How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Ratings come from G2, Capterra or Trustpilot, with the date we checked them.
Key takeaways
- Sales teams with a repeatable proposal process should shortlist PandaDoc and Proposify; both charge per user per month with free trials.
- Teams that sell through interactive web experiences rather than PDFs should look at Qwilr and GetAccept.
- Operations teams auto-generating documents from data (not writing proposals) need a different class of tool: Formstack Documents or Docupilot.
- Freelancers and small agencies wanting polished proposals fast should start with Better Proposals.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 PandaDoc | Sales teams with a repeatable proposal-to-signature process | See website (per-user pricing; Starter, Business, and Enterprise tiers) | 14-day free trial; limited free plan reported (confirm on vendor site) |
 Proposify | Agencies and sales teams wanting polished, on-brand proposals | See website (per-user pricing; Basic, Team, and Business tiers) | 14-day free trial; no free plan |
 Qwilr | Teams selling through modern interactive buyer experiences | See website (per-user pricing) | 14-day free trial; no free plan |
 Better Proposals | Freelancers, consultants, and small agencies wanting proposals fast | See website (per-user pricing) | 14-day free trial (no credit card required) |
 GetAccept | Sales teams running collaborative deals with multiple stakeholders | See website (per-user pricing) | 14-day free trial reported; no free plan found |
 Formstack Documents | Operations teams auto-generating documents from data sources | See website (platform pricing, not per-user) | 14-day free trial reported; no free plan found |
 Docupilot | SMBs automating routine paperwork like invoices and HR letters | See website (flat-rate monthly plans: Starter, Pro, Teams) | Free trial offered; plan limits on the vendor site |
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
The best document creation software
Document creation splits into two jobs that look similar but buy differently. One is proposals: designed, interactive, tracked documents that help sales teams win deals. The other is document generation: templated paperwork (contracts, invoices, HR letters) produced automatically from data in your CRM or forms. Buying a proposal tool for a generation job, or vice versa, is the classic mistake in this category.
The seven tools below cover both jobs. PandaDoc, Proposify, Qwilr, Better Proposals, and GetAccept serve the proposal side; Formstack Documents and Docupilot serve the generation side. Know which job you are hiring for before you compare.
#1
PandaDoc
Best for: Sales teams with a repeatable proposal-to-signature process
Visit pandadoc.com
Starting priceSee website (per-user pricing; Starter, Business, and Enterprise tiers)
Free plan14-day free trial; limited free plan reported (confirm on vendor site)
PandaDoc is the broadest proposal platform here: quoting, content locking, approval workflows, e-signature, and payment collection in one account. For sales teams with a repeatable process that is not complex enough for enterprise CPQ, that breadth replaces several tools.
The cost creep is the thing to model. Salesforce integration typically needs the Business tier, API access and CPQ features sit higher, and usage-based features like bulk send can add fees. Price the tier that includes your must-have integrations, not the entry tier. Setup is moderate, templates migrate easily, and annual billing meaningfully undercuts monthly. If your process is "proposal, negotiate, sign, collect," PandaDoc covers the whole chain.
What we like- End-to-end workflow from proposals and quotes to e-signature and payments
- Deep CRM integrations with content library and approval workflows
- Recipient tracking and document analytics
Watch out for- Per-user pricing scales steeply with team size
- API, CPQ, and SSO need higher tiers or add-ons
#2
Proposify
Best for: Agencies and sales teams wanting polished, on-brand proposals
Visit proposify.com
Starting priceSee website (per-user pricing; Basic, Team, and Business tiers)
Free plan14-day free trial; no free plan
Proposify leads with design. The editor produces genuinely good-looking proposals with interactive pricing tables that clients can configure themselves, which shortens the negotiation loop. Content libraries, engagement metrics, and e-signature come standard rather than gated.
The Basic tier's send cap makes it a trial tier in practice for any active sales team; budget for Team or above. As with PandaDoc, the integrations that matter (Salesforce, SSO, API) sit at the top tier. Setup is quick and onboarding is light. For agencies and SMB sales teams where the proposal itself is part of the pitch, the design quality justifies the shortlist.
