How to choose document management software for your firm
In our view, a document tool is the hardest piece of firm software to leave, because the archive goes with it. This guide covers what to check from request to archive, how to read a vendor’s security claim, what a 5-person firm pays at list price, and how to make sure your files come back out.
What to check, from the request to the archive
- Asking for files. A request list should show what’s outstanding and remind the client for you. Check that reminders are on the plan you’re pricing: ShareFile’s Request Lists start at Premium, for example.1
- How clients send them. Many clients send files once a year and forget their password in between. Canopy, Firmary and Liscio each let a client respond from a secure link without a full sign-in.2–4
- Signing. If you collect Form 8879 signatures remotely, you’ll want knowledge-based authentication (KBA). ShareFile Premium and TaxDome include it.5,6 Liscio charges $2 per signer, Canopy $1.25 per credit, and SmartVault runs it through DocuSign.7–9
- Keeping and finding. Version history and full-text search start to matter once you hold several years of returns. ShareFile and SmartVault list both.10,11
- Retention. Decide your periods first, then check the tool can apply them per folder or per client. The retention section below has the details.
- AI filing. Liscio reads and names files across 274+ document types; Canopy and ShareFile rename with AI; TaxDome’s renaming needs its AI add-on.12–15 Ask what happens to a file the AI can’t classify. Liscio flags it for review.12
- Tax-software links. SmartVault lists a direct Lacerte, ProConnect and ProSeries integration; Liscio reads the return PDF instead of integrating.16,17
- Security reports. Ask for the report, then read it. The next section explains what to look for.
How to read a vendor’s SOC 2 claim
A SOC 2 Type I report says a vendor’s controls were designed properly on one date. A Type II report says they worked over a period, usually several months to a year, so it tells you more. A data center’s SOC report covers the hosting company, and doesn’t cover the software company that rents space there.
Applied to the tools on this site: Canopy and TaxDome state Type II, and ShareFile and SmartVault state Type 2.18–21 Liscio says SOC 2 certified without naming the type on the page we read.22 Suralink’s page cites its data centers’ SOC reports and doesn’t say whether Suralink holds its own.23 Firmary has not completed a SOC 2 examination or a third-party audit.24
Ask for the latest report under NDA, check that its period ended within the last year, and read the auditor’s exceptions.
Plan retention before you migrate
Retention periods come from your firm’s obligations, your engagement letters and your insurer. Software only carries them out. Before you move a single file, write down how long each kind of folder stays (returns, workpapers, permanent files, identity documents) and who may delete early.
Then test each tool against that list. ShareFile can delete files automatically a set number of days after upload, folder by folder.25 SmartVault keeps deleted files in its Recycle Bin for 90 days, which gives you that long to undo a mistake.26 Where a tool has no automatic rule, someone on your team deletes by hand each year, so put that job on the calendar with a named owner.
What a 5-person firm pays, worked through
Say a 5-person tax and bookkeeping firm has 400 active clients and collects 150 Form 8879 signatures with KBA each season. At list price, billed annually, as of 10 Nov 2026:
| Tool and plan | How it’s charged | Yearly cost for this firm |
|---|---|---|
| Canopy Standard | $74 per user per month27 | $4,440, plus KBA at $1.25 per credit8 |
| Liscio Platform | $49 per user per month28 | $2,940, plus $300 for 150 KBA signers at $27 |
| ShareFile Premium | $26 per user per month, 3-user minimum29 | $1,560, KBA included5 |
| SmartVault Accounting Unlimited | $85 per user per month, 2-user minimum30 | $5,100, e-signatures and KBA included9 |
| TaxDome | Per active client; TaxDome’s own example for 400 is $4,125 a year31 | $4,125, KBA included6 |
Suralink quotes each firm, and Firmary’s pricing isn’t published.32,33
The table compares unlike things. Canopy and TaxDome are practice software with documents built in. ShareFile and SmartVault are document systems that usually sit beside practice software, so their cost adds to it. Of the tools in the table, ShareFile Premium is the lowest-cost way to get request lists, storage and KBA e-signing for five people.
