The CryptPad Insider’s Guide

Everything we know about CryptPad in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.

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ToolGPAOctober 2026

CryptPad

The Insider’s Guide

End-to-end encrypted, open-source collaborative office suite

Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among docs and wiki tools, read from CryptPad’s own pages.

Made by XWiki SAS · checked Oct 6, 2026 · toolgpa.com

3.0GPA

01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from CryptPad’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on CryptPad’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 6, 2026.

Part 01 · Overview

Welcome

What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first

3.0

GPA, above 43 of the 51 other docs and wiki tools we grade

CryptPad is an open-source collaboration suite in which everything is encrypted in the browser, so the people running the service cannot read documents. Its apps cover rich text, documents, spreadsheets, presentations, kanban boards, code and Markdown, whiteboards, diagrams and forms, with changes synchronized in real time. It can be used free on public instances, hosted on your own server, or paid for on the flagship cryptpad.fr instance run by XWiki.

To get you started, here are 9 things to know about CryptPad, taken from its own pages and our grades.

It lives in a browser tab only, with no phone app, desktop app or integrations, and it's a suite with a drive rather than a wiki.

From our report card of CryptPad

1
Best for documents your host can't read
CryptPad is an office suite that encrypts everything in your browser first, so the people running the server can't read your documents.
2
Paid plans start at about $5.14 a month
As its pricing page puts it: €5 per month, or €55 per year, for the Personal plan on cryptpad.fr.
3
There is a free plan
Free registered account on cryptpad.fr with 1 GB of storage and 25 MB uploads. Guests can use every app without an account, but their documents are deleted after 90 days of inactivity.
4
It runs on Web
Web.
5
Encryption in the browser
All data is encrypted in the browser before it leaves the device, so the service and its administrators cannot see document contents or user data.
6
A suite of document apps
Rich Text, Document, Sheet, Presentation, Kanban, Code/Markdown, Form, Whiteboard and Diagram apps share import and export, history, a user list and a chat.
7
Collaboration without an account
Changes are synchronized in real time, and guests can open and edit shared documents in every app without giving any personal information.
8
A 3.0 GPA, above 43 of 51
That is against the other docs and wiki tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
9
Keep it
To replace CryptPad you would be making a spreadsheet engine with its formulas. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.

CryptPad at a glance

Pricing: Free plan, from €5 per month, or €55 per year, for the Personal plan on cryptpad.fr
Free plan: Yes
Free trial: None stated
Runs on: Web
Made by: XWiki SAS
Category: Docs & Wikis
Our grade: 3.0 GPA, very good

The report card

Best for documents your host can't read

CryptPad is an office suite that encrypts everything in your browser first, so the people running the server can't read your documents. Free accounts get 1 GB and 25 MB uploads, guest documents are deleted after 90 days idle, and paid plans priced in euros mostly add storage. It lives in a browser tab only, with no phone app, desktop app or integrations, and it's a suite with a drive rather than a wiki.

ToolGPA report cardCryptPadGraded Oct 10, 2026

Subject	Grade	Comment
Value for money	B	Personal is €5 a month or €55 a year on cryptpad.fr and Team €15 a month for 6 drives and 75 GB, which is inside the cheapest quarter of this category. What the money buys is mostly storage and priority support, mind, and a dedicated instance from XWiki starts at €3,000 a year for 50 users.
Free plan and trial	A	The whole suite is free: a cryptpad.fr account with 1 GB of storage, any public instance the project vets, or your own server with no caps at all. Guests can edit in every app without handing over a detail, though their documents go after 90 days idle and free uploads stop at 25 MB.
Features	B	Nine apps — rich text, documents, sheets, presentations, kanban, code, forms, whiteboards and diagrams — syncing live with history and a chat, all encrypted in the browser so the host can't read them, which nothing else here manages. It's a suite with a drive, not a wiki, and nothing connects to it.
Ease of use	B	No store rating on record, but there's nothing to set up and no account to make: a guest can open a shared document and start typing without giving any personal information.
Platforms and integrations	C	A browser tab and nothing else. The project's site lists no desktop or mobile apps, and the listing shows no integrations, so what joins CryptPad to the rest of your tools is a shared link.

Grade point averageVery good, out of 4.03.0

An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.

Who CryptPad is for

Fits if you don't want your host to be able to read your documents
Works for groups whose guests shouldn't have to make an account to edit

Who it is not for

Skip it if you want an app on your phone or desktop, as it's browser only
Tight if you're staying free with big files, since uploads stop at 25 MB and storage at 1 GB
Watch out: guest documents are deleted after 90 days of inactivity
Pricey if you want your own managed instance, which starts at €3,000 a year for 50 users
Not for you if you need a wiki or links to your other tools, as no integrations are on record

Good to know

Good for

Groups that do not want their host to be able to read their documents
Working with people who should not need to create an account
Schools and nonprofits: dedicated instances are half price for them
Organizations able to run their own instance

Worth knowing

Prices are in euros. Paid plans on cryptpad.fr run from €5 to €100 a month and mainly add storage and priority support.
A free cryptpad.fr account has 1 GB of storage and a 25 MB upload limit, and guest documents are deleted after 90 days of inactivity.
CryptPad runs in the browser; the project's site lists no desktop or mobile apps.
A dedicated instance starts at €3,000 a year for 50 users and 100 GB of storage.

