The Shortlist vol. 3

Faye vs. Duckbill, my honest review

There’s a silent category of stress that every mom, founder, and working woman feels.

It’s not the work itself. It’s the decisions. The constant delegation. The recurring calendar clean-up. The birthday RSVPs and missing soccer cleats and “do we need a new air filter?” kind of mental clutter that chips away at your focus every day.

If you don’t have an EA at work, how many times have you caught yourself thinking how nice that must be? And even if you do, most can’t actually help with the stuff that takes up real estate in your brain at home.

This fall, I ran an experiment: Could I buy back that bandwidth?

I tested two platforms, Faye and Duckbill, both built to do exactly that. On the surface, they appear similar. But I wanted to see how they hold up in real life. And while I was offered free trials to test both platforms, this review is entirely based on my experience using them to manage the chaos of everyday life.

Both have graciously extended extra discounts for my community (scroll to the bottom for codes).

I also had the chance to meet members of both teams and want to start by acknowledging the founders: Meghan Joyce of Duckbill and Emily King of Faye, two ambitious moms who saw a massive gap in support and decided to build something to fix it. Having the idea is one thing. Taking action on it is a whole different game. We can all learn something from both of them.

TLDR: Both platforms are valuable. But for very different reasons.

If you’re considering outsourcing some of your mental load this year (and I think you should), here’s my honest comparison of Duckbill vs. Faye, broken down into four categories that actually matter.

1. Task Scope & Execution

Faye: Feels like hiring a smart, high-EQ personal assistant

This is hands-on, human, nuanced support. From day one, I was matched with a dedicated Family Advisor. They aim to match you with someone in or near your region, which helps with things like restaurant recs, local kids’ activities, and in some markets where advisors are literally in your neighborhood, they can do in person tasks like returns or gift wrapping.

She very much owned that “I’m here to help you” mentality. She remembered things I didn’t even expect her to keep track of. One week she texted:

“I see some fun spirit days coming up on the calendar for Willow! Does she have everything she needs for those days?”

That level of thoughtfulness, the kind that’s proactive, not reactive, is very valuable.

Real Faye tasks I submitted:

• Researched and signed up my daughter for dance lessons

• Planned my birthday dinner: booked the venue and handled menu selections

• Researched and booked a kids’ birthday party venue

• Uploaded and organized destination research in Wanderlog (my preferred travel app) for upcoming travel

• Planned a weekend of kid-friendly activities during a trip

• Found and booked Pilates classes while we were out of town

• Paid outstanding medical bills on my behalf

• Helped with data entry in Sheets for my business

• Listed a pair of shoes on Poshmark, including account setup, pricing, listing, and comment management

What stood out: This wasn’t just about efficiency. It was about connection, personalization and continuity. She knew my preferences (or asked clarifying questions) and was often one step ahead of me. Also important to note, your Faye Advisor CAN help with business related tasks (to an extent, i.e. office furniture research, client gifts, team event planning, vendor research, but she isn’t an accountant).

Duckbill: The dispatch desk for your life

Duckbill feels like a “platform” rather than a personal, relationship-based assistant. You don’t know who’s working on your task. That’s the point.

You submit a request in the app, “Bill” (their AI) steps in immediately with clarifying questions to get all your preferences laid out, and then someone executes. No relationship-building. No memory. Just output.

Real Duckbill tasks I submitted:

• Found a medical specialist who accepted my insurance

• Researched and booked after-school activities for my son

• Helped with kids’ birthday party planning:

  • Sourced decorations

  • Found materials for a themed craft

  • Secured a rental generator

  • Purchased party favors

• Made hard-to-get dinner reservations in Europe

• Researched and booked a hotel for a trip

• Booked summer camps

• Scheduled swim lessons

• Submitted a claim for flight delay compensation

• Created a list of Michelin restaurants for an upcoming trip

• Calendared… a lot. Added school events, sports, social events, and trip details across multiple calendars

What stood out: Efficiency! Tasks that I would’ve put off for weeks got handled within 24–48 hours without me needing to engage further. Ones that required follow up i.e. a dinner reservation that only opened 30 days in advance, they set internal reminders and followed up on promptly without me needing to remind them. And the endless, free calendaring was REALLY helpful (like way more helpful than I realized, and I missed it once I stopped using the platform). Important to note Duckbill cannot do business-related requests.

2. Ease of Use

Faye: Feels like texting your COO

You kick off with a 1:1 onboarding call with your Faye Advisor (this does count against your time). You communicate directly with your Family Advisor by text, voice note, email, phone or Faye’s app (both desktop or mobile).

Over time, your advisor learns what you like and how you think. You spend less and less time giving instructions.