Per-client pricing pays off as headcount grows. TaxDome stays at $4,125 for this client count up to 20 seats, because seats are included, while every per-user price above doubles if the firm grows to 10 people.34
Switching: moving files in, and getting them out later
Moving an archive costs staff time even when the vendor does the lifting. Here is what each vendor says about it.
- Liscio sells a flat-fee FileCabinet CS migration from $2,000, says most take 1 to 2 weeks, and credits half the fee toward Liscio if it’s the destination.35
- SmartVault sells data migration as an add-on with no published price.36 To leave, you copy files out through SmartVault Drive or the Export Data tool, and links to accounting transactions don’t survive the copy.37 After you close the account, SmartVault keeps your files for at least 90 days.38
- Canopy’s self-guided implementation is $199, refunded if you finish six setup milestones within 60 days.39
- TaxDome says most firms finish implementation in 6 to 8 weeks.40
- Firmary imports clients, tasks and time entries from CSV but doesn’t import documents, so your archive stays where it is or moves by hand.41 Staff with permission can download documents as a ZIP, and an owner can export the whole firm.42
During any trial, export one test client’s folder and open it on a computer that has never seen the tool. If the folder structure and file names come through intact, you can leave when you need to.
Questions to ask in a demo
- Show me a client answering a document request on a phone without a password.
- Which plan includes automatic reminders for outstanding requests?
- How does a client sign Form 8879 with KBA, and what does each KBA cost us?
- Can we set a retention period per folder or per client, and who can override it?
- What happens to a deleted file, and for how many days can we restore it?
- Show me a full-text search across last year’s returns.
- Can we read your latest SOC 2 report under NDA? Is it Type I or Type II, and what period does it cover?
- How do our existing folders come in, who does the work, and what does it cost?
- If we leave, what format do files export in, and do folder names survive?
- What does your AI do with a file it can’t classify?
- Do you integrate with our tax software, or read return PDFs instead?
A checklist to print
- Retention period written down for each kind of folder
- Every place client files live today, listed
- Staff who need seats and active clients, counted
- KBA signatures expected per season
- Tax software the tool must link to
- Request reminders confirmed on the plan we’re pricing
- Mobile upload tested by a real client
- SOC 2 report received, with its type and period noted
- Restore window for deleted files confirmed
- Test export opened outside the tool
- Migration quote and timeline in writing
- Yearly cost at list price for our headcount
Join the Firmary waitlist
Firms join the Firmary waitlist and are emailed when they can join.
Sources
Each product fact on this page links to a numbered source. Quotes are copied as the page’s text reads on the date shown, spacing included.
- 1
ShareFile
Securely request, collect, and track client files in one organized list—using AI-powered automation to reduce manual work and keep requests moving.
- 2
Canopy
Provide secure, login-free access to Canopy tasks via single-use links. ... Secure links use 256-bit encryption and expire based on predetermined timeframes
- 3
Firmary Ours
Clients use PocketFirm in a web browser on a computer or phone and can add it to the home screen; no app install. For a single request, a client can answer from an emailed link after entering a one-time code, without signing in.
- 4
Liscio
Create professional client requests with your own questions, sections, and conditional logic.
- 5
ShareFile
Use included KBA on e-signature documents to verify the identity of clients.
- 6
TaxDome
Unlimited e-signatures ... IRS-compliant signature requests with KBA.
- 7
Liscio
Organizers and document collection eSignature Custom branding ... KBA $2 per signer
- 8
Canopy
$1.25 per KBA credit
- 9
SmartVault
KBAs / ID verification Integrate an existing DocuSign account, or create one through SmartVault. Add-on Add-on Unlimited
- 10
ShareFile
Search for a document or folder name, as well as for words within documents.
