Tarmika, Semsee, and QuoteSweep are the three main commercial insurance quoting tools available to independent agents in 2026. Tarmika connects to 31 carriers via API and is owned by Applied Systems. Semsee uses a mix of API and RPA connections to reach approximately 48 carriers across 8 LOBs. QuoteSweep uses AI web agents to work with any carrier that has a web portal – reaching any of the ~2,700 US P&C carriers, not just the ~50–60 unique carriers reachable across all API-based raters combined. All three let agents enter business details once and receive comparative quotes, but they differ significantly in carrier coverage, pricing, technology approach, and lines of business.
If you're an independent agent evaluating commercial quoting tools, the differences between these three matter more than the similarities. Your choice affects which carriers you can quote, how many new markets you can access, and whether the tool works with the regional and specialty carriers in your panel – or just the 31-60 that have API partnerships.
The Quick Comparison
| Feature | Tarmika | Semsee | QuoteSweep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carrier connections | 31 (API only) | ~48 (API + some RPA) | 500+ tracked, any portal reachable |
| How carriers connect | Bilateral API partnership | API + limited RPA | AI web agents |
| Time to add new carrier | Months (API negotiation) | Weeks to months | Days (field mapping) |
| Lines of business | BOP, GL, WC, Auto, Cyber, Professional Liability | BOP, GL, WC, Auto, Cyber, Special Events | BOP, WC, GL, Auto, Umbrella, Cyber, Professional Liability, EPLI |
| Regional & specialty carriers | Limited to API partners | Some | Any carrier with a portal |
| AMS integration | Applied Epic, EZLynx (Applied ecosystem) | Limited | Coming soon |
| Pricing | ~$225/mo flat (association rate, 5 users) | Free tier available + paid tiers | Free tier, then $49–$299/mo, submissions included |
| Free trial / free tier | Unknown | Free tier for association members | 3 free submissions, no credit card |
| ACORD form import | Yes | Yes (AI-powered upload) | Yes (ACORD 125/126/127/130) |
| Real-time quoting visibility | No (API returns in ~15 sec) | Limited | Yes – watch AI agents fill forms live |
| Owned by | Applied Systems (acquired 2022) | Independent (Series B funded) | Independent (TinyFish Accelerator) |
| Founded | 2017 | 2017 | 2026 |
Data sourced from company websites, industry reports, and public press releases. Last verified March 2026.
The biggest differentiator: Tarmika and Semsee rely on carrier cooperation (APIs) to add new carriers. QuoteSweep works with any carrier portal independently – including the approximately 2,600 P&C carriers that have no API connection to any quoting tool.
How Each Tool Connects to Carriers
This is the fundamental architectural difference between the three platforms. Understanding it explains why carrier coverage varies so dramatically.
Tarmika: API-Only
Tarmika connects to carriers through bilateral API partnerships. The carrier's engineering team builds an API integration, Tarmika's team builds the other side, and they test it together. This is reliable and fast once connected – Tarmika claims quotes return in about 15 seconds via API. But it means Tarmika can only add carriers that agree to build an API, and after 7+ years, they've reached 31 carriers. It's also worth noting that many of Tarmika's carrier connections return indications – ballpark premium estimates – rather than bindable quotes. For those carriers, the agent still needs to visit the carrier portal to get the actual quote with real terms, which means the time savings are partial rather than complete.
If your panel includes regional carriers like Auto-Owners, Erie, Cincinnati Financial, or specialty markets like Kinsale or Guard – Tarmika can't quote them unless those carriers have an API partnership.
Semsee: Hybrid API + RPA
Semsee uses API connections where available and adds some RPA (robotic process automation) for carriers without APIs. As of 2026, Semsee connects to approximately 48 carriers across 8 lines of business – including cyber (9 carriers), professional liability/MPL (10 carriers), commercial auto (5 carriers), and management liability/D&O/EPLI (6 carriers). Semsee launched Agent Intelligence in late 2025, using AI to process uploaded documents and pre-fill submissions.
QuoteSweep: AI AI Web Agents
QuoteSweep takes a fundamentally different approach. Instead of waiting for carriers to build APIs, QuoteSweep dispatches AI browser agents to carrier portals – the same portals you'd log into manually. Each agent navigates the carrier's website, fills out the application, and extracts the quote. QuoteSweep currently tracks 500+ carriers with appetite data – 440 verified at high confidence across 42 lines of business – and has confirmed 131 carriers with online quoting portals. This means QuoteSweep can work with any carrier that has a web portal, including the approximately 2,600 P&C carriers that have no API connection to any quoting tool.