⚠️ You do need to watch your hours.
I’ve found myself wondering if a 3-email back-and-forth was worth the 15 minutes it logged. Time does go by fast. That mental math can create a bit of hesitation about whether to ask for support, especially on smaller plans.

Duckbill: Fast, structured, no-nonsense

You submit a task through the app or by forwarding an email. The AI asks questions immediately, filling in the gaps. Then the right person on their team picks it up.

They’re not pretending to be a personal, know your life story, type of assistant. They just get it done.

⚠️ Which means… no one remembers you. Every task is a blank slate. That works great for clean admin, but requires you to be way more specific up front for tasks that require context or tone (like gifting for your husband or meeting your ‘only pink dress” phase kid’s summer wardrobe refresh shopping).

3. Privacy & Customization

Faye: Feels like a family office

• Your advisor is background-checked and U.S.-based

• You build a secure Family Hub with allergies, sizes, travel preferences, service vendors, etc.

• Sensitive info (passports, SSNs, garage codes) is stored in a hidden “vault”

• The customization comes from continuity. The longer you work together, the more she can do without re-confirming details

Duckbill: Secure and systemized

• No consistent person = no long-term memory

• Tasks are completed by a rotating team based on availability and expertise

• Unclear where these behind-the-scenes humans are actually based

• You can submit sensitive info for specific tasks, but it’s not stored unless you request it

• The privacy policy is standard for tech start-ups

4. Cost

This is where the two platforms diverge most, not just in price, but in how value is measured.

Faye (hour-based)

An annual investment at 8/hrs a month (which is optimal IMO) is nearly $3600. At the lowest tier an annual investment is roughly $2000.

You’re billed based on how long each task takes. Those proactive reminders and syncs to check-in count against your hours. The longer your list or the more complex the ask, the faster those hours disappear.

✅ Great if you want a thought partner

🚫 Less ideal if you have lots of fast-moving admin tasks

Tasks timing can be expected as:

• Short (15–30 min): Flower delivery, dinner reservations, gift buying, appointment rescheduling

• Medium (30–60 min): Registering kids for sports, booking travel, handyman research

• Long (1 hr+): Vacation itinerary planning, party coordination, ongoing meal planning

Duckbill (task-based)

An annual investment at the Household plan (which is optimal IMO) is roughly $2000, which is the same investment level at Faye’s lowest tier. At the lowest tier an annual investment is about $1200 - an excellent value!

You don’t track time, you just submit. Each task is classified (free to XL), and credits are deducted accordingly. I never found myself hesitating to use Duckbill the way I sometimes did with Faye, BUT Duckbill’s credit system leaves a lot up for interpretation and you really don’t know how the credits will land in weight until you submit the task.

✅ More affordable entry point for casual users

🚫 Can feel unclear if you don’t know how your tasks will be sized

Tasks are categorized as:

• Free: Calendar sync, AI research

• Small: Gift ideas, schedule car service

• Medium: Book home services, submit nanny hours

• Large: Book medical appointments across providers

• XL: Hire a night nurse, coordinate a move, event planning

So which is right for you?

If you’re ready to buy back time, not just for errands but for clarity, focus, and headspace, you can’t go wrong with either. But they serve different needs and work styles.

Here’s a real-world litmus test based on how you think and what you need:

My personal take

Start with the lowest tier on either platform you select for your first month. Use it as an experiment. It takes a little time to build the muscle of delegation and to figure out what kind of help actually makes your life easier.

Which do I use? I actually have a full-time Chief of Staff for New Modern Mom that also does personal admin (and lends a hand occasionally on my other businesses). I truly could not do all that I do without her. For this reason, I’m fully staffed with this type of support at the moment. That said, on months where I know I may be maxing out her time with more critical work-related items, I 100% would onboard either platform to help me, depending on the type of support I need for that season.

Ready to try one?

Try Faye: Use code NMM50 to get 20% off your first month.

Try Duckbill: Use code NEWMODERNMOM for 50% off your first two months.

Let me know what you try. I’d love to hear which platform fits your current season.

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New Modern Mom Podcast Spotlight

TLDR inside this episode:

• 🧠 Why outsourcing isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.

• 🧺 What to take off your plate ASAP .

• 📋 How to get help using tools like ChatGPT, Duckbill, and Faye.

• 👩‍👧‍👦 Kim Gebbia Chappell, Chief Brand Officer of Bobbie, shares her “stack your bench” strategy to build a trusted roster of backup care.

• ⏳ How to identify what’s draining your time and how to delegate it today.

💬 Drop a comment sharing what an assistant does already for you or you wish could take off your plate!

• ❤️ Leave a little love below if you found this valuable

• 📤 Hit ‘Share’ to send this to your group chat

These tiny actions take 2 seconds, but mean A LOT to me. Thanks for joining me on this journey,

Barbara

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