Best Electronic Signature Software 2021

DocuSign vs. HelloSign

Is DocuSign or HelloSign the better solution for you? This in-depth, feature-by-feature breakdown will help you select the best electronic signature tool to help manage your documents and grow your business.

Individuals and organizations use electronic signature solutions to manage their legal documents. There are well over 10 high-quality solutions to choose from. With the electronic signature market so saturated, it can be hard to figure out which tool is the best for your business.

We’ve created this guide to help you understand the differences between DocuSign and HelloSign, thus simplifying your purchasing decision. Below we discuss their pricing differences, how they differentiate when it comes to key features, and the customer type each solution best suits.

Comparison Summary

DocuSign and HelloSign are two popular, industry-leading electronic signature software tools used by tens of thousands of customers.

When it comes to pricing, HelloSign is slightly more affordable. HelloSign also offers a basic, free plan that lets you send up to three signature requests a month. Most customers pay $20 to $50 for their electronic signature software.

In our research, we found that DocuSign and HelloSign are both advanced tools that are also intuitive and easy-to-use. Both solutions include standard features found in all electronic signature tools: legally binding signatures, templates, a document editor, audit reports, flexible signing, and document storage. Both also offer advanced features such as fields that can autofill with data and two-factor authentication.

Overall, however, we did find DocuSign’s platform to be more robust. As a result, those who have a larger budget, and a more advanced document workflow, are likely to have a slight preference for DocuSign.

When comparing both tools, we recommend that you focus on how each supports these main feature categories – creating templates, editing documents, sending documents, signing documents, and storing documents. Here’s a quick rundown to determine which solution is best for you:

You'll prefer DocuSign if:

  • You want a mobile app to sign and edit documents
  • You want in-document payment processing
  • You want reports that show key metrics on document and account activity

Try DocuSign Today

You'll prefer HelloSign if:

  • HelloSign's free plan is sufficient for your needs
  • You want a more affordable solution
  • You want to be able to upload 14 document types (Doc, PDF, Excel, JPG, PNG, PPT)

Try HelloSign Today


Table of Contents

DocuSign & HelloSign Price Comparison

DocuSign and HelloSign offer both monthly and annual subscriptions. In general, HelloSign is slightly more affordable than DocuSign. Both solutions offer a 20-35% discount for the upfront purchase of an annual plan.

A key pricing-related difference is that HelloSign offers a free plan, while DocuSign does not. HelloSign’s free plan is limited, but great if you send less than three documents a month.

DocuSign Pricing Details

DocuSign pricing ranges from $15 to $60 per user per month. You can save ~35% if you choose to pay the annual subscription upfront. Here’s an overview of DocuSign’s pricing plans:

Personal plan
  • $15 per user per month
  • $10 per month under annual subscription
  • 1 user
Standard plan
  • $40 per user per month
  • $25 per month under annual subscription
  • Up to 5 users
Business Pro plan
  • $60 per user per month
  • $40 per month under annual subscription
  • Up to 5 users
Advanced Solutions plan
  • Contact vendor
  • Unlimited (minimum of 5 users)

HelloSign Pricing Details

HelloSign pricing ranges from free to $50 per user per month. You can save up to 25% if you choose to pay the annual subscription upfront. Here’s an overview of HelloSign’s plans and pricing:

Free plan
  • $0 per user per month
  • $0 per month under annual subscription
  • 1 user
Essentials plan
  • $20 per user per month
  • $15 per month under annual subscription
  • 1 user
Business plan
  • $50 per user per month
  • $40 per month under annual subscription
  • Up to 5 users
Enterprise plan
  • Contact vendor
  • 5 users

DocuSign & HelloSign Feature Comparison

DocuSign and HelloSign and two popular, advanced solutions that offer many similar core and advanced features. Both platforms include legally binding signatures, templates, a document editor, audit reports, and flexible signing.

They also both offer advanced features like fields that can auto-fill with data and two-factor authentication. However, as shown in the table below, there are some features available in one solution, but not in the other.

For a full analysis of each solution’s features, read our DocuSign and HelloSign reviews.

