PandaDoc Review

Simple but Powerful Software Solution

There’s a reason why over 17,000 customers use this platform. No matter how many PandaDoc reviews you read, you will notice that they all have a common theme – the software is powerful and easy to use.

Document automation is one area where PandaDoc excels — whether you need online signing or contract management, the platform can handle it. The design further simplifies the process, so both experts and newbies will feel at home in no time without any training.

While bugs and glitches are rare, PandaDoc’s customer support comes to the rescue when they do happen. But more on that later.  

All the Essentials for Improving Document Workflow 

The Pandadoc admin panel offers a bundle of features to help with the document workflow of any business. That said, some users might feel the software is lacking in this area. For example, the platform doesn’t allow multiple users to work on the same document simultaneously. The software could also use improvement on the presentation capabilities, as well as in the mobile proposal creation. The PandaDoc reviews we found further indicated that users would really appreciate automated reminders. At this point, reminders can be sent only manually.

As you can see, PandaDoc could benefit from additional features, but that doesn’t mean it can’t get the job done. On the contrary — it has all the essentials for comprehensive document management. So, let’s take a look at those features and how they can minimize efforts and maximize productivity.      

Legally Binding Pandadoc eSignatures

PandaDoc is famous for its simple and completely free eSignature process. It eliminates all the struggles that come with physically delivering the documents to the signer and then returning them to the sender, especially in the case of multiple signers in different locations. With the availability of eSignatures, the software saves you both time and money and helps you finish a task that might take days or even weeks in mere seconds.

Most of the PandaDoc alternatives have this feature incorporated into their paid packages. By contrast, PandaDoc offers legally binding eSignatures in its free plan. 

Professionally Designed Templates

The templates are another noteworthy feature that makes the software stand out from the crowd. With over 450 options, there is something for everyone. There are many document management solutions out there, but not many can offer more templates or better customization processes. 

Our PandaDoc app review has verified that the platform’s templates make writing proposals as well as other documents (business plans, contracts, and quotes, among others) an effortless task. Some of the more popular pre-designed templates available with the software are:

• Business Proposal Template
• Digital Marketing Proposal
• Sales Proposal Template
• HVAC Proposal Template
• Website Development Proposal Template
• SEO Proposal Template
• Social Media Marketing Proposal Template
• Software Development Proposal Template
• Freelance Contract Template
• Exclusive Distribution Agreement Template 

Easy to Use Document Creator

Our PandaDoc review continues with one of the platform’s most robust features – the document creator. With the software’s drag-and-drop functionality, you will quickly create the document you need and finish your work in just a few minutes compared to the hours you probably spent earlier. All documents can be customized and personalized with your company’s branding, as well as saved in a secure location. 

Comparing PandaDoc vs DocuSign, one of the leading competitors for document creation, we have to rule out in favor of PandaDoc. The lack of document generation and editing, as well as analytics and insights, makes DocuSign a less useful tool for this particular matter. Proposify, on the other hand, may offer some diversity in this area with the ability to add videos to all proposals. 

Collaboration Made Easy 

Collaboration was another important factor for our PandaDoc review. The software offers many useful tools that will help each team organize better and complete tasks in less time. The platform further allows in-proposal activity logging, as well as the ability to comment (publicly or privately). With team workspaces and document commenting, which are not offered by some big brands such as Qwilr and Loopio, PandaDoc can make a big difference. Better organized teams will notice having workflows and tasks completed in a flash, reducing the time to finish an assignment from weeks to hours or maybe even minutes.

Real-Time Stats and Analytics

Many PandaDoc reporting tools will help you guide your business towards success. The software is very transparent when it comes to your documents. It shows you exactly what happens to the document and who has seen it while working on it as well as after you have sent it, a feature that not many brands offer. You will also have insight into how much time each viewer (customer, client, supplier, or vendor) spends on a page. You can use all this data to adjust your future documents to make them more compelling and engaging. Note that some competitors can also offer business insight data and more advanced reporting tools at the cost of approval workflows, comments, or eSignature certificates. 

PandaDoc API

Last but not least is the PandaDoc REST API – a collection of HTTPS endpoints that enable any application or programming language that includes HTTPS requests to send and receive document data from a PandaDoc account. The software’s API supports document creation and deletion, document and recipient names update, and document versioning.

Integrations

You can extend PandaDoc’s functionalities by integrating the platform with many third-party apps such as CRM, help desk, cloud storage, sales, marketing, accounting, payment gateway, and other business solutions. PandaDoc’s integration capabilities are far more superior than most of its competitors. The software also allows you to import data from these platforms and merge them straight into your documents. Some of the more popular PandaDoc integrations include:

• Salesforce
• SalesforceIQ
• HubSpot CRM
• Microsoft Dynamics CRM
• DropBox
• Box
• Stripe
• Insightly
• Google apps
• Nimble
• Nutshell
• Xero
• Prosperworks
• Capsule
• Zoho
• Pipedrive
• SugarCRM
• Zendesk 

Is PandaDoc Safe?

Security is a top priority for this platform. The company is dedicated to protecting all your sensitive data and does everything in its power to make sure that only you and your clients/partners can access them. The multi-layer PandaDoc security makes this one of the most reliable document management software currently available on the market. PandaDoc’s services are hosted on the Amazon AWS platform, and all data centers have physical security as well. The software is SOC II Type II certified. PandaDoc is GDPR and FERPA compliant.

