When you present companies to purchasers, likelihood is you or your workforce spend a variety of time drafting, reviewing, signing and sending contracts — to not point out reminding your purchasers to truly signal the contracts which were sitting of their inboxes for weeks.
Contracts are essential; they shield and reassure your purchasers of what your small business goes to do for them. However in addition they shield you, for instance, in defining the scope of an engagement in order that your organization doesn’t find yourself doing work it isn’t getting paid to do.
As important as contracts are, it may possibly generally really feel like a marathon to take them from draft to countersigned. And in case your workforce is manually managing your organization’s contract workflow, they’re seemingly spending numerous administrative hours doing issues that may very well be automated by means of expertise.
One of the best contract administration software program can put these hours again in your workforce’s arms to make use of extra productively. We’ve reviewed one of the best contract administration options on the market and have put collectively a information that can assist you choose the one which’s finest in your firm.
Our High Picks for Greatest Contract Administration Software program
DocuSign — Greatest for Rising Companies
PandaDoc — Greatest for Small Companies
ContractWorks — Greatest for Medium-sized Companies
Agiloft — Greatest for Giant Companies
Harmony — Most Reasonably priced
Juro — Greatest for Automation
Greatest Contract Administration Software program Evaluations
- Caters to complicated contract administration workflows
- Presents e-Signature and contract administration for firms of all sizes
- A number of safety certifications, together with SOC 2
- Least costly plan permits just one consumer and 5 paperwork/month
- Non-CLM variations do not permit for contract customization
Why we selected it: Whereas different contract administration software program appear to be constructed just for less complicated or extra complicated contract administration workflows, DocuSign can accommodate each as an organization grows. It gives primary eSignature plans for a hard and fast month-to-month value per consumer (with primary contract administration) in addition to full end-to-end contract lifecycle administration (CLM) by means of the DocuSign CLM suite.
If your small business is at present within the early levels, DocuSign’s primary eSignature plans could suit your present wants properly. You possibly can then develop into DocuSign CLM as your contract administration workflow turns into extra sophisticated.
DocuSign has three customary eSignature plans: Private ($10/month for one consumer solely), Normal ($25/month per consumer) and Enterprise Professional ($40/month per consumer). It additionally gives an Enhanced plan with customized pricing. DocuSign CLM pricing, nonetheless, isn’t out there on-line (however a DocuSign consultant instructed us it may be costly).
Along with reusable templates, the fundamental DocuSign eSignature plans embrace computerized signature reminders, Google Drive and Dropbox integration and audit trails. The costlier plans additionally embrace custom-made branding, superior fields (resembling formulation or conditional fields) and a PowerForms characteristic, which lets you embed a signable kind immediately in your web site.
Now, the fundamental eSignature plans gained’t reduce it in order for you the flexibility to customise your contracts immediately in DocuSign, want a number of events to evaluation a contract earlier than it goes to a shopper or are topic to sure compliance laws (resembling HIPAA or FedRAMP). For any of the above, you’d should go for a DocuSign CLM plan. These characteristic contract creation and collaboration instruments and over 100 pre-built workflows that may assist you get contracts out the door sooner.
One final thing to bear in mind about DocuSign is that it’s pretty ubiquitous, so your purchasers in all probability gained’t be stunned once they see a doc signature request from DocuSign of their inbox.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
Paid yearly: $10, $25, $40 (per consumer) | Cellphone, e-mail, on-line | Desktop, Android, iOS |
Paid month-to-month: $15, $45, $65 (per consumer) | Cellphone, e-mail, on-line | Desktop, Android, iOS |
Customized pricing for Enhanced and CLM plans | Cellphone, e-mail, on-line | Desktop, Android, iOS |
- Highly effective Sensible Content material characteristic
- Dashboard makes it straightforward and intuitive to see the quantity and worth of contracts by standing
- Handle paperwork out of your cellphone with the PandaDoc app
- SOC 2 Kind 2 compliant
- 14-day free trial
- Not appropriate for complicated contract administration workflows
Why we selected it: If DocuSign’s primary eSignature plans really feel too restricted by way of contract customization however your small business is not giant sufficient to benefit a full-scale CLM resolution, PandaDoc may very well be excellent for you. It gives aggressive pricing to small companies, and a few of its plans have highly effective in-software contract customization instruments. And if you wish to handle each your contracts and invoices on one platform, PandaDoc additionally gives invoicing software program.
