Document Management Software Comparison
By Yousef Fatehpour |
With several high-quality options to choose from, it can be hard to find the best document management software for you. We've spent over...Read More >
Best Document Management Software 2021
Document management software is built to support various types of businesses with storing and creating files, facilitating team management, and streamlining workflows. There are document management systems that focus primarily on file storage, as well as more robust solutions offering a number of file creation and team management features.
These solutions typically offer features like file creation, cloud storage, electronic signatures, and workflow automation. Document management software provides value for a wide range of user types. The best document management solution for you will depend on whether you only need to store and transfer files, or require additional team and workflow management features.
Document management software is one of the foundational software systems that all small businesses should use along with human resource software and accounting software.
Document Management Software Prices
Document management software prices range from $5 to $50 per month per user. Most small businesses will pay around $5 to $15 dollars per month per user for document management software. Here are details that will help you compare prices for the most popular document management software platforms.
| Software Vendor | Starting Monthly Price per User | Free Trial | Subscription Add-Ons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Workspace | $6 | Yes |
|
| Microsoft 365 | $5 | Yes |
|
| Zoho WorkDrive | $3 | Yes |
|
| Dropbox Business | $15 | Yes |
|
| Box | $7 | Yes |
|
Document Management Software FAQs
Document management software allows small and medium sized businesses to create and store files, facilitate team collaboration, and streamline their workflow. Common features include file management, team communication tools, and workflow automation.
There are numerous benefits that document management software offers. This includes:
- Creating and storing documents, spreadsheets, and presentations
- Transferring large files to clients and team members
- Chatting and video calling with team members
- Automating repetitive tasks with workflow automation
The cost of document management software depends on how many team members you have. You can expect to spend about $5 to $50 per month per user depending on which software and plan you're purchasing.
The best document management software for you depends on what your business needs. The best software for companies who simply want to store and transfer large files with minimal team collaboration tools is Dropbox Business. Companies in need of the most advanced solutions for document and team management will find Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 ideal.
Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are two of the most popular document management tools in the market today. Both have served millions of customers.
The most common document management software features are:
- Admin console
- Cloud storage
- File management
- Collaboration
- Workflow automation
Document Management Software Research & Advice
How to Use OneDrive
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OneDrive vs. Google Drive
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Dropbox Business vs. Google Workspace
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Dropbox Business vs. Box
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Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365
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Why You Should Trust Our Recommendations
The team at SoftwarePundit has been testing software since 2017. We’ve hand-tested over 250 software products in that time, including four in the document management category. We applied the same rigorous process to each piece of document management software that we analyzed. The specifics of our document management category research process are outlined below.
Yousef led our analysis of document management software. He has spent more than 250 hours evaluating leading document management software solutions.
In addition, all research and content was overseen by Bruce Hogan, SoftwarePundit’s Co-founder & CEO. Bruce has more than a decade of experience researching, building, and reviewing the world’s best software products. His technology advice has been featured on a wide range of media sites such as AngelList, CMSWire, Dental Economics, iPhone Life, Reader’s Digest, Thrive Global, U.S. News, and the Zapier Blog.
How We Selected the Best Document Management Software
We selected the best document management software based upon a number of criteria. The most important criteria were each software tool’s features, usability, price, and customer support. The details of our analyses are captured in the in-depth reviews we publish about each software tool.
There are a handful of critical features that you should look for in document management software. We prioritized the following features in our analysis:
- File Management: Document management tools allow you to store and transfer your business' files. Some solutions focus solely on storing and transferring files while others have the additional benefit of allowing you to create and collaborate on files.
- Cloud Storage: Cloud storage features include offline access to your files and file recovery capabilities. Offline access to your files ensures you can update your work on multiple devices whether you have internet or not. In regards to file recovery, many document management solutions allow you to recover files from at least a month after deletion.
- Collaboration: Many document management tools offer a multitude of ways to communicate and collaborate with your company team members. This can range from building documents, spreadsheets, and presentations together to hosting video calls and group chats.
- Workflow Automations: Workflow automations are rules you can set to automate repetitive tasks for your team. Examples in document management software include automatically sending new hires onboarding documents or sending alerts when a user’s password changes.
How We Evaluated Document Management Software
We used the same rigorous process to evaluate document management software as all other software categories. For the document management category, Yousef invested several weeks researching the market, testing out key document management features, and publishing his insights about the tools.
Yousef signed up for free trials of each solution listed above to gain a deeper understanding of each document management tool. This allowed him to authenticate the features offered by each solution. He spent hours testing each tools’ admin console, cloud storage, file management, collaboration, and workflow automation capabilities. He also downloaded the mobile app version of document management solutions to understand the mobile experience for small businesses.
In addition to conducting conversations with the software companies and hand-testing every piece of software, Yousef also spent dozens of hours interviewing real customers of the software tools listed above. Document management software customers that provided insights that were included in our analysis and reviews were:
- Christian Newman: Christian Newman is the CEO of Rise Digital. His company currently uses Google Workspace.
- Eric Kim: Eric Kim is a co-founder at LA Tutors. His company currently uses Dropbox Business.
- Wajahath Ali: Wajahath Ali is a digital marketing manager at Enablix. His company currently uses Google Workspace.
- Hardeep Matharoo: Hardeep Matharoo is head of marketing at Best Response Media. His company currently uses Google Workspace.