Picture this, you're on a tight schedule trying to help one of your clients migrate data between software tools, but you can't find the process document. As a result, you might lose out on your client, impacting the quality of service and market reputation.
If you relate to the above scenario, it is time that you brace yourself with a document management system that not only eliminates the complexities of capturing and managing information technology (IT) documents but also enhances operational efficiency with a smooth document processing.
To simplify the software search for you, this article highlights the five top document management software for IT services based on user reviews, sorted in alphabetical order. For each product, we include overall user ratings along with the highest-rated parameter, review excerpts from industry professionals, and product pricing. Read more.
1. Bitrix24
*Analysis performed as of July 2023
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Highest-rated parameter
Commonly used by
Starting price
Device compatibility
Here are some review excerpts from information technology and services professionals who have used Bitrix24 for document management:
" It is an approach that is useful in every aspect because it allows for seamless and safe online communication, even from a distance, which improves workflow. The ability to navigate through various items and better understand the sales process is made possible by how simple it is to customize our pipeline as well as how readily automation can be added to it. It is a multi-operations software that enables multitasking in a variety of ways, including project management with robust communication tools, creating selling sites and automating sales. "
" Along with online storage and collaboration tools, it has all the required features and tools. its features and functionalities make it an excellent alternative for CRM optimization, process automation, project management, document incorporation, and communication enhancement. Since it encourages collaboration and makes teamwork easier, it is a well-liked application for both small and large enterprises. "
" It was awesome and even the FREE version of Bitrix24 offers a lot more features for a SME to maintain their projects. "
Read all Bitrix24 reviews here.
2. Box
*Analysis performed as of July 2023
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Highest-rated parameter
Commonly used by
Starting price
Device compatibility
Here are some review excerpts from information technology and services professionals who have used Box for document management:
" Box is well developed cloud storage application. Easy to use and it's able to support files of different format. Users are able to simultaneously edit a document at the same time and also it's accessible from any location. Customer support has been amazing and their pricing is very fair."
" Box is a very easy to use software, the new joins in my team were able to use it within days. It has good functionalities for version management, audit trails.Its also very fast as we upload files with huge data and it does not takes much time to load them. The box sync feature is really awesome since we can do our work without worrying about hardware/software malfunction. "
" It's a wonderful way to have this kind of cloud storage in a remote work culture where everyone can interact and operate as a team. The ability to view the site from any device is a fantastic feature. "
3. Dropbox Business
*Analysis performed as of July 2023
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Highest-rated parameter
Commonly used by
Starting price
Device compatibility
Here are some review excerpts from information technology and services professionals who have used Dropbox Business for document management:
" This is a very easy product to use and learn. DropBox is very user friendly and a lot of the backup, syncing, and sharing components are all done on the backend and always run in the background so you can still work on other tasks while DropBox does the rest. "
" It's a valuable tool for document sharing, customizing, downloading, security, and time limits. The cost is reasonable.It is also handy for virtual and simultaneous work with multiple users; it has a big storage capacity and automated backups. It syncs with any platform with Dropbox access. It's a fantastic method to exchange files with your colleagues and clients, and the option to share presentations is beneficial. "
" The software is very helpful in maintaining and updating the work on a day-to-day basis. It's very easy to track all the versions of a file as everything is autosaved on dropbox. Overall it's a very good experience and sharing files with clients has become very easy ever since. "
Read all Dropbox Business here.
4. FileCloud
*Analysis performed as of July 2023
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Highest-rated parameter
Commonly used by
Starting price
Device compatibility
Here are some review excerpts from information technology and services professionals who have used FlieCloud for document management:
" FileCloud is one of the best cloud file storage solutions, with lots of useful features such as their Sync desktop applications to allow users to sync files on the go. Support has been great with quick response times and helpful engineers. "
" FileCloud is an effective system for securely sharing data with internal/external customers. This tool is great for remote workers which provides effective collaboration. "
" The fact that we can send securely to users that don't have a license and we have the option for them to access via a portal - this has been huge and it's very helpful for us and our customers. "
Read all FileCloud reviews here.
