The Best Contract Management Solutions in 2023

The term contract management can be used to describe a variety of activities. For some companies, contract management is something like a folder in a desk drawer. Others entrust a single team member with worksheet management and change management. 

Contracts are the universal language of business: almost every euro that flows into or out of a company is underpinned by a contract. For this reason, contract management software is becoming increasingly popular with companies of all sizes. A good contract management system should be able to automate contract requests, approvals and maintenance processes. But beyond that, it can do much more to help a company improve efficiency, strengthen business relationships and protect its interests.

What is a Contract Management Software?

When people talk about contract management software, they mean one thing above all: automated contract lifecycle management (CLM) software.

Contract management software offers a significant advantage by allowing lean business and legal teams to focus on more complex, higher value tasks rather than spending a lot of time on large volumes of routine contracts.

Another benefit of CLM software is that it facilitates the creation, signing and distribution of legal documents. These cloud and on-premise solutions help your team centralise contracts and reduce the time spent sending documents back and forth between partners during negotiations.

Here are some of the most important features that should be found in the best contract management software.

Security: Internal security should protect your contracts from unauthorised edits and changes. Any good contract management software should include end-to-end encryption to keep all sensitive data private. These security measures should be manageable through user permissions and automatic change notifications to ensure your organisation's privacy and data protection.

Organisation: A good contract management system will also allow you to search and quickly retrieve your entire database, whether it is on-site or in the cloud. Within the software, you should be able to easily build and maintain your storage hierarchy.

Tracking: Notifications and tracking features should keep your entire team informed about the progress of a contract. These features significantly reduce the time it takes for a contract to go from creation to agreement, especially if the document is sent electronically.

Reporting: Contract management systems with reporting and analysis capabilities help your team identify weaknesses in the signing process and improve speed and compliance. Reports can be generated to help you understand where your processes are failing and better predict and model best practices throughout the contract lifecycle.

We have compiled a list of the current best contract management apps that can provide scalable contract creation, execution and monitoring solutions for legal teams, sales teams and small businesses.

What Makes Good Contract Management Software?

A good contract management solution should be accessible from anywhere, at any time, and have appropriate security measures in place. This accessibility would allow all stakeholders to access important contract information from their laptops or mobile devices and ensure they never miss a deadline or opportunity. In addition, a customizable contract solution can be tailored to the specific needs of the organization so that it can capture all the necessary data and processes.

Collaboration is another important feature of a good contract management solution. Most good software solutions should enable effective, straightforward and fast collaboration between the various parties involved in the contract management process, including the legal, procurement, sales and finance departments. This ensures that all parties are aware of the status of each contract at all times, enabling them to make informed decisions about their company's legal and financial obligations.

The level of possible and flawless integration with other business systems can also play a crucial role for most companies. The best contract management solutions should integrate seamlessly with other systems such as CRM, ERP and accounting software to streamline the entire process. Features that enable automation can also be leveraged to reduce manual labor and improve efficiency. Most CLM solutions should offer functionality to automate manual tasks such as document creation, contract review and approval, and contract renewal reminders.

Robust reporting and analytics capabilities are also critical to a good contract management solution. Mature solutions should provide stakeholders with the data they need to monitor contract performance and identify areas for improvement.

Last but not least, a good contract management solution should be user-friendly, intuitive and easy to use, requiring as little training as possible. It should also be cost-efficient and offer a high ROI by shortening contract durations, improving compliance and reducing legal risks.

With these features, a good contract management solution can help companies streamline their processes and achieve incredible results in their operations and ultimately improve their bottom line.

The best contract management software

top.legal

top.legal is a cloud-based solution for managing and automating contract processes. We have created a dedicated digital workspace where all parties can centrally manage contracts, get real-time insights into agreements and optimise document creation, contract workflow and collaboration in one place. 

With top.legal, you can drastically reduce the time and resources needed to manage and administer all your contracts. Our CLM software helps you manage, track and automate every step of your contract lifecycle, whether you are a small, medium or large company.

Price range: On request

Why choose top.legal?

