Adobe Acrobat Sign vs Scrive (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Scrive grades higher than Adobe Acrobat Sign: 2.4 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Scrive grades higher on the free plan, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Adobe Acrobat Sign
Adobe's e-signatures, sold inside Acrobat plans or on their own
Scrive
E-signatures with European eID verification, portal and API
Which one is for you
Pick Adobe Acrobat Sign if
- Fits if your team edits PDFs in Acrobat already and wants signing included
- Works for teams that send many agreements, since team plans put no cap on e-signatures
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you only want e-signatures, as you're paying for a whole PDF editor
- Not for you if you might cancel early, as every plan is a year's commitment and leaving late costs half of what's left
- Too light for regulated work, as Adobe keeps its full compliance for Sign Solutions, sold through sales
- Pricey if you want bulk send or branding, which need Pro at $23.99, or the AI Assistant, an add-on below Studio
- Watch out: the Sign phone app is rated 2.2 on iPhone, and no Android app is listed
Pick Scrive if
- Fits if you sign with Nordic or European eIDs and need an evidence package
- Works for a small team on yearly billing
Look elsewhere if
- Watch out: BankID and other eIDs, SMS and the forms builder are paid add-ons
- Skip it if you want dollar prices, as the English pages show euros only
- Tight if you test it: the trial covers 10 documents for 14 days
- Watch out: the eSign API, eID Hub and ID Check are priced separately
- Pricey if you need Business features, at €49 a user
How we grade them
| 1.6GPAAdobe Acrobat SignWeak | 2.4GPAScriveFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CAbout $51 a month for three on Acrobat Standard for teams, at $16.99 a licence on the annual plan billed monthly. That's the dearer end of this category, but it includes a full PDF editor and uncapped e-signatures. Bulk send and branding need Pro at $23.99. | C€21 a user a month billed yearly for Essential, which is in the middle of the category. eID options, SMS and the forms builder cost extra on Business at €49. |
| Free plan and trial | DNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial of Pro or Studio for teams, but it runs on into a yearly commitment: cancel more than 14 days after it ends and you pay half of what's left. | CA 14-day trial with 10 documents included, and no free plan. The listing doesn't say whether a card is needed. |
| Features | CSend from Acrobat, several signers at once, tracking, audit trails, web forms and branding, plus the PDF tools. But Adobe itself says the signing in Acrobat Standard and Pro doesn't reach the compliance level of Acrobat Sign Solutions, which is sold through sales. | BeID signing, templates and branding, an evidence package and archive, integrations and automation, a store-network edition and an API. The listing shows add-on costs, not missing core features. |
| Ease of use | F2.2 from about 650 App Store ratings for the Acrobat Sign app, by far the lowest in this category. You can send from Acrobat on a computer instead, but on a phone this is the app. | CNo store rating on record. A web app with templates, plugins and eID setup to configure. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, desktop Acrobat and iPhone, with Word, Teams, Salesforce, Workday, Box, Dropbox, Google Drive and OneDrive. No Android app is listed, so it misses an A. | BWeb, with Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, Zapier, Make and Power Automate connections and an API. The eSign GO edition has iOS and Android apps. |
| Best for | teams that need Acrobat's PDF tools anyway | European e-signatures with eID |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Adobe Acrobat Sign and Scrive. How we grade
Price against what you get
Adobe Acrobat Sign starts at $16.99 a month for each person and scores 1.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Scrive starts at about $23.46 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Scrive scores higher, and starts $6.47 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other e-signature and proposal tools on the chart, 19 score higher than Adobe Acrobat Sign for less, and 4 score higher than Scrive for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Scrive also covers templates and workflow automation.
At a glance
| Adobe Acrobat Sign | Scrive | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $16.99 per license / month, annual plan billed monthly | €21 per user / month, billed annually |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of Acrobat Pro or Acrobat Studio for teams, for up to 10 licenses | 14-day free trial of eSign Online, with 10 documents included. |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Adobe | Scrive |
| Price read from | adobe.com | scrive.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Adobe Acrobat Sign
- Small teams cannot buy Acrobat Sign on its own: it comes inside an Acrobat for teams plan, and the standalone Acrobat Sign Solutions is sold only through sales.
