Clema vs Mainstay for admissions and enrollment
Mainstay is an established texting and chat platform for student engagement. Clema is an early-access website assistant that answers from your public pages and links to the source. Here is how they differ, using Mainstay's own public pages.
The short version
Mainstay is a mature engagement platform: proactive texting, web chat and live chat, two-way sync with Slate and Salesforce, and a services team that designs campaigns with you. Clema does a narrower job. It reads your public site and documents, answers visitors with a link to the page behind each answer, and says so when the site does not cover a question. It is early access and has no college customers yet. Lead capture and CRM delivery are in development; texting and live handoff are not available. If you need outreach and CRM sync now, Mainstay is ahead. If your gap is cited answers on your website and you can work with an early-access product, Clema is worth a test on your own pages.
Last reviewed November 2026
What Mainstay is
Mainstay, which began as AdmitHub, is a student engagement platform for enrollment, persistence and completion; Mainstay says over 225 institutions partner with it. It reaches students by SMS text messaging, live chat, web chat and social media, and adds a copilot for staff and insight dashboards. In March 2026 Lemnis, a nonprofit public charity, announced its acquisition of Mainstay, which becomes a division of Lemnis.1,2,10,12
Clema is an early-access website assistant: it reads your public site and answers visitors with a link to the page behind each answer.
At a glance
Each Mainstay cell links to the public page it came from. Each Clema cell shows where that feature stands today.
| Feature | Mainstay | Clema |
|---|---|---|
| Website assistant | ||
| Learns from your website | Knowledge Sources: enter a base URL and the bot finds the rest. Irrelevant pages can be removed, and sources can be re-run to pick up changes.4 | BuiltCrawls site pages plus PDFs, Office files and calendars. Built in the engine and proven on one K-12 district; unproven on college sites, and long PDFs are only read up to about the first 12,000 characters today. |
| Staff-approved answers | Generative answers draw on approved Knowledge Base answers and added Knowledge Sources, with a human in the loop. The tool suggests a response when staff create or edit an answer.4vendor claim | Not availableAdmin-written priority answers are not available yet. Answers come from your published pages and documents. |
| Source link shown with each answer | Not found on public pages | BuiltEach factual answer links to the page or document it came from, in the engine and the demo widget. |
| Questions the content does not cover | Generative answers stay within approved Knowledge Base answers and Knowledge Sources you provide. When a conversation turns sensitive or too complex, the chatbot collects contact details so staff can follow up.4,3vendor claim | BuiltSays plainly when your site does not cover the question. |
| Deadlines, fees, events and contacts as structured facts | Not found on public pages | BuiltExtracted with dates and sources in the engine. Proven on one K-12 district; quality on college sites is unproven. |
| Refreshing content | Knowledge Sources can be re-run to pick up changes. The page does not say whether this can be scheduled.4 | In developmentRe-reads only changed pages when run. Scheduled re-crawl is in development. |
| Languages | Web chat answers in more than 100 languages.3vendor claim | Not availableEnglish only today. Other languages are not available yet. |
| Channels | SMS text messaging, live chat, web chat and social media.1,2 | Demo-gradeA website chat widget. It is demo-grade today. |
| Branding on your site | Add your logo, choose the color palette and set your preferred style and text.3 | Demo-gradeShort script embed with your name, colors and starter questions. Domain allow-list and CMS plugins are not built. |
| Analytics | Insight Dashboards and sentiment analysis across conversations.2 | In developmentConversation analytics and an unanswered-question report are in development. |
| Lead capture | ||
| Contact capture in the chat | Collects contact details when a conversation needs staff, and builds user profiles from web chat conversations.3 | In developmentLead capture with consent is in development. Nothing is collected today. |
| CRM and SIS sync | Two-way sync with Slate and Salesforce, with multiple Slate syncs per day. Also lists HubSpot, Ellucian, PeopleSoft, Oracle, Canvas, Blackboard, EAB and others, plus API and SFTP.5,6,7 | In developmentCRM delivery is in development, not live. No SIS connection. |