PandaDoc has a free plan that’s strictly for limitless eSignature in addition to three paid plans that embrace limitless eSignature and paperwork. The bottom-tier Necessities plan prices $19/consumer/month when paid yearly and permits you to add template paperwork. It additionally provides you entry to PandaDoc’s drag-and-drop template builder, which we discovered very straightforward to make use of.
Its Marketing strategy, which prices $49/consumer/month when paid yearly, helps you to combine with third-party software program by means of Zapier, use your brand and branding on paperwork, and arrange approval course of workflows. It additionally provides you entry to PandaDoc’s Sensible Content material characteristic, which is what actually makes PandaDoc stand out from its price-point opponents.
Sensible Content material helps you to add a number of items of content material — resembling a paragraph describing a service or perhaps a full-page graphic — you possibly can insert into contracts as wanted. This lets you create a grasp template with interchangeable Sensible Content material fields. Whereas the following choice on our checklist, ContractWorks, gives an analogous characteristic by means of its clause library, the characteristic is simply out there with its $2,000-per-month plan.
Lastly, PandaDoc additionally gives an Enterprise plan with customized pricing. This plan contains a limiteless variety of workspaces, consumer efficiency reporting and distant on-line notary companies. Be mindful, nonetheless, that on-line notarization isn’t permitted in all states.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
Paid yearly: $19, $49 (per consumer) | 24/7 stay chat, ticketing | Desktop, Android, iOS |
Paid month-to-month: $29, $59 (per consumer) | 24/7 stay chat, ticketing | Desktop, Android, iOS |
Customized pricing for Enterprise plan | 24/7 stay chat, ticketing | Desktop, Android, iOS |
- Limitless customers on all plans
- High-notch storage, categorization and security measures
- Presents phone assist
- SOC 2 Kind 2 compliant
- Month-to-month doc limits on Normal and Skilled plans
- Some automation and collaboration options unique to Premium plan
- Smaller companies could also be priced out
Why we selected it: In case your contract administration course of requires a bit extra systemization than a easy approval workflow however you do not fairly want a full-scale resolution like Agiloft, ContractWorks is likely to be what you’re searching for — significantly its high-end Premium plan. ContractWorks focuses on streamlining contract flows for companies with 100 to 200 workers who want redlining capabilities for a number of inner and exterior stakeholders in addition to an overarching system to maintain contracts transferring by means of the pipeline.
ContractWorks gives three plans that each one include limitless signature requests however with a restricted variety of eSignature licenses. Normal prices $700/month for 5 digital signature licenses, Skilled prices $900/month for 10 digital signature licenses and Premium prices $2,000/month for 20 digital signature licenses.
All plans include computerized contract outlining and annotating, audit log reporting, customized branding and computerized signature reminders. The one distinction between Normal and Skilled is that Skilled permits for 10,000 moderately than 2,500 paperwork to be despatched per 12 months, accommodates 10 digital signature licenses moderately than 5 and gives Salesforce integration.
The Premium plan supplies a few of the extra superior options {that a} complicated contract administration workflow would require, resembling drafting templates, collaboration capabilities, redling, sensible workflows and a clause library. The Premium plan is the one one which serves middle-market purchasers in want of a real contract lifecycle administration resolution.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
$700 (for as much as 5 eSignature licenses) | Phone, e-mail, stay chat | Desktop |
$900 (for as much as 10 eSignature licenses) | Phone, e-mail, stay chat | Desktop |
$2,000 (for as much as 20 eSignature licenses) — all billed yearly | Phone, e-mail, stay chat | Desktop |
- Can deal with probably the most complicated contract administration points
- Intensive customization and automation capabilities
- A number of safety certifications, together with SOC 2 Kind 2
- Not a match for smaller companies with less complicated contract administration wants
Why we selected it: Agiloft can deal with probably the most subtle and convoluted contract administration processes, no matter what number of legal professionals, managers and executives must log out on contracts or what stock administration methods that you must have built-in. So in case you personal or make choices for a big enterprise with complicated contract administration wants, Agiloft will be the resolution for you.