- 11
SmartVault
File versioning … Full text search … Activity logs … User permission controls … Centralized document repository
- 12
Liscio
When a document falls outside what it recognizes, it flags it for review rather than guessing.
- 13
Canopy
Access Canopy documents directly from your computer’s file explorer.
- 14
ShareFile
AI Workflows Subject to usage limitations and applicable pricing, which may be modified from time to time.
- 15
TaxDome
Available for $200 per month.
- 16
SmartVault
Thomson Reuters UltraTax CS Configurable integration DrakeTax Configurable integration Wolters Kluwer CCH Configurable integration
- 17
Liscio
The packages below are examples, not integrations.
- 18
Canopy
SOC 2 type II compliant
- 19
TaxDome
TaxDome completes the PCI DSS Questionnaire A (SAQ A) and holds a SOC 2 Type II attestation.
- 20
ShareFile
Our security certifications include: SOC 2 type 2 ISO 27001 ISO 27701
- 21
SmartVault
SmartVault meets SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, and ISO 22301 standards and helps your firm stay compliant with IRS 4557 and the FTC Safeguards Rule.
- 22
Liscio
Liscio is SOC 2 certified.
- 23
Suralink
SOC1, SOC2, and SOC3 compliant data centers
- 24
Firmary Ours
Firmary has not completed a SOC 2 examination or a third-party security audit.
- 25
ShareFile
For accounts on the ShareFile Advanced plan or higher, the File Retention policy causes files to automatically be deleted some days after they are uploaded. This option can be configured separately for each root-level folder in the system. ... Never is the default value.
- 26
SmartVault
You have 90 days to recover deleted items from the recycle bin. SmartVault removes deleted files from your account after 90 days.
- 27
Canopy
Standard $74 user/month ... Plus $109 user/month
- 28
Liscio
$19 per user / month Billed annually per user ... $49 per user / month Billed annually per user
- 29
ShareFile
Premium End-to-End Document Workflows for Teams and Clients $28.59 $26.00 $28.59 Per user/month Minimum of 3 users
- 30
SmartVault
Tax/accounting firms needing unlimited eSignatures, KBAs, PDFs, quotes and proposals. … $85 per user / month, billed annually 2 user minimum … $110 per user / month, billed monthly 2 user minimum
- 31
TaxDome
Clients beyond 150 are priced in volume bands, from $15 each on their own down to $5 each in the largest band. ... 400 active clients: $4,125 per year ($0.86 per client a month)
- 32
Suralink
Every company and team has different needs. Reach out to us, and we can find the right plan for you.
- 33
Firmary Ours
Firmary’s pricing isn’t published.
- 34
TaxDome
An active client is a client with any activity in the past 12 months, such as logging in, uploading documents, sending messages, or receiving an invoice. Contacts without activity cost nothing.
- 35
Liscio
Most migrations take 1 to 2 weeks, depending on the size of your
- 36
SmartVault
One-on-one team training Add-on Add-on Add-on Data migration services Add-on Add-on Add-on
- 37
SmartVault
You can use the SmartVault Drive to copy your files from SmartVault at any time. ... if you have access to the Connected Desktop, you can use the Export Data tool to export your files to a location such as a network drive or folder on your hard drive. ... the associations with your accounting transactions will be lost.
- 38
SmartVault
We retain the files you store in SmartVault on our servers for a minimum of 90 days ... after 90 days, we reserve the right to permanently delete any data or files you have stored in SmartVault.
- 39
Canopy
Self-guided implementation costs $199 dollars. You receive a full refund when you complete six setup milestones within 60 days.
- 40
TaxDome
Most firms complete TaxDome implementation in 6–8 weeks.
- 41
Firmary Ours
Firms import clients, tasks and time entries from CSV, review the rows before anything is created, and inviting clients is a separate step. Documents, messages, engagements and billing history aren’t imported.
- 42
Firmary Ours
Staff with permission export clients, contacts, tasks, time entries, aged receivables and the audit log as CSV and documents as a ZIP; an owner can export the whole firm.