| Proactive texting campaigns | Proactive SMS outreach; the platform says 70% of learner texts come in reply to a proactive text.2vendor claim | Not availableNo texting or outbound messaging. |
| Help desk | ||
| Hand off to a person | Staff follow up by phone, email or in person after the chatbot collects contact details. AI-assisted live chat helps staff answer live.3,4 | Not availableNo live human handoff. It is not available yet. |
| Pointing visitors to the right office | Not found on public pages | In developmentOffice contacts are already extracted from the site. Choosing the right office and showing its hours is in development. |
| Staff copilot | Conversation Copilot, a copilot for staff, pitched as reclaiming staff time so they spend more time helping.2vendor claim | Not availableNo staff copilot for the website assistant. |
| Ticketing or case queue | Not found on public pages | Not availableNo ticketing or case queue. |
| Setup and pricing | ||
| Setup and services | Expert Services: a dedicated specialist, a communication roadmap, and campaigns designed and sent with you, with performance reports.9 | BuiltBuilt: in early access our team crawls and sets up your site with you, and you review sample answers from your own pages first. Self-serve setup is in development. |
| Published pricing | No prices listed. The site offers a personalized demo or a consultation.1,2 | Not availableNo published pricing. Early access terms are discussed one to one. |
| Data and compliance | ||
| Security practices | Customer data encrypted at rest (AES) and in transit (TLS 1.2), hosted on AWS, with third-party audits and penetration tests.8vendor claim | Not availableNo SOC 2 or other certification for this product. We go through data handling terms with you before anything is installed. |
| FERPA | Not found on public pages | BuiltFERPA-aware design: reads public pages only and has no access to student records. Not certified. |
| AI model provider named | Not found on public pages | BuiltUses OpenAI models to process page text and write answers, disclosed up front. |
| Personal details typed by visitors | Personally identifiable details are removed from incoming messages before the language model sees them.4vendor claim | Not availableAutomatic redaction of personal details typed by visitors is not built yet. |
Website assistant
Learns from your website
- Mainstay
- Knowledge Sources: enter a base URL and the bot finds the rest. Irrelevant pages can be removed, and sources can be re-run to pick up changes.4
- Clema
- BuiltCrawls site pages plus PDFs, Office files and calendars. Built in the engine and proven on one K-12 district; unproven on college sites, and long PDFs are only read up to about the first 12,000 characters today.
Staff-approved answers
- Mainstay
- Generative answers draw on approved Knowledge Base answers and added Knowledge Sources, with a human in the loop. The tool suggests a response when staff create or edit an answer.4vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableAdmin-written priority answers are not available yet. Answers come from your published pages and documents.
Source link shown with each answer
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- BuiltEach factual answer links to the page or document it came from, in the engine and the demo widget.
Questions the content does not cover
Deadlines, fees, events and contacts as structured facts
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- BuiltExtracted with dates and sources in the engine. Proven on one K-12 district; quality on college sites is unproven.
Refreshing content
- Mainstay
- Knowledge Sources can be re-run to pick up changes. The page does not say whether this can be scheduled.4
- Clema
- In developmentRe-reads only changed pages when run. Scheduled re-crawl is in development.
Languages
- Mainstay
- Web chat answers in more than 100 languages.3vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableEnglish only today. Other languages are not available yet.
Channels
- Clema
- Demo-gradeA website chat widget. It is demo-grade today.
Branding on your site
- Mainstay
- Add your logo, choose the color palette and set your preferred style and text.3
- Clema
- Demo-gradeShort script embed with your name, colors and starter questions. Domain allow-list and CMS plugins are not built.
Analytics
- Mainstay
- Insight Dashboards and sentiment analysis across conversations.2
- Clema
- In developmentConversation analytics and an unanswered-question report are in development.