5. Google Drive
*Analysis performed as of July 2023
Trial/Free Version
- Free Trial
- Free Version
Highest-rated parameter
Commonly used by
Starting price
Device compatibility
Here are some review excerpts from information technology and services professionals who have used Google Drive for document management:
" Despite the cons, overall it is the most complete and integrated application on the market. It meets the needs well and is easy to manipulate, after getting used to the format and dynamics of the application, everything is much easier, of course it is important to have a good internet link for those who travel a lot of data daily and use the desktop or file drive version stream that optimizes a lot at work. "
" Google drive is the application that has consistently provided storage for me without data breach or hitch and most importantly it's intuitive interface makes it easy for my students to share assignments easily to me through a link without always needing to have local copy of files clogging my local storage from submissions "
" I have been using Google Drive with a paid subscription for a very long time now and it has made my life and work only easier. Thanks to the entire ecosystem of google, all my related work and photos and videos and files are saved on it automatically and I don't have to worry about losing data or moments. Compared to all the other options, I found Drive to be the most inexpensive product for the value that it offers. I would and do definately recommend everyone to use Drive. "
Read all Google Drive reviews here.
What features do document management software offer?
The core document management systems’ features are:
Document capture: | Store, manage, and organize digital business documents. The feature allows users to convert paper-based documents into digital documents via scans or OCR (optical character recognition) technology to capture data from images and physical documents. |
Document storage: | Maintain a secure repository of digital documents, such as text files, spreadsheets, presentations, images, and PDFs. Control access to stored documents through user authentication and authorization. |
Full-text search: | Search for specific content within the document repository rather than relying on file names. The feature allows finding paragraphs, sentences, and individual words using keywords. |
Besides these core features, document management systems also commonly offer:
Access controls/permissions
Activity tracking
Archiving and retention
Collaboration tools
Compliance tracking
Customizable templates
Document classification
Electronic signature
File conversion
File sharing
Search/filter
Version control
Workflow management
How to choose the right document management software for your business
Here are some key considerations to help you find the best document management system for the business’s file-sharing and storage needs.
Evaluate user access management: Controlling access to documents is vital in ensuring confidentiality and security of critical business information. An ideal document management system should allow role-based access to documents and revoke them in real time due to potential risk of data leak. Plus, it should offer a document version control to track any changes made to the document at any point in its lifecycle, preventing unauthorized alterations.
Consider software that supports multiple document formats: A document management solution that supports multiple document formats (PDFs, text files, PPTs, images, etc.) ensures that all the documents can be managed and accessed within a unified system. This promotes operational efficiency and reduces the risk of scattered files across different platforms or storage locations.
Assess the team collaboration capabilities: An ideal document management software should offer team collaboration capabilities, including document sharing, version history, comments and tags, as well as notifications and alerts. These capabilities ensure on-time communication between team members, eliminating errors and delays in document processing.
Common questions to ask software vendors before purchase
These are some common questions you can ask vendors when assessing document management tools options for your team’s project needs:
Does the software offer automatic backups?
Automatic backups save you from the hassle of manually uploading and downloading documents to the backup servers. Plus, this feature ensures no new documents miss getting backed up when prioritizing other tasks. You need to check the time intervals for automatic backups and whether the time can be customized based on the frequency of new documents and updates. Also, check the time to recover the stored documents to the source destination.
How does the software handle document searches?
Ideally, you should be able to look for documents in the cloud storage or server using different filter types, including file name, author, file type, and date. Also, the software should allow searching for documents based on the text within using keywords and phrases.
Does the software allow role-based access to documents?
A document management system providing role-based access to documents includes read-only, read-and-write, and complete ownership controls. Additionally, some software tools enable restricting the downloads and printing of shared documents. This means that users can only take pre-set actions as the document owner or administrator decides.