Clio vs Filevine (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Clio if

• Fits if you want trust reconciliation and the firm's books in the same tool as billing
• Works for firms that plan to add intake and legal AI from the same vendor later

Look elsewhere if

• Watch out: only Starter has a published price, and Core, Signature and Elite are quoted on request
• Tight if you're on Starter, which has no client portal, texting, conflict checks, document templates, custom fields or integrations
• Pricey if you want workflows, custom reports or SSO, which need Signature or Elite, and Clio Grow intake is an add-on on Core and Signature
• Watch out: card payments cost 2.95% (3.75% for Amex), eCheck 1% and Affirm 4.95%, and court e-filing is paid per filing
• Skip it if you want a long trial, as it's 7 days and there's no free plan

Pick Filevine if

• Fits if your firm runs heavy caseloads, such as personal injury or mass torts
• Works for prosecutors, public defenders and other government legal offices

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a price before a demo, as every package is quoted by the sales team
• Watch out: intake, depositions and signatures are separate packages, and analytics, court deadline rules and the client portal are extensions
• Not for you if you want to try case management first, since the free LOIS Explore trial is AI only and closed to existing customers
• Not for you if you'd rather set it up yourself, as setup runs through Filevine's certified partners
• Skip it if you need phone apps, as the listing has it as web only

Clio

• Clio publishes a price only for Starter; Core, Signature and Elite are quoted on request or after a demo.
• Starter leaves out the client portal, texting, conflict checks, document templates, custom fields and third-party integrations, which start on Core.
• Card payments cost 2.95% (3.75% for Amex), eCheck and ACH 1%, and Affirm pay-later 4.95%; court e-filing is paid per filing.
• Automated workflows, custom reports and SSO need Signature or Elite, and Clio Grow intake is an add-on on Core and Signature.

Filevine

• Filevine publishes no prices: every package is quoted by its sales team after a demo.
• Intake, depositions and signatures are separate packages; analytics, court deadline rules and the client portal are extensions to Matters.
• The free LOIS Explore trial covers AI research and drafting only, not case management, and is closed to existing Filevine customers.
• Setup is handled by Filevine's certified implementation partners rather than self-serve onboarding.

Clio

Matters, documents and calendars

Every plan stores contacts, matters and unlimited documents, with calendaring, tasks, a firm dashboard and Clio's iOS and Android apps.

Billing and online payments

Hourly, flat-rate and contingency billing, payment plans, UTBMS and LEDES codes, and online payment by card, eCheck, Apple Pay or Google Pay.

Legal accounting built in

Bank sync, a chart of accounts, trust and operating reconciliation, check printing and cash or accrual reports on every plan, with a free licence for the firm's accountant.

AI inside Clio Manage

From Core, AI drafts bills on a schedule, writes client updates from matter activity, turns documents into calendar events and tasks, and ranks tasks.

Clio Work

A legal AI workspace that reads a matter's files to build timelines and spot gaps, finds jurisdiction-matched authority checked by a citator, and drafts in Clio Work or Microsoft Word.

Client portal and texting

From Core, clients use the Clio for Clients portal and app to message, share documents, pay and follow their matter, and the firm can text reminders.

Filevine

Matter management

Each matter collects tasks, contacts, deadlines, calendar events, emails and notes, with custom reports and dashboards built from any field in Filevine.

Document management and assembly

Unlimited document storage with search, PDF splitting and combining, and document assembly that fills templates from matter data.

LOIS legal AI

Ask LOIS answers questions about a matter with cited sources, AI Drafting writes from case facts, LOIS for Word works inside Microsoft Word, and LOIS Legal Research checks case law.

Deposition tools

Schedule depositions and book court reporters, get live transcription and follow-up suggestions from Depo Copilot, and keep summarized transcripts in a searchable library.

Intake with Lead Docket

Captures and qualifies leads, tracks referral fees, takes online payments and moves signed clients into case files, with AI lead summaries as an option.

Timekeeping, billing and payments

Multiple timers, time tracked from email, LEDES billing codes and bulk invoicing, with Filevine Payments for online payment that it says is IOLTA compliant.

Clio

• Starter$49

  per user / month; monthly or annual billing not stated

  Matters, contacts, unlimited document storage, time and billing, online payments, trust accounting and built-in legal accounting. Three eSignatures.

• CoreCustom

  Adds AI billing and client updates, conflict checks, client portal and texting, document templates, integrations and 15 eSignatures. Price on request.

• SignatureCustom

  Adds matter stages, automated workflows, split and multi-currency billing, custom reports, SAML SSO and unlimited eSignatures. Price on request.

• EliteCustom

  Signature plus the Clio Grow intake suite: AI lead handling, intake forms, online booking, review requests and a website builder. Price on request.

Filevine

Pricing could not be confirmed. See filevine.com.

Clio

• Other savings

  Elite bundle saving

  Clio's pricing page labels Elite, which bundles Signature with the Clio Grow intake suite, as saving over 17%.

Filevine

No public discounts listed.