Lead capture
Contact capture in the chat
- Mainstay
- Collects contact details when a conversation needs staff, and builds user profiles from web chat conversations.3
- Clema
- In developmentLead capture with consent is in development. Nothing is collected today.
CRM and SIS sync
Proactive texting campaigns
- Mainstay
- Proactive SMS outreach; the platform says 70% of learner texts come in reply to a proactive text.2vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableNo texting or outbound messaging.
Help desk
Hand off to a person
Pointing visitors to the right office
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- In developmentOffice contacts are already extracted from the site. Choosing the right office and showing its hours is in development.
Staff copilot
- Mainstay
- Conversation Copilot, a copilot for staff, pitched as reclaiming staff time so they spend more time helping.2vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableNo staff copilot for the website assistant.
Ticketing or case queue
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- Not availableNo ticketing or case queue.
Setup and pricing
Setup and services
- Mainstay
- Expert Services: a dedicated specialist, a communication roadmap, and campaigns designed and sent with you, with performance reports.9
- Clema
- BuiltBuilt: in early access our team crawls and sets up your site with you, and you review sample answers from your own pages first. Self-serve setup is in development.
Published pricing
- Clema
- Not availableNo published pricing. Early access terms are discussed one to one.
Data and compliance
Security practices
- Mainstay
- Customer data encrypted at rest (AES) and in transit (TLS 1.2), hosted on AWS, with third-party audits and penetration tests.8vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableNo SOC 2 or other certification for this product. We go through data handling terms with you before anything is installed.
FERPA
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- BuiltFERPA-aware design: reads public pages only and has no access to student records. Not certified.
AI model provider named
- Mainstay
- Not found on public pages
- Clema
- BuiltUses OpenAI models to process page text and write answers, disclosed up front.
Personal details typed by visitors
- Mainstay
- Personally identifiable details are removed from incoming messages before the language model sees them.4vendor claim
- Clema
- Not availableAutomatic redaction of personal details typed by visitors is not built yet.
Where Mainstay is ahead today
- Outreach. Mainstay texts students proactively and works across SMS, live chat, web chat and social media. Clema answers on your website and sends nothing.1,2
- CRM and SIS integration. Two-way Slate and Salesforce sync is live on Mainstay, along with a long list of SIS, LMS and CRM connectors. Clema has no CRM delivery yet.5,6,7
- Getting a person involved. The chatbot collects contact details for staff follow-up, and staff can answer live with AI help. Clema has no handoff today.3,4
- Languages. Mainstay says its web chat answers in more than 100 languages. Clema is English only.3vendor claim
- Privacy and security documentation. Mainstay publishes encryption at rest and in transit, AWS hosting, third-party audits and penetration tests, and says personal details are removed before messages reach the language model. Clema does not redact visitor details yet and holds no certification for this product.8,4vendor claim
- Staff control of answers. Mainstay has an approved Knowledge Base with suggested responses when staff write or edit answers. Clema's admin-written answers are not available yet.4vendor claim
- Services and reporting. A dedicated specialist, campaign design, Insight Dashboards and sentiment analysis.9,2
- Track record. Mainstay says over 225 institutions partner with it, and its outcomes page cites randomized controlled trials with Georgia State on summer melt, early registration and FAFSA filing. Clema has no college customers yet.10,11vendor claim
Where Clema differs
A source link with every answer
Each factual answer links to the page or document it came from, so a prospective student can check it and your team can see why the assistant said it. Built in the engine and the demo widget, tested on one K-12 district.
Says when your site is silent
If your pages do not cover a question, Clema says so rather than filling the gap. On a self-built set of 50 questions on one K-12 district site, scored by an AI judge, it passed all 50. It has not been measured on a college site, and answers can still be incomplete or wrong.
Reads documents as well as pages
PDFs, Office files and calendars are read along with web pages, and deadlines, fees, events and contacts are pulled out with their dates. Proven on a K-12 corpus; college quality is unproven. Scanned PDFs cannot be read yet.