Agiloft focuses on tailored options, from a customizable interface to editable templates and a clause library. It provides customers absolute management over their contracts and workflows. However the place Agiloft actually shines is after the contract is drafted and has to undergo a myriad of approvals and permissions earlier than being finalized.
With Agiloft, you possibly can arrange the next sorts of approvals:
- Sequential approvals: Ship to Individual A after which Individual B for approval.
- Parallel approvals: Ship to each Individual A and Individual B for approval.
- Conditional approvals: Ship to Individual A for approval. If Individual A approves, ship it to Individual B for approval. If Individual A doesn’t approve, ship it to Individual C for revision.
In case your contract approval workflow has a number of layers of evaluation and revisions, this type of automation can save your workforce a variety of hours, emails, spreadsheets and contract model management points.
In fact, that is only a high-level overview of Agiloft’s companies; as described in its many case research, it has the flexibility to create a totally customized resolution in your CLM software program wants. This sort of service, nonetheless, comes at a value. Like many contract administration software program merchandise, Agiloft’s pricing relies on the variety of month-to-month customers, however you’ll want to succeed in out to the corporate to get a quote.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
Customized | E mail, cellphone | Desktop |
- Stable, inexpensive resolution for small groups
- Seems to be like a phrase processor and has phrase processing capabilities
- A number of safety certifications, together with SOC 2 Kind 2
- 14-day free trial
- Not for very complicated contract administration workflows
Why we selected it: Harmony gives a reliable, no-frills contract administration and eSignature resolution for $17 per consumer/month with its Normal plan. This plan provides you limitless eSignatures, paperwork and templates and a few primary automation instruments like deadline reminders and bulk ship. And since its phrase processing characteristic appears to be like and feels similar to an ordinary phrase processor, it’s additionally very straightforward to create contracts and templates immediately in Harmony. Lastly, just like Google Docs, a number of customers can revise paperwork in Harmony in actual time.
Now, whereas superior automations like approval workflows and third-party integrations are lacking within the Normal plan, Harmony’s Professional plan has you lined on these fronts. The Professional plan prices $49 per consumer/month, whereas Harmony’s Enterprise plan — which features a clause library and customized branding — requires a customized quote.
So in case you’re searching for an inexpensive, easy-to-use contract administration and eSignature software program in your small enterprise, Harmony simply is likely to be what you’re searching for. Word that whereas DocuSign does have a $10-per-month Private plan, this plan is for single customers solely; it can’t be utilized by a small enterprise workforce. Harmony’s Normal plan, alternatively, is meant for small enterprise workforce utilization.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
Paid yearly: $17, $49 (each per consumer) | Ticket system solely | Desktop |
Paid month-to-month: $23, $59 (each per consumer) | Ticket system solely | Desktop |
Customized pricing for Enterprise plan | Ticket system solely | Desktop |
- Most core functionalities out there in Lite plan
- 15% low cost on all plans for non-profit organizations
- Monitor file with high-volume firms
- SOC 2 Kind 2 compliant
- Customized pricing required on all plans
Why we selected it: Juro focuses on contract administration automation for companies sending out numerous contracts that do not want a lot customization or evaluation. Whereas Agiloft is acceptable for large companies whose contracts require layers of inner sign-offs and revisions earlier than they exit the door, Juro is extra targeted on automating the contract administration course of for firms that simply must ship out a variety of considerably related contracts.
This isn’t to say that Juro doesn’t have approval workflow performance — it does. However moderately than specializing in streamlining unavoidably sophisticated contract administration processes and protocols, Juno’s focus is on simplifying avoidably sophisticated contract administration methods.
Juro has three plans — Lite, which incorporates as much as 5 customers; Staff, which incorporates as much as ten customers; and Scale, which helps a limiteless variety of customers. None of those plans’ pricing is publicly out there, nonetheless, which means you’ll should fill out a kind to get a quote.