Carrier coverage at a glance:
| Approach | Coverage | Carriers |
|---|---|---|
| API Approach (Tarmika) | ~1.1% of market | 31 of ~2,700 carriers |
| Hybrid (Semsee) | ~1.8% of market | ~48 of ~2,700 carriers |
| AI Web Agents (QuoteSweep) | Any portal = any carrier | 500+ tracked (440 verified), 131 with online portals |
The Carrier Changed the Question. The API Didn't Notice.
There's a second structural issue with API-based comparative rating that the carrier-count gap doesn't capture: API integrations get built once, against the question set each carrier exposes at integration time. But carrier underwriting doesn't sit still. New questions show up when rate filings update. Old questions get retired when a class falls out of appetite. Conditional branches get rewritten. The integration stays frozen until someone updates it.
That creates drift in both directions. Tarmika and Semsee end up asking underwriting questions the carrier no longer wants answered, inflating the application with obsolete data. And they skip new questions the carrier now requires to bind, meaning the quote you see is built on incomplete information.
The most common version agents describe to us: quote in Semsee against Travelers, log into Travelers' portal to bind, and find a different question set waiting. Sometimes the bind premium matches. Sometimes it doesn't. Either way, the agent's "real" workflow ends up being the portal, not the rater.
This is structural to API-based comparative rating, not specific to Tarmika or Semsee. Any integration built against a snapshot of carrier logic will fall out of sync the moment the carrier changes that logic. QuoteSweep skips the API layer and reads the live carrier portal every quote – the carrier asks today's questions, and the AI agent answers today's questions.
Pricing Breakdown
Tarmika Pricing
Tarmika is priced at approximately $225 per month for an association rate covering 5 users. Pricing is not publicly listed on their website – you need to request a demo. Since Tarmika is owned by Applied Systems, agencies already in the Applied ecosystem (Epic, EZLynx) may get bundled pricing, but this also means additional Applied dependencies.
Semsee Pricing
Semsee offers a free tier for members of certain insurance associations (like IIAT). Paid tiers exist but pricing isn't publicly listed. The free tier appears to have carrier and feature limitations. Since Semsee's model includes free access, the question is whether the limited R&D investment supports aggressive carrier expansion.
QuoteSweep Pricing
QuoteSweep pricing is published: flat monthly plans with submissions included.
- Free: $0 – 3 submissions total, up to 10 carrier appointments, BOP
- Solo: $49/mo – 10 submissions a month, up to 15 carrier appointments, BOP, 1 seat
- Pro: $99/mo – 30 submissions a month, up to 25 carrier appointments, BOP + GL + WC, 3 seats
- Business: $299/mo – 100 submissions a month, unlimited carrier appointments, all lines, 10 seats
One submission means one business sent across your carrier panel, however many carriers that is. The free tier needs no credit card. Annual billing saves 17%.
Fair Comparison
An agency running 10 commercial submissions a month pays $49 on Solo and quotes its full panel. The same agency pays roughly $225 flat on Tarmika and reaches about 31 carriers, most of them returning an indication rather than a bindable number. Pro at $99/mo covers 30 submissions with GL and WC and three seats; Business at $299/mo covers 100 with every line and ten seats. Compare the plans on what the quote is worth, not just the monthly figure: a cheap indication still costs your producer the portal visit.
Lines of Business
| Line | Tarmika | Semsee | QuoteSweep |
|---|---|---|---|
| BOP | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| General Liability | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Workers' Comp | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Commercial Auto | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Umbrella | – | – | ✓ |
| Cyber | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Professional Liability | ✓ | – | ✓ |
| EPLI | – | – | ✓ |
| Special Events | – | ✓ | – |
QuoteSweep currently supports 8 lines of business – the most of any standalone commercial quoting tool. Umbrella and EPLI support is a notable differentiator for agencies writing accounts that need layered coverage.
Who Each Tool Is Best For
Tarmika Is Best For
Agencies already in the Applied ecosystem (Epic or EZLynx) who primarily work with major national carriers that have API partnerships. If your carrier panel aligns with Tarmika's 31 connected carriers and you value tight AMS integration over carrier breadth, Tarmika is a solid choice.
Semsee Is Best For
Small agencies looking for a low-cost entry point into automated commercial quoting. If you're an association member with access to the free tier and primarily quote small commercial (BOP, GL), Semsee lets you test automated quoting without financial commitment. The AI-powered document upload (Agent Intelligence) is a useful feature for agencies with lots of paper ACORD forms.
QuoteSweep Is Best For
Independent agencies appointed with regional, specialty, or E&S carriers that other tools can't reach. If your panel includes carriers like Auto-Owners, Erie, Cincinnati Financial, Hanover, Selective, Markel, or Kinsale – or any carrier without an API partnership – QuoteSweep is likely the only tool that can automate quoting across your full panel. It's also the strongest choice for agencies that need Umbrella, EPLI, or Professional Liability quoting alongside standard BOP/GL/WC.