Customer Service

This is another area where PandaDoc stands out. Their customer service team is dedicated to helping users overcome any difficulties they have encountered. That said, they do not offer phone support. They firmly believe that they can be of more significant assistance as online service. The customer service is available 24/7 and can be reached through email or live chat. As they say on their website – the internet is instant, making it the fastest way to help a user in need. 

In addition to the support team, the PandaDoc FAQ section in their Help Center can also provide solutions to users dealing with technical issues. The Help Center additionally features tutorials with screenshots, while a separate section on the vendor’s website answers questions about the legality of digital signatures. The platform further offers some helpful tips on how to draft quotes and contracts, which might come in handy for new employees, interns, etc. 

How Much Is PandaDoc?

PandaDoc offers a free option, as well as four paid plans that can be ordered either on an annual or a monthly basis. If you are willing to make a longer commitment, you can take advantage of the annual PandaDoc pricing since the vendor offers up to a 30% discount.

Free eSign

Free eSign is the first tier, and a great option if you are running a startup or have a cost-conscious business since, as the name suggests, it’s free. 

The plan offers essentials such as unlimited users, legally binding eSignatures, unlimited document uploads per month, and payments. Since the competition almost always charges for these features, PandaDoc’s Free eSign is a great alternative for small businesses. 

Individual

The Individual Plan is PandaDoc’s first paid option, meaning you can benefit from the PandaDoc discount for annual contracts. It’s priced at $9/month (annually) or $13/month (monthly). The plan was built for single users only, and offers the ability to create, eSign, and send sales documents from a single platform.

The Individual Plan comes with its own set of features such as unlimited legally binding eSignatures, up to five documents created per month, comprehensive media drag-and-drop document editor, real-time tracking and notifications, and over 400 professionally designed templates.

Most of the PandaDoc competitors also have an individual plan for single users. What makes PandaDoc stand out are its limitless capabilities. For example, DocuSign is priced at $10 (annually) or $15 (monthly) but they only offer 100 legally binding eSignatures. 

Proposify is another competitor that offers a slightly modified individual plan priced at $19 per month. Compared to the single user of PandaDoc, their account allows up to 3 users. The vendor also doesn’t provide eSignature certificates. If you need a single-use document manager — PandaDoc’s pricing will make more sense. If you, however, manage a really small team, Proposify may be a better fit. When we look at PandaDoc vs Proposify, the latter is a better option if you need real-time reporting, a content library, interactive quoting, custom fields, client input forms, and the ability to add videos to all proposals. 

Business

The Business Plan is priced at $49/user/month (annually) or $59/user/month (monthly). This package is recommended for small teams that need CRM integration and automation of sales document workflows.

The Business Plan offers legally binding eSignatures, comprehensive media drag-and-drop document editor, real-time tracking and notifications, and over 400 professionally designed PandaDoc templates, same as the previous plan. The difference between the two lies in the unlimited documents sent per month, custom branding, content library, CRM integration with HubSpot and similar software, as well as eSigning and approval workflows.

With more advanced document management features, Qwilr is one of PandaDoc’s biggest competitors. Their Business Plan starts at $75/month and the account is available for up to three users. It gives you access to features such as CRM and accounting tool integration, interactive pricing, and the ability to share data on all devices. Given the price-to-functionalities ratio, PandaDoc’s Business plan is the more cost-effective option. 

Salesforce CPQ is another PandaDoc alternative that’s usually favored by businesses already using other Salesforce products. The pricing starts at $75/user/month and comes with features such as fully integrated invoicing, complex product catalogs, branded quotes, and customized bundles. So, if you need to stay within the Salesforce ecosystem, this one wins over PandaDoc’s Business plan. However, you could also consider getting a quote for PandaDoc’s Enterprise package to check if it will be a cheaper alternative. 

Enterprise

The Enterprise Plan offers custom pricing based on your business needs. The plan was specifically created for larger teams that need more advanced features and integration with Zapier and Salesforce.

The package further features an unlimited number of team workspaces, custom user roles, team and content analytics and reporting, and single sign-on (SSO) PandaDoc support.

Some of PandaDoc’s competitors for enterprise-level document management are Proposify and HelloSign. Because they all offer custom pricing, it’s challenging to compare them based on the price alone. This is where you have to focus primarily on their respective advanced features. For more information, contact the vendors directly. 

For a better look into the plans, you can opt for a 14-day PandaDoc demo that will give you a decent idea of the software’s functionality and whether it will be useful for your company or not.

Final Verdict

PandaDoc’s features make this a simple yet powerful solution that will simplify your work and help you expand your business by finishing more projects in less time and with less effort. You will spend a minimum amount of time on documents, get all the necessary signatures within minutes, and have higher close rates. That sounds like a great deal, wouldn’t you agree? 

On the flip side, our PandaDoc review shows that the software lacks some features compared to the competition, and some of its most useful functionalities are only available with the more expensive tiers. There is a big gap between $9 and $49 – the prices of the second and third tiers. We would have liked to see one more plan between those two that unlocks some more features for those businesses that can’t afford the higher-priced package.

That said, we do think that PandaDoc offers good value for money, with its pros outweighing the cons.