What we like- Design-first editor with interactive quoting clients can adjust
- Content library, metrics, and e-sign included from low tiers
- Gentler learning curve than broader suites
Watch out for- Basic tier caps document sends, forcing upgrades for active teams
- Salesforce integration, SSO, and API need the Business tier
#3
Qwilr
Best for: Teams selling through modern interactive buyer experiences
Visit qwilr.com
Starting priceSee website (per-user pricing)
Free plan14-day free trial; no free plan
Qwilr rethinks the proposal as a web page, not a document. Interactive pages with embedded video, expandable pricing, and accept-and-sign built in produce engagement data PDFs cannot: you see which pages the buyer read and for how long. For teams selling to buyers who live in browsers, that experience edge is real.
The trade is formality. Buyers who need printable, legal-department-friendly contracts may still need a traditional document tool alongside. Entry pricing runs high for solo users, so this fits teams rather than freelancers. Setup is easy with templates, and integrations cover HubSpot, Salesforce, and Slack. If your buyers are modern and your deals are consultative, Qwilr's format wins attention.
What we like- Proposals as interactive, mobile-responsive web pages instead of static PDFs
- Rich embeds including video and interactive pricing
- Page-level engagement analytics
Watch out for- Weaker fit for traditional printable contract workflows
- Entry pricing is high for solo users
#4
Better Proposals
Best for: Freelancers, consultants, and small agencies wanting proposals fast
Visit betterproposals.io
Starting priceSee website (per-user pricing)
Free plan14-day free trial (no credit card required)
Better Proposals does one thing well: getting a good-looking proposal out the door fast. Pick a template, customize, send, track. For freelancers and small agencies, that simplicity beats the feature depth of enterprise suites they will never configure.
The ceiling is scalability. Growing sales organizations with approval workflows, role-based permissions, and governance needs will outgrow it; that is when PandaDoc or Proposify take over. Setup takes hours. For the target audience, though, the value is immediate: professional proposals without a learning curve or an enterprise contract.
What we like- Streamlined proposal workflow with minimal training
- Large template library with strong out-of-the-box design
- Fast adoption
Watch out for- Lacks depth for complex approval chains and enterprise governance
- Smaller integration ecosystem than the leaders
#5
GetAccept
Best for: Sales teams running collaborative deals with multiple stakeholders
Visit getaccept.com
Starting priceSee website (per-user pricing)
Free plan14-day free trial reported; no free plan found
GetAccept's unit is the deal room, not the document. Proposals live alongside personal video messages, live chat, and mutual action plans, with engagement analytics showing exactly how each stakeholder interacts. For complex B2B deals with buying committees, that visibility changes how reps follow up.
If you only need document generation, simpler tools cost less; GetAccept earns its price on collaborative selling. Setup is moderate, Salesforce and HubSpot integrations are native, and annual plans are the norm. For teams where the deal room is the workflow, the engagement insight is the differentiator.
What we like- Digital sales room combining proposals, video messages, chat, and e-sign
- Strong buyer-engagement tracking
- Mutual action plans for complex deals
Watch out for- Sales-room-centric, narrower as a pure document tool
- Public pricing detail is thin
#6
Formstack Documents
Best for: Operations teams auto-generating documents from data sources
Visit formstack.com
Starting priceSee website (platform pricing, not per-user)
Free plan14-day free trial reported; no free plan found
Formstack Documents, formerly WebMerge, is generation, not proposals. Upload a Word or PDF template, map fields to your data sources, and generate documents in bulk: contracts, invoices, reports, certificates. Conditional logic, audit trails, and HIPAA compliance suit regulated operations.
The pricing model is the consideration. It bills as a platform rather than per seat, so low-volume users may overpay compared to per-user proposal tools; high-volume automated generation is where the economics work. It can be bought standalone or as part of the Formstack Suite, with delivery to e-signature, cloud storage, or email. For operations teams, this is the right class of tool. For sales proposals, look above.
