Primero

Primero is an open-source platform for protection casework, including child protection, gender-based violence, incident monitoring, and family tracing. It is best suited to humanitarian, development, and public-sector social services teams with the technical capacity or budget to support its deployment. Its configurable workflows and offline access are useful strengths, but the free route leaves substantial operational work to the organization.

Overview

Primero organizes protection work across identification, registration, assessment, planning, referrals and transfers, and case closure. Supervision, notifications, and tasking tools support work beyond the individual case record. Its three modules—CPIMS+, GBVIMS+, and MRMIMS+—address distinct protection programs, making it a more focused choice than a general-purpose case tracker.

Teams can configure forms, roles, lookups, reports, languages, logos, and locations through a self-service interface. That breadth makes it adaptable to different programs, but it also means implementation requires decisions about how the system should reflect local processes. Role-based permissions restrict access to sensitive data according to users’ need to know. Primero’s integrations are designed for auditable, safer data sharing and coordination; for example, ProGres v4 interoperability has separate setup, operating, and support costs determined for each implementation.

Key features

Case workflows: The coverage from identification through closure, with referrals, transfers, supervision, notifications, and tasking, fits teams managing ongoing protection cases rather than isolated intake.

Configurable records and reporting: Custom forms and fields, plus configurable reports and dashboards, let teams align data collection and oversight with program needs. That flexibility calls for capable configuration and governance.

Offline use: Primero v2 works as a progressive web app in modern mobile, tablet, and laptop browsers. Offline work is limited to creating cases and editing records already accessed during the session; changes are submitted after reconnecting. It is useful for intermittent connectivity, not a substitute for full offline access to all records and functions.

Languages: More than 40 languages are available out of the box, a practical advantage for programs serving multilingual teams or communities.

Support resources: The Support Hub offers documentation, knowledge-base articles, release information, training, technical guidance, and community access. These resources support self-management, but they do not remove the DIY tier’s responsibility for operating the system.

Pricing

Primero’s pricing ranges from a free self-managed tier to paid hosted and hybrid services. The distinction is not just price: it determines who runs production, handles maintenance, and provides ongoing support.

Tier 1: DIY — free: Open-source self-managed deployment with documentation and community support. It suits organizations with technical capacity and budgets for their own hosting and IT. Implementers must provide servers, security, DNS, configuration, updates, and support; the apparent zero price does not cover those operating costs.

Tier 3: Full Service SaaS — $8,250 a year: Includes UNICEF Azure-hosted demo and production sites, unlimited users and data volumes, deployment, operations, training, upgrades, and ongoing support. This is the clearest fit for organizations that want a provider-managed service and predictable annual pricing, though the cost is a substantial commitment.

Tier 4: Hybrid deployment — $25,000 a year: Costs $25,000 USD for the 1st year, then decreases to the cost listed in Tier 3 in the 2nd year and thereafter. Production is locally hosted, while the demo is hosted on UNICEF Azure. The partner manages production infrastructure, security, configuration, and maintenance, so this suits organizations that need locally hosted production and can fund a higher first year.

Tier 5: Custom package — custom pricing: Scoped case by case; it may include custom development, integrations, API development, extensions, or migrations. It is relevant when standard deployment does not cover the required work, but the cost depends on the package.

Tier 2: Single organization: Currently under development, with availability stated for July 2026. It is not a current choice for organizations selecting a plan now.

No seat or data-volume caps are stated for the free tier; the paid SaaS tier explicitly has no limits on users or data volumes. There is no trial term stated. The paid SaaS renewal price is stated as an annual amount, while the hybrid price changes after its first year.

Platforms

Primero supports Android, iOS, web, API, and self-hosted deployments. Its hybrid option combines locally hosted production with a UNICEF Azure-hosted demo; organizations should distinguish that arrangement from the fully hosted SaaS tier when deciding who will operate production.

Who it's for

Primero is aimed at protection professionals and humanitarian, development, and public-sector social services workers. It fits organizations that need structured protection workflows, configurable data collection, controlled access, and coordination across programs. The free tier is appropriate only where an organization can take on the technical and operational work; teams seeking hosted operations and ongoing support should budget for Tier 3 or consider whether Tier 4’s locally hosted production is necessary.

Pros and cons

Pro: Protection-specific workflows cover a case from identification to closure, with supervision, referrals, notifications, and tasking.

Pro: Self-service configuration across forms, roles, reports, languages, and locations helps programs adapt the system to their operating needs.

Pro: More than 40 languages and limited offline case creation and editing can support work across diverse settings and intermittent connectivity.

Con: DIY users must supply and maintain the full technical environment, including security and updates, as well as their own support and IT costs.

Con: Full Service SaaS starts at $8,250 a year, and the hybrid tier costs more in its first year, which may put supported deployment beyond smaller organizations’ budgets.

Con: Offline mode cannot edit records not already accessed during the session, limiting its usefulness when teams need broader offline case access.

Alternatives

For a broader set of nonprofit-focused options, see Nonprofit Case Management Software; for a wider category view, see Case Management Software.

CaseFlow is a paid option with Android, iOS, macOS, web, and Windows support. Its Base Package is $ 150 Monthly, or $1800/year, plus $1995 setup, and includes 2 users, 1 custom workflow, and unlimited cases; choose it when that defined small-team package suits better than Primero’s protection-focused deployment model.

Collaborate has Android, API, iOS, and web support, custom pricing based on organization size, user count, and modules, and no per-seat licensing fees. It may suit organizations prioritizing that pricing structure.

CareTogether CMS supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web, and Windows. Its AGPL-3.0 license requires hosted derivatives to make source code available under that license; consider it when those platform and licensing terms fit.

Neighbor Solutions is a paid option with Android, iOS, and web support, a free trial, and a $100/month starting price. Its plan includes unlimited neighbors and a help mobile app; it may fit teams seeking those terms instead.

SKAS supports Android, iOS, and web, with pricing available on request.

Case Amplify is a paid option with API and web support and a free trial.

CaseWorthy is a paid option with Android, API, iOS, and web support.

In-Form, developed by Homeless Link, is a freemium option for Android, iOS, and web. Its In-Form Essential plan is £165; it may suit organizations looking for a nonprofit-developed option with a free plan.

Verdict

Choose Primero if your organization manages protection cases and needs configurable, program-specific workflows with controlled access and a choice of self-managed, hosted, or locally hosted production. Its strongest case is the combination of protection-focused modules and flexible deployment. Look elsewhere if your team cannot operate the free tier and cannot justify the annual cost of supported hosting.