FeatureDocuSignHelloSign
Legally Binding SignaturesYesYes
TemplatesYesYes
Auto-fill DataYesYes
Content LibraryNoNo
Custom BrandingYesYes
Text-editing for Uploaded DocumentsNoNo
Multiple LanguagesYesYes
Robust IntegrationsYesYes
Real-time NotificationsYesYes
In person SigningYesYes
Multi-party SigningYesYes
Mass SignaturesYesYes
Auto-remindersYesYes
Two factor authenticationYesYes
Audit ReportsYesYes
Proposal Template LibraryNoNo
Payments through a Legal DocumentYesNo
Interactive QuotingNoNo
APIYesYes
Mobile ApplicationYesNo

DocuSign & HelloSign Top Feature Comparison

Below we provide our in-depth comparison between DocuSign and HelloSign in these five key electronic signature feature areas – template creation, document editing, document sending, document signing, and document storage. Overall, both solutions are robust, but DocuSign offers a few more features in each of these categories.

Template Creation

Both DocuSign and HelloSign let you create your own templates. However, neither solution offers their own standardized templates. Overall, both solutions are efficient when it comes to creating templates, but DocuSign offers more in terms of advanced features and security measures.

Both solutions let you add stakeholders to your templates, which can represent the type of people signing your documents (e.g. clients, business partners, HR). However, DocuSign lets you choose if a role in your template is an in person signer, and require a password to access the template.

Document Editing

DocuSign and HelloSign both offer robust document editors. However, both do not allow users to edit the text of uploaded documents. This means any changes to a document must be made beforehand in another application for both solutions. Overall, DocuSign’s document editor is slightly more robust because it offers a few more features and capabilities.

HelloSign Document Editor
DocuSign Document Editor

Both DocuSign and HelloSign offer advanced editing features – zooming in and out of a document, navigating a document by page, and using keyboard shortcuts. However, DocuSign also includes:

  • Custom fields
  • Document markup
  • Seals
  • Comments

Document Sending

Both DocuSign and HelloSign let you send documents by email, in person, and mass signature. Each tool is efficient in each of these sending methods, however, DocuSign lets you set a few more features than HelloSign. This includes setting and expiration date, allowing recipients to change signing responsibilities, and enabling comments.

HelloSign Document Sending
DocuSign Sending Documents

When sending a document by email, both solutions let you:

  • Apply a sending order
  • CC a completed document
  • Edit a personalized message for the recipients

Document Signing

When it comes to signing, both DocuSign and HelloSign are easy to use. For example, both solutions offer a “Next” button, which guides recipients to the fields they must sign or fill out. However, DocuSign’s signing interface is much more feature-rich.

HelloSign Document Signing
DocuSign Document Signing

As seen above, DocuSign lets you add comments, navigate a document by page, and zoom in and out of a document. Some additional features DocuSign offers include viewing a document’s certificate, session information, and a document’s history.

Document Storage

DocuSign and HelloSign offer efficient and organized document storage. Both include a search bar, and the ability to categorize your documents by status, senders and date.

HelloSign Document Dashboard

However, DocuSign offers a key organizational feature, being able to make custom groups or folders. This feature is beneficial if you want to organize your documents by company or by type.

DocuSign Dashboard

Bottom Line

DocuSign and HelloSign are two very well-known electronic signature solutions that help individuals and businesses automate their advanced document workflows. Both offer standard electronic signature features like legally binding signatures, templates, a document editor, audit reports, flexible signing, and document storage. They also include advanced features like fields that can auto-fill with data and two-factor authentication.

When deciding between these two tools, we recommend DocuSign for those with a more advanced document workflow, who need a more robust solution, and have a larger budget. If your workflow is moderately advanced and you want a slightly more affordable solution, we recommend HelloSign.

If you’re interested, visit DocuSign or HelloSign today to get started.

Amy Yang

Amy Yang is a Junior Research Analyst at SoftwarePundit, where she conducts in-depth analyses on software markets and products. Amy has expertise in content production and managing digital and social platforms. She has a Bachelor of Science in Communication & Media, and a Minor in Web Programming and Applications from NYU. You can connect with Amy on LinkedIn.

Amy is an expert in several software categories including:

  • Course creation software
  • Electronic signature software
  • Social media software
  • Website builder software

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