Based mostly on the knowledge on Juro’s web site, the Lite plan seems to supply a lot of the performance of the 2 costlier plans; the primary upgrades within the costlier ones are further customers, customized customers, enhanced assist and extra integrations.
Value | Buyer assist | Platform |
Customized | Ticket system solely | Desktop |
Different firms we thought of
Listed here are another contract administration software program merchandise that we thought of.
Conga
- Helps giant, enterprise-level contract administration methods
- Buyer report rising pains on account of latest merger
Conga is one other contract administration platform that, like Agiloft, focuses on servicing very giant firms with complicated contract administration wants. Conga, in its present kind, is the results of the 2020 merger of two firms, Conga and Apttus, and a few prospects have complained that this merger resulted in irritating limitations with regard to buyer assist and product improvement. Nevertheless, Conga may change into a prime contract administration software program as it really works out these points within the coming years.
Cobblestone
- Presents a 30-day free trial
- Success tales oriented towards public enterprises
Cobblestone is a contract administration software program that may accommodate complicated contract lifecycles. That mentioned, based mostly on Cobblestone’s printed case research, it seems that the corporate has extra of a concentrate on non-corporate enterprises. In fact, Cobblestone is utilized by for-profit companies as nicely, however we discovered it noteworthy that Cobblestone doesn’t have the depth of company case research that firms like Agiloft and Juro present on their web sites.
Outlaw
- Proprietary system for managing authorized contracts
- 12-month minimal contract
Based in 2017, Outlaw is a comparatively new contract administration software program firm. It was acquired in 2021 by authorized tech platform Filevine and purports to have a proprietary contract administration system particularly for authorized templates. That mentioned, we didn’t embrace Outlaw in our checklist of one of the best contract administration software program merchandise as a result of regardless of not providing a free trial, Outlaw requires prospects to join a minimal of 12 months.
Contact Administration Software program Information
The next information covers every little thing that you must know to decide on one of the best contract administration software program for your small business.
Principal issues to know earlier than selecting contract administration software program
When deciding on any product for your small business, it’s best to first take inventory of your small business’ wants and ache factors. This can assist you outline what you need to get out of that product. This step is especially essential on the subject of selecting a contract administration software program, as you could have a full spectrum of value factors and capabilities from which to decide on. And don’t fall into the lure of considering that costlier merchandise are higher — they could have options {that a} enterprise like yours doesn’t at present want.
For some companies, contract administration is a comparatively easy course of. You or somebody in your workforce determines the engagement’s scope, charges and different particulars, places that info in a contract after which sends it to a shopper or prospect for digital signature, following up with them periodically. Most contracts could also be fairly related, and maybe that you must substitute only some customary paragraphs, in order that they don’t want intensive evaluation from the corporate’s authorized or compliance workforce. If this sounds acquainted, you’re in all probability searching for a product that gives flexibility and automation moderately than rigorous workflow administration and redlining capabilities. Examples of fine contract administration software program in these instances are PandaDoc at a smaller scale and Juro at a bigger scale.
For different companies, every contract is a challenge that must be managed individually — a residing doc that requires substantial evaluation, revisions and probably amendments from a number of events, each inside and outdoors the corporate. If this sounds extra like your small business, and also you’re at present managing this course of manually through emails and a number of paperwork or spreadsheets, you want an answer that may assist you draft, evaluation, revise and finalize contracts with an automatic workflow. Examples of those options embrace ContractWorks for mid-sized companies and Agiloft for bigger operations.
Lastly, try what different elements of your tech stack your contract administration may combine with for enhanced productiveness. For instance, perhaps your contract administration software program can combine together with your accounting software program to automate prospects’ funds in accordance with the schedule indicated of their contracts.
What’s the common value of contract administration software program?
The common value of contract administration software program for easy workflows is $15 to $50 per consumer/month. Nevertheless, in case your contract administration wants are extra complicated, you will want a extra customized resolution that may very well be considerably costlier.
How does contract administration software program work?
Contract administration software program works by streamlining your complete contract lifecycle, from drafting to countersigning. It does this by permitting customers to create contracts rapidly from templates or by importing their very own contract they created in a phrase processor, indicating who ought to evaluation and signal the contract.