What About AMS Integration?
Tarmika's biggest advantage is its deep integration with Applied's AMS products (Applied Epic, EZLynx). Quote data flows directly into your agency management system. Semsee offers limited AMS integrations. QuoteSweep does not yet have AMS integration – it's on the roadmap, but it's not available today. For agencies where AMS data flow is the top priority, this is a factor to weigh against carrier coverage.
The Carrier Coverage Question
There are approximately 2,700 property and casualty carriers in the United States (NAIC 2025 Market Share Report). Tarmika connects to 31 of them. Semsee connects to approximately 48. That means more than 96% of P&C carriers are unreachable by the two leading commercial quoting tools.
For many agencies, the carriers in that 98% ARE their panel. Regional carriers, state specialists, MGAs, program administrators, specialty markets – these are the carriers that independent agents are appointed with and need to quote daily. API-based tools can't reach them because these carriers haven't invested in API infrastructure.
QuoteSweep was built to close this gap. By deploying AI web agents instead of APIs, QuoteSweep works with any carrier that has a web portal – which is virtually all of them. QuoteSweep's appetite database tracks 500+ carriers (440 verified at high confidence) across 42 lines of business, and has confirmed that only 131 carriers offer online quoting portals accessible to independent agents.
According to the Ivans 2025 Connectivity Trends Report, 72% of independent agents identify commercial submissions as the area most in need of automation. The tools that cover more carriers will ultimately win this market.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best commercial insurance rater for independent agents?
QuoteSweep, if what you need is a number you can bind. It runs the carrier's own portal with AI web agents, so the premium that comes back is the carrier's bindable premium rather than a rater-layer estimate, across 500+ tracked carriers.
The API raters shortlist; they don't finish. Tarmika's public carrier grid labels every carrier B (bindable), I (indication) or P (bind/issue policy), and indication dominates that grid. Semsee and Bold Penguin draw the same line under different names. On an indication carrier your producer still logs into the portal, re-keys the same ACORD data, waits for the reports to run, and gets a different number than the one on the comparison screen. That is the work the rater was bought to remove.
Where each one lands: Tarmika connects to roughly 31 carriers by API and integrates with Applied Epic and EZLynx. Semsee reaches about 48 through a mix of API and RPA, with a free Essential tier. Bold Penguin routes submissions to 45+ carriers through its exchange. All three are quick when your risk falls on one of their bindable carriers, and all three hand you back to the portal when it doesn't.
What are the best alternatives to EZLynx for independent insurance agents?
EZLynx is primarily a personal-lines rater and AMS — its commercial capabilities are limited. For commercial-lines quoting specifically, Tarmika (same Applied Systems family as EZLynx) gives broader commercial carrier access with native AMS integration. Semsee adds a free tier. QuoteSweep reaches the regional and specialty commercial carriers EZLynx's commercial module can't quote because they lack API connections. For agencies that want to keep EZLynx as the AMS but improve commercial quoting, the typical pattern is to add a dedicated commercial rater on top rather than replace EZLynx entirely.
Is QuoteSweep a replacement for Tarmika?
It can be, depending on your carrier panel. If you primarily work with the 31 carriers Tarmika connects to and rely on Applied AMS integration, Tarmika may still be the right fit. If you need to quote carriers outside Tarmika's network – regional carriers, specialty markets, or E&S carriers – QuoteSweep fills the gap. Some agencies may use both.
Can QuoteSweep quote as fast as Tarmika?
Tarmika's API returns quotes in approximately 15 seconds per carrier. QuoteSweep's AI web agents typically take 1-3 minutes per carrier – but runs all carriers in parallel. So while individual carrier response time is slower, the total time to quote 15-25 carriers is comparable because everything runs simultaneously.
Is Semsee really free?
Semsee offers free access to members of certain insurance associations. The free tier has carrier and feature limitations. Paid tiers are available but pricing isn't publicly listed.
Does QuoteSweep work with my AMS?
Not yet. AMS integration is on our roadmap, but it's not available today. Currently, quote data lives in QuoteSweep's dashboard and can be exported as PDF proposals.
How secure are my carrier credentials with QuoteSweep?
All credentials are encrypted with AES-256-GCM encryption with per-credential initialization vectors. Credentials are decrypted only in-memory during active quoting sessions and are never logged or stored in plain text. You can remove credentials at any time.
Which tool has the most carriers?
QuoteSweep supports the most carriers of any commercial quoting tool. It tracks 500+ carriers with appetite data (440 verified at high confidence) across 42 lines of business. Because it deploys AI web agents rather than API partnerships, it works with any carrier that has a web portal – including the approximately 2,440 that no API-based tool can reach. For a deeper comparison of all the major tools, see our best commercial insurance rating software roundup.