What we like- Merges data from forms, CRMs, and spreadsheets into PDF, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint templates
- 100-plus native integrations including Salesforce
- HIPAA-compliant with conditional logic
Watch out for- Platform pricing runs higher than per-user proposal tools at small scale
- Verify current plan details on the vendor site
#7
Docupilot
Best for: SMBs automating routine paperwork like invoices and HR letters
Visit docupilot.com
Starting priceSee website (flat-rate monthly plans: Starter, Pro, Teams)
Free planFree trial offered; plan limits on the vendor site
Docupilot is the SMB generation tool: templates plus integrations get routine paperwork automated in hours, with e-signatures built in. Invoices, contracts, HR letters, and reports flow from your existing apps through Zapier or direct integrations, on flat-rate monthly billing that small businesses can predict.
The ceiling is enterprise depth. Complex document assembly with heavy governance still belongs to the Conga and HotDocs class of tools. But for the large middle of businesses automating standard paperwork, Docupilot's speed-to-value and straightforward pricing are the appeal. The API covers custom workflows when no-code runs out.
What we like- No-code document automation with a real API
- Generates PDF, DOCX, Excel, and PowerPoint from thousands of apps
- Transparent SMB-friendly pricing
Watch out for- Newer, smaller vendor with less enterprise governance depth
- Very high-volume or regulated use cases may need more
Frequently asked questions
Should we buy a proposal tool or a document generation tool?
Proposals persuade; generation produces. If salespeople write and send the documents, buy a proposal tool (PandaDoc, Proposify, Qwilr). If systems produce the documents from data automatically, buy a generation tool (Formstack Documents, Docupilot). Many companies eventually need both.
How much does document creation software cost?
Proposal tools charge per user per month with tiered plans; generation tools charge platform or flat-rate monthly fees. Confirm current prices on each vendor's pricing page, since plan structures change. Model the tier that includes your required integrations, not the entry tier.
Do these tools include e-signature?
Most proposal tools do: PandaDoc, Proposify, Qwilr, Better Proposals, and GetAccept all include signing. Generation tools vary; Docupilot includes e-signatures, Formstack Documents delivers to signature workflows. If signature legality matters in your jurisdiction, verify the e-signature compliance claims directly.
Can we migrate our existing templates?
Generally yes. Proposal tools import and rebuild templates quickly; generation tools accept Word and PDF templates with field mapping. Budget time for rebuilding complex templates rather than assuming a clean import, and test generated output against your brand standards before going live.
What integrations matter most?
CRM integration (Salesforce, HubSpot) for proposal tools, so documents connect to deals. For generation tools, the data sources: forms, spreadsheets, and databases that feed the templates. Payment collection matters if you take deposits with proposals. Verify each integration is native, not a Zapier workaround, where reliability counts.
How do we evaluate free trials?
Run a real proposal or generation workflow end to end: template, data, send, sign. Time the setup. Check the output quality on mobile. And confirm which features are trial-only versus included in the tier you would buy; trials often show the top tier.
The tier trap to watch
Proposal tools make their money on tiers. The entry plan gets you the editor; the integrations that make the tool useful (Salesforce, SSO, API access) typically sit two tiers up. Before comparing entry prices, list your must-have integrations and price the tier that includes all of them. The cheapest entry price often belongs to the most expensive real configuration. For generation tools the trap is volume: platform pricing assumes throughput, so confirm the plan fits your actual monthly document count, not the vendor's example customer.
How we chose
We started with the searches buyers actually run: best document creation software and best document generation software. For each candidate we verified the vendor's homepage domain, compared proposal versus generation fit, pricing model, and company-size fit against practitioner discussion and public reviews. Where vendor pricing pages could not be verified during research, we wrote "See website" rather than repeating third-party figures as fact. The shortlist covers both jobs because proposals and generation are different purchases.
Sources we checked (7)
- https://pandadoc.com/
- https://www.proposify.com/
- https://qwilr.com/
- https://betterproposals.io/
- https://getaccept.com/
- https://www.formstack.com/products/documents
- https://www.docupilot.com/
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has 5+ years in B2B and SaaS SEO. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.