As soon as the consumer has drafted the contract, the contract administration software program then manages the approval and signature course of in accordance with sure guidelines the consumer has set. These guidelines could be so simple as, “First ship to signer A, and as soon as they’ve signed the contract, ship it to signer B.” They will also be extraordinarily complicated, involving a number of layers of milestone-based contract evaluation and revisions by executives, authorized groups, compliance groups, third-party stakeholders and extra.
Why is contract administration essential?
Contract administration is essential as a result of it will increase productiveness, compliance and money circulation for firms. , streamlined contract administration system utilizing one of many software program merchandise on this checklist can improve productiveness by slicing out many hours of guide work by your workforce members on the subject of creating contracts and getting them signed.
Contract administration may also assist with compliance by making certain that whoever must evaluation and revise a doc has carried out so earlier than the contract strikes to the following step within the workflow. Lastly, contract administration can improve money circulation as a result of it helps firms get contracts signed a lot sooner, which generally means getting paid sooner as nicely.
Contract Administration Software program FAQs
Is it safe to make use of contract administration software program?
Because you’re in all probability not a safety knowledgeable, you may should depend on varied certifications awarded by third-party firms and organizations specializing in safety. In the case of saved knowledge safety, search for certifications resembling SOC 2 Kind 2 and Cyber Necessities. In the case of defending knowledge in transit, be sure that your contract administration software program makes use of superior encryption — ideally 256-bit.
Is contract administration software program completely different from eSignature?
Contract administration software program, alternatively, has options that transcend mere eSign capabilities. For instance, a great contract administration software program will assist make sure that the language in new contracts you ship out is probably the most up-to-date and correct utilized in your organization. It can additionally permit you and your workforce to customise contracts for particular purchasers or prospects.
For complicated contract lifecycles, contract administration software program can make sure that all people who must evaluation a contract has reviewed it earlier than the contract goes out to the shopper or prospect for signature.
Does my CRM embrace contract administration software program?
Your CRM may embrace native contract administration software program. However even when it does, it will not be one of the best match for your small business or supply all of the contract administration instruments you want. You should still need to take a look at out third-party contract administration software program merchandise that higher fit your wants and see if any combine together with your CRM.
Which industries use contract administration software program?
Any business that depends on contracts in its enterprise processes makes use of contract administration software program. Widespread examples of industries that use enterprise contracts embrace actual property, finance, healthcare, legislation, SAAS and development.
How We Discovered the Greatest Contract Administration Software program
We used the next elements to select one of the best contract administration software program:
- Customizability: Contracts aren’t all the time one-size-fits-all, so one factor that we checked out when analyzing contract administration software program is the flexibility for customers to simply modify paperwork inside the software program itself.
- Applicable options for goal buyer: Slightly than having a single set of options we seemed for throughout the board, we thought of every software program’s goal market and evaluated software program based mostly on the options related to that market. For small companies, we seemed for software program with a easy, user-friendly interface and a clear pricing construction. For bigger firms with extra complicated wants, we weighed the flexibility to deal with extra intricate workflows.
- Safety: Contracts typically comprise confidential and delicate details about your small business and your prospects, so we made certain that the entire software program on our checklist is, at a minimal, SOC 2 Kind 2 licensed.
Word that affordability isn’t on our checklist, although we did preserve a watch out for probably the most inexpensive contract administration software program. It is because the contract administration course of for a small enterprise is probably going very completely different from that of a giant enterprise that requires a number of departments to log out on every contract.
Clearly, an answer that may seamlessly work right into a extra complicated contract workflow will seemingly come at the next value than one which handles a less complicated contract workflow. We opted to incorporate choices that serve completely different wants and, subsequently, come at completely different value factors.
Abstract of the Greatest Contract Administration Software program of 2023
DocuSign — Greatest for Rising Companies
PandaDoc — Greatest for Small Companies
ContractWorks — Greatest for Medium-sized Companies
Agiloft — Greatest for Giant Companies
Harmony — Most Reasonably priced
Juro — Greatest for Automation