Designed to sit next to your CRM
Clema is a website layer, not a CRM or texting platform. Sending conversation details and leads into your CRM is in development, not live.
Which one fits
Choose Mainstay if
- You want to text admitted students and run proactive campaigns on things like FAFSA and registration.
- You need two-way sync with Slate, Salesforce or your SIS today.
- You want SMS, web chat and live chat in one platform, with a copilot for staff.
- You want a services team to plan and run your messaging with you.
- You need answers in many languages now.
Choose Clema if
- Your main gap is answering questions on your public website, with a link to the page behind each answer.
- You want the assistant to read your PDFs and documents along with your pages, and to say plainly when the site has no answer.
- You already have a CRM or texting platform and want a website layer next to it.
- You want our team to run setup and walk you through sample answers from your own pages.
- You are comfortable with an early-access product where lead capture and CRM delivery are still in development and live handoff is not available yet.
Using both
They can sit side by side: Mainstay for texting, campaigns and CRM sync, Clema for cited answers on your public pages. If both run a web chat, decide which pages get which widget so visitors do not see two chat bubbles. Clema cannot pass conversations into Mainstay or your CRM today.
Clema vs Mainstay: common questions
Neither publishes prices. Mainstay's site offers a personalized demo or a consultation. Clema's website assistant is in early access, and terms are discussed one to one. Ask each vendor for a current quote.
Do not take either on faith. Mainstay says its generative answers draw on approved Knowledge Base answers and sources you add, with a human in the loop. Clema links each answer to its source and says when your site does not cover a question. Its 50 of 50 result comes from a self-built set of questions on one K-12 district, scored by an AI judge, not a college, and it has made mistakes in demos, such as an outdated job title. The fairest test is to ask both to answer questions from your own site.
Not today. CRM delivery is in development, not live. Clema reads public pages only and has no SIS connection. Mainstay lists two-way Slate and Salesforce sync and connectors for systems such as Ellucian, PeopleSoft, Oracle and Canvas.
Mainstay's security page describes encryption at rest and in transit, AWS hosting, and third-party audits and penetration tests, and its Firefly AI page says personal details are removed before messages reach the language model. Clema has a FERPA-aware design: it reads public pages only and has no access to student records. It uses OpenAI models, holds no SOC 2 or other certification for this product, and does not yet redact personal details visitors type. We walk through data handling terms with you before anything is installed.
Mainstay offers Expert Services with a dedicated specialist and campaign design. With Clema, our team runs setup with you during early access: we check how your site is built, then you review sample answers from your own pages before anything goes on your site. Self-serve setup is in development.
If you rely on Mainstay for texting, campaigns, live chat or CRM sync, Clema cannot replace that today. A more realistic path is to keep Mainstay for outreach and test Clema on your public website, then decide which tool answers which pages.
No. Clema does not send texts, and it answers in English only today. Mainstay lists SMS as a core channel and says its web chat answers in more than 100 languages.
Sources
Every statement about another product links to one of these pages.
- 1.Mainstay: homepage, accessed 2026-11-06
- 2.Mainstay: student success coaching and engagement platform, accessed 2026-11-06
- 3.Mainstay: web chat, accessed 2026-11-06
- 4.Mainstay: Firefly AI, accessed 2026-11-06
- 5.Mainstay: integrations, accessed 2026-11-06
- 6.Mainstay: Slate integration, accessed 2026-11-06
- 7.Mainstay: Salesforce integration, accessed 2026-11-06
- 8.Mainstay: security, accessed 2026-11-06
- 9.Mainstay: Expert Services, accessed 2026-11-06
- 10.Mainstay: research partners, accessed 2026-11-06
- 11.Mainstay: evidence-based outcomes, accessed 2026-11-06
- 12.Lemnis press release on acquiring Mainstay (PR Newswire, March 2026), accessed 2026-11-06
Competitor details come from their public pages on the date shown. Product names are trademarks of their owners. Spot something out of date? Email us at [email protected].
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