• We provide legally vetted contract templates that allow legal and business users to quickly enter the relevant information, customise specific clauses to the counterparty or assignment at hand, and distribute the contract for quick execution.

• You can easily and securely sign your contracts electronically to simplify your work, reduce costs and speed up your processes.

• Seamless integrations with leading platforms: You can connect your contract management platform with the applications you already use. 

• You can share documents internally and externally via a link or allow the other party to access the contract from a single location, including signing.

• With a comprehensive contract management dashboard, you get actionable insights into all elements of contract management, including milestones, deliverables, clauses, commitments, contractors and other common contract qualities.

PandaDoc

PandaDoc is an all-in-one contact management solution that allows you to customise, negotiate and digitally sign complex contracts. It includes a variety of templates as well as a library of pre-tested clause options that allow you to quickly create error-free professional documents. You can also set up renewal reminders and automatically keep track of upcoming renewals. The system integrates with HubSpot CRM, Pipedrive, Salesforce, Box, PayPal, Slack and more. This contract management software is suitable for businesses of all sizes.

Price range: $9 for individuals to $49 for businesses.

Why choose PandaDoc?:

• PandaDoc offers a complete contract lifecycle management system with strong security features.

• It allows you to share documents and use electronic signatures for smooth paperless transactions.

• The software includes automatic reminder functions to ensure that no deadlines are missed.

• It has content locking options and granular user permissions to ensure that confidential documents cannot be viewed by unauthorised persons.

• It includes an integrated document creator, so there is no need for a separate platform to create contracts.

You can also read this article where we examine Pandadoc's imitations for legal issues and contracts.

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ContractWorks

ContractWorks offers a cost-effective solution for managing your contacts with minimal effort. It has a simple and intuitive user interface. The system is easy to set up and requires no special skills. It offers artificial intelligence (AI) technologies that help you automate some of your workflows. ContractWorks is suitable for a wide range of industries and company sizes and can be implemented departmentally or company-wide.

Price range: $600 to $800 per month for unlimited corporate users.

Why choose ContractWorks:

• It acts as a secure contract repository and stores all documents of your written agreements.

• It has a robust reporting suite to help you gain insight into your contract lifecycles.
  

• It has OCR text search and contract tagging tools to make it easier to find files.

• It allows you to brand the entire contract management database to give it a more professional look.

• You do not need to use a third-party application as the programme has an integrated tool for electronic signatures.

Ironclad

This software is designed to help legal teams automate workflows and produce relevant reports. Editing contracts is also a breeze thanks to the platform's intuitive and easy-to-use drag-and-drop interface. The best thing about Ironclad is that you don't need any technical knowledge to use it. This is due to the aforementioned drag-and-drop system that lets you preview everything and make changes without leaving the platform.

Price range: No price information on the website.

Why choose Ironclad:

• It has a workflow designer and a drag-and-drop user interface.

• Users have access to powerful in-app editing and negotiation tools.

• It has a dynamic repository that makes contract data accessible in real time.

• Features such as Activity Feed, Word Native and email integration allow users to trigger multiple approvals and track activities.

• It includes a contract repository with automated naming and storage capabilities that allow users to organise, search and control data across platforms.

Concord

With this contract management software, you can create contracts and manage all your negotiations from a single place. Users can upload an unlimited number of contracts to the platform, use templates to create documents, chat with anyone, automate workflows and create custom reports. Salesforce, DocuSign, Word, Google Drive, Box and Dropbox are all integrated into the system and your data is automatically backed up. You can also invite anyone to review, edit and sign your documents with Concord. It's best suited for large companies.

Price range: prices range from $100 to $195 per creator per month plus $50 to $95 per staff member per month.

Why choose Concord:

• It contains a document editing function and a version control system.

• Advanced change management and custom identification policies are available to users.

• It provides deadline alerts to help you keep track of contract renewals.

• It has tools for data export and localisation.

• It comes with an API tool that allows you to adapt its functions to your changing business needs.

