's the actual cost of standing feedback intake versus ad-hoc review?
Feedbucket bills for the widget staying installed and ready, $49/month for Pro's 2 members and 5 projects, whether or not anyone leaves feedback that month. MarkLayer has no equivalent standing cost because there's no widget living anywhere; the tool only enters the picture at the moment someone opens a URL to annotate it. That makes MarkLayer cheaper for occasional or unpredictable review, and Feedbucket's model better suited to a site that expects a steady stream of visitor feedback.

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Try MarkLayer

Paste any URL at marklayer.app and annotate the live page in your browser. No install, no account, no sign-up. Recipients of your share links don't need to install anything either.

Annotate a page

Or add the free Chrome extension for sites the web app cannot embed, such as pages behind a login.