- Plans are annual commitments paid monthly; cancelling more than 14 days after the trial ends costs half the remaining commitment.
- Adobe says the e-signature features in Acrobat Standard and Pro do not offer the compliance level of Acrobat Sign Solutions.
- The Acrobat AI Assistant is a paid add-on on Standard and Pro and is included only in Acrobat Studio.
Scrive
- Prices on the English pages are in euros; a US dollar price list was not found.
- BankID and other eID options, SMS authentication and the forms builder are add-ons with extra fees on Business.
- Per-user prices are billed annually, and the free trial covers 10 documents for 14 days.
- The eSign API, eID Hub and ID Check are priced separately and were not recorded as plans.
Key features
Adobe Acrobat Sign
- Send from Acrobat
- Request e-signatures directly from Acrobat on desktop, web or mobile, with no usage cap on e-signatures in Acrobat for teams plans.
- Several signers at once
- Send one document to multiple signers, each of whom gets a personal copy; Acrobat Pro adds bulk sending.
- Tracking and audit trails
- Real-time status and notifications for documents out for signature, with audit trails kept for completed ones.
- Web forms and branding
- Turn PDFs or Word files into fillable forms, post signable web forms on a website and add your logo to agreements.
- PDF tools in the same plan
- The Acrobat plans also edit, convert, combine, password-protect and, in Pro, compare and redact PDFs.
- Cloud storage and app links
- Store signed files in Box, Dropbox, Google Drive or OneDrive, and send from Microsoft Word, Teams, Salesforce or Workday.
Scrive
- eID signing
- Signers can view and sign with electronic IDs and identity verification services such as BankID, MitID, Onfido and Scrive QES on Business and above.
- Templates and branding
- Business adds templates, contacts, request attachments and custom branding.
- Evidence and archive
- Essential includes an e-archive, an evidence package and document forwarding.
- Integrations and automation
- Plugins and integrations cover Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, CRM and HR tools, and workflow builders such as Zapier, Make and Power Automate.
- eSign GO
- A plug-and-play product for store networks and offices, priced per month by the number of locations.
- API and forms
- An eSign API and web forms products are priced on their own pages. Enterprise adds SSO and bulk send.
Plans
Adobe Acrobat Sign
Acrobat Standard for teams$16.99
per license / month, annual plan billed monthly
Acrobat plan with PDF editing and conversion that can request e-signatures and track them; the AI Assistant is an add-on.
Acrobat Pro for teams$23.99
per license / month, annual plan billed monthly
Adds bulk send, brand customization, PDF comparison and redaction, plus 24x7 support; the AI Assistant is an add-on.
Acrobat Studio for teams$29.99
per license / month, annual plan billed monthly
Everything in Acrobat Pro plus PDF Spaces, the Acrobat AI Assistant and Adobe Express Premium.
Acrobat Sign SolutionsCustom
The standalone e-signature product, sold through sales, with unlimited seats, deeper integrations and compliance features.
Scrive
Essential€21
per user / month, billed annually
eSign Online for personal use or small teams: unlimited documents, e-archive, evidence package and document forwarding.
Business€49
per user / month, billed annually
Adds eID and ID verification options, templates, contacts, custom branding, plugins and integrations. eID, SMS and forms builder are paid add-ons.
EnterpriseCustom
Quote-based eSign Online plan with an extended SLA, bulk send, SSO, configurable account structure and bundled document sending.
eSign GO Team€495
per month for 5 locations
Plug-and-play eSign GO for store networks and offices, with iOS and Android apps and an evidence package. Company is €1,650 a month for 20 locations.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Adobe Acrobat Sign or Scrive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Adobe Acrobat Sign is cheaper to start with: $16.99 a month for each person, against about $23.46 a month for each person for Scrive. Adobe Acrobat Sign starts at $16.99 per license / month, annual plan billed monthly, and Scrive starts at €21 per user / month, billed annually.
Which has a free plan, Adobe Acrobat Sign or Scrive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Adobe Acrobat Sign nor Scrive has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Adobe Acrobat Sign and Scrive run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Adobe Acrobat Sign lists an iOS app. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.