Icertis

Icertis is an easy-to-use and intuitive cloud-based contract management solution that helps you turn your contracts into high-value assets that drive your business forward. This contract management platform enables companies to manage their contracts more efficiently on the sell-side, buy-side and across enterprises, and offers open interfaces for seamless integration with the most popular ERP and CRM systems on the market.

Price range: No price information on the website.

Why choose Icertis:

• It includes a step-by-step wizard and self-service tools, as well as a very modern and intelligent interface.

• Using your smartphone or tablet, you can easily create, edit and negotiate contracts, as well as submit proposals and amendments and approve contracts.

• Works seamlessly with popular Microsoft applications, including Microsoft Office.

• It offers comprehensive multilingual support.

• The software provides an intuitive and role-based experience for all users.

Conga

Conga is a comprehensive contract management platform that manages every aspect of the contract lifecycle. It has a state-of-the-art system that enables the creation of contracts using standard company agreements, secure online negotiations and much more.

The CLM solution has helped businesses become more efficient by reducing the amount of data, documents, contracts and reports. It is known for its suite of solutions that meet the needs of the entire business lifecycle by streamlining and automating tasks that are performed from Salesforce, such as data management, automated creation of enterprise-quality documents, contract lifecycle management and comprehensive reporting.

Price range: Started from $50 per user per month.

Why choose Conga:

• Integration with CPQ, CRM and EPR providers is seamless.

• Financial and legal compliance reports can be accessed in real time.

• This software is easy to use thanks to AI insights and simple step-by-step wizards.

• You can create a clause library with pre-approved clause bundles

ContractSafe 

This contract management software has a number of useful features and offers different pricing options. It is easy to set up and use the platform. ContractSafe focuses on storage and sharing, as well as security and notification.

With ContractSafe's advanced search functions, you can search any document for a keyword. You can assign tags to your contracts to quickly group them using the tagging function. The company does not offer full lifecycle management. Small and medium-sized companies benefit most from it.

Price range: Prices for the Basic plan start at $299/month for 500 active users and go up to $899/month for 5,000 active users in the Enterprise plan.

Why choose ContractSafe:

• It can support an unlimited number of users and is free from the typical complex user rights found in other applications.

• Provides a simple and intuitive keyword search function to quickly find contracts, reports and other business documents.

• All stored and transmitted documents are encrypted. Malware, virus and intrusion detection functions are also included in the software.

• Provides free implementation, in-product support and individual training

• It contains a quick search function that also works with scanned documents.

SpringCM

SpringCM (acquired by DocuSign) creates, automates, manages and stores your documents and contracts, streamlines your business processes and enables you to close deals faster. It also makes it easier for your customers to work with you: When your documents flow, so does your work. SpringCM goes beyond contract management by integrating a robust and scalable workflow engine that can automate even the most complex document processes. It allows you to standardise your business processes and make them more visible at every stage.

Price range: From $40 to $80 per user per month.

Why choose SpringCM:

• Enables the quick creation of new contracts by using ready-made templates to read in and populate metadata from other systems.

• The software is accessible via mobile devices and offers various self-help options that support different workflows.

• The user-friendly folder structure makes organising and tagging documents in a single, searchable location a breeze.

• For an accurate audit trail, you can track all changes and view multiple versions of the same contract.

SAP Ariba

Although SAP Ariba is a cloud-based procurement platform, it has an excellent contract lifecycle management system. Designed for both buyers and sellers, this tool helps users avoid paper and ink when creating and managing contractual agreements. You can use it to digitally manage procurement and sales contracts, intellectual property licences and internal agreements. You can even automate the lifecycle of contracts and standardise processes with this application.

Price range: No price information available.

Why choose SAP Ariba:

• It includes automatic alerts and customisable reports for managing the contract lifecycle.

• It has tools that are not just for contract management.

• It has integrations for electronic signatures so you can manage contracts electronically.

• It strengthens compliance management by overseeing the contract administration process from inception to completion.

• It offers end-to-end commerce solutions that allow you to manage the contract lifecycle in line with your business processes.