How to price against competitors without starting a race to the bottom

Rarely. First work out why they cut. Most cuts are a sign of a problem on their side or a temporary share grab, neither of which you should fund. Respond with packaging changes before touching your list price, and only match when you are provably losing deals on price alone.

Public sources are usually enough: review platforms often include price ranges, community threads discuss quotes, and competitors' own comparison pages sometimes reveal them. Record the range and the source, and mark it as unconfirmed. Do not misrepresent yourself to obtain a quote.

Neither is better in general. Higher works when you have a provable difference customers will pay for. Lower works when you have a real cost advantage. Pricing at the market rate works when you compete on something other than price. The wrong answer is having no reason for where you sit.

Review quarterly, change when the review shows a reason: a shift in the market anchors, a clear pattern in your win and loss data, or a change in what your product delivers. Annual changes are common and fine. Monthly changes are a warning sign.

Publish the numbers, show the most expensive tier prominently as an anchor, make the middle tier the clear default, state exactly what each tier includes, and date the page. Clear, published, dated pricing converts self-serve buyers and gets cited accurately by AI answer engines.