Clio vs Lawcus (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Clio: it is first in our ranking of law practice software, and it grades higher too, 2.8 against 2.2.
Checked Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 24, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Clio grades higher on the free plan, features and ease of use. Lawcus grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Clio
Practice management, legal accounting and legal AI for law firms
Lawcus
Practice management with billing and trust accounting for law firms
Which one is for you
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 Lawcus if
- Fits if you run a small firm and want cases, billing and trust accounting together
- Works for firms that want a mobile app for the team
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you want workflow or marketing automation: that is Elite at $79 a user
- Tight if you e-sign a lot: 3 a user a month on Essential and 5 on Growth
- Watch out: two-way texting is an add-on at $10 per attorney a month
- Watch out: Enterprise needs at least 10 users and shows no price
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAClioGood | 2.2GPALawcusFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CStarter is $49 a user a month, the price this category mostly starts at: its cheaper quarter and middle are both $49. The listing doesn't say if that's billed monthly or yearly, and Core, Signature and Elite are priced on request. | B$39 a user a month billed annually, inside the cheapest quarter of law-practice tools ($49 or less). |
| Free plan and trial | CA 7-day trial of Clio Manage with no card. No free plan, so a week is all you get before paying. | DA free trial is offered through a button, but its length and card terms are not stated. |
| Features | BMatters, unlimited documents, calendars, hourly, flat and contingency billing, online payments, trust accounting and legal accounting with bank sync, plus a client portal from Core and Clio Work for AI research and drafting. The listing shows no gap in the core job. | CMatters, billing, trust accounting, intake, portal and document automation. Text messaging is a paid add-on and workflows start at Elite. |
| Ease of use | AClio rates 4.8 on the US App Store from 9,084 ratings, which puts it at A on our ease ladder. | CNo store rating on record. You set up matters, billing and intake, so it is a C. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Outlook, Gmail, Word, QuickBooks, Xero, TrustBooks and Affirm, and a developer API. No desktop app on record. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Gmail, Microsoft 365, QuickBooks, Xero, Dropbox and Zapier listed. No desktop app. |
| Best for | small firms that want legal accounting built in | small-firm case management and billing |
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: Clio and Lawcus. How we grade
Price against what you get
Clio starts at $49 a month for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Lawcus starts at $39 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
Clio scores higher, and starts $10 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other law practice software on the chart, none scores higher than Clio for less, and none scores higher than Lawcus 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
- Clio also covers bookkeeping.
- Lawcus also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| Clio | Lawcus | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $49 per user / month (Starter); billing basis not stated | $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial of Clio Manage, no credit card required | Free trial offered through the Start Trial button; length not stated on the pages read. |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Themis Solutions Inc. (Clio) | Lawcus |
| Price read from | web.archive.org (not the vendor's own page) | lawcus.com |
| Checked | Oct 24, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Lawcus
- Prices are per user; Enterprise needs at least 10 users and has no published price.
- Text messaging is an add-on on the three paid tiers, and the pricing page does not give its price.
- E-signatures are capped per user each month (3 on Essential and 5 on Growth, per the plan table).
- Workflow automation, marketing automation and the custom report builder need the Elite plan.
Key features
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.
Lawcus
- Matter and contact management
- Matters link to people and companies, with statute-of-limitation alerts, private matters and kanban-style pipelines.
- Billing and trust accounting
- Timers, expenses, invoices, retainers and trust accounting are included from the Essential plan; online payments accept ACH, eCheck and card.
- Client intake and portal
- Lead management, branded intake forms and a client portal for messages, invoices and document sharing.
- Document automation
- Templates generate pleadings and contracts, with storage integrations for Google Drive, OneDrive, Box and Dropbox.
- Workflow automation
- The Elite plan can auto-create tasks, send emails and move matters forward, with up to 100 workflows listed.
- Mobile app
- An app for the App Store and Google Play signs in with an existing Lawcus account.
Plans
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.
Lawcus
Essential$39
per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly)
Case and matter management, billing and invoicing, and trust accounting. Includes 3 e-signatures per user per month.
Growth$59
per user / month, billed annually ($69 billed monthly)
Adds QuickBooks and Xero integration, Google and Office 365 integration, Nova AI and custom fields.
Elite$79
per user / month, billed annually ($89 billed monthly)
Adds workflow automation, marketing automation, advanced dashboards and a custom report builder.
EnterpriseCustom
For firms with at least 10 users: dedicated onboarding and account manager, custom feature development, private cloud and SLA options.
Ways to pay less
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%.
Lawcus
- Annual discount
Annual billing is $10 less per user
Annual prices are $39, $59 and $79 per user per month against $49, $69 and $89 billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Clio or Lawcus?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Lawcus is cheaper to start with: $39 a month for each person, against $49 a month for each person for Clio. Clio starts at $49 per user / month (Starter); billing basis not stated, and Lawcus starts at $39 per user / month, billed annually ($49 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Clio or Lawcus?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Clio nor Lawcus has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
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.