Part 02 · Pricing

What it costs

Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved

~$5.14

A month to start. There is a free plan too

CryptPad has a free plan. Paid plans start at €5 per month, or €55 per year, for the Personal plan on cryptpad.fr.

Free
€0
A registered account on cryptpad.fr with 1 GB of storage, or an account on another public instance. Hosting your own instance is also free.
Personal
€5
per month, or €55 per year
5 GB storage quota and 1 drive on cryptpad.fr, with a 150 MB file upload limit and priority support.
Duo
€10
per month, or €110 per year
25 GB storage quota and 2 drives on cryptpad.fr, with priority support.
Team
€15
per month, or €165 per year
75 GB storage quota and 6 drives on cryptpad.fr, with priority support.
Org 25
€50
per month, or €500 per year
Organization plan with a 100 GB quota and 25 drives. Org 100 costs €100 a month or €1,000 a year for 150 GB and 100 drives.
Your Own Instance
From €3,000
per year (Mini: 50 users, 100 GB)
A dedicated instance from XWiki, managed in the cloud or supported on-premise, up to €25,000 a year for 1,000 users and 1 TB.

The free plan

Free registered account on cryptpad.fr with 1 GB of storage and 25 MB uploads. Guests can use every app without an account, but their documents are deleted after 90 days of inactivity.

Read from cryptpad.org on Oct 6, 2026.

Ways to pay less

Education
50% off a dedicated instance for education
Education customers get 50% off enterprise pricing for their own instance: from €1,500 a year for 50 users and 100 GB instead of €3,000.
Stated on cryptpad.org
Nonprofit
50% off a dedicated instance for nonprofits
Nonprofits get 50% off enterprise pricing for their own instance: from €1,500 a year for 50 users and 100 GB instead of €3,000.
Stated on cryptpad.org
Annual discount
Lower price with yearly billing on cryptpad.fr
Paying yearly costs €55 instead of €60 for Personal and €500 instead of €600 for Org 25, a saving of about 8% and 17%.
Stated on cryptpad.fr

Part 03 · Features

What it does

Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it

Place it runs: Web

End-to-end encrypted, open-source collaborative office suite. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: open source, self-hostable, end-to-end encrypted, real-time collaboration, kanban boards, documents, spreadsheets.

It's a suite with a drive, not a wiki, and nothing connects to it.

From our grade for features

Encryption in the browser: All data is encrypted in the browser before it leaves the device, so the service and its administrators cannot see document contents or user data.
A suite of document apps: Rich Text, Document, Sheet, Presentation, Kanban, Code/Markdown, Form, Whiteboard and Diagram apps share import and export, history, a user list and a chat.
Collaboration without an account: Changes are synchronized in real time, and guests can open and edit shared documents in every app without giving any personal information.
CryptDrive and teams: Registered users get a CryptDrive with folders, shared folders, templates and tags, file uploads, contacts and fine-grained access controls. Team drives and calendars support group work.
Self-hosting and public instances: CryptPad is free software that anyone can host. The project lists third-party public instances that passed its checks for an up-to-date version and recommended security settings.
Dedicated instances from XWiki: XWiki offers a managed cloud instance or on-premise support with your own domain, logo and colors, storage quota controls and single sign-on integration.

Where it runs

What it works with

Its own pages name no integrations.

CryptPad is made by XWiki SAS.

Part 04 · Standing

Where it stands

Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own

43/51

Other docs and wiki tools it is graded above

CryptPad's GPA of 3.0 is higher than 43 of the 51 other docs and wiki tools we grade, and level with 3.

It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 39 of 51) and worst on platforms and integrations (C, above 0).

Its paid plans start at about $5.14 a month, against a middle price of $16.50 for the category: 5 of the 41 others that charge start lower.

On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 1 tool scores higher and costs less.

Each grade against the category

Every bar is all 52 docs and wiki tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. CryptPad’s own letter is outlined.

BValue for money
Above 29 of 51
AFree plan and trial
Above 39 of 51
BFeatures
Above 21 of 51
BEase of use
Above 32 of 51
CPlatforms and integrations
Above 0 of 51

Price against what you get

Each dot is one of 47 docs and wiki tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. CryptPad is the marked dot.

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

Keep it, or make your own?

Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.

Keep it

To replace CryptPad you would be making a spreadsheet engine with its formulas. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.

It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 3.0 is higher than 43 of the 51 other docs and wiki tools we grade. It costs $61.63 a year. CryptPad is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself.

What you could make

Documents and kanban boards: an app builder makes these well.

What you could not

A spreadsheet engine with its formulas.
Several people working in it at the same moment.
End-to-end encryption done properly.
What a company asks for before it lets staff use something: single sign-on.
The depth: we grade its features B, which means it covers the whole job.

What this rests on. CryptPad’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.

Part 05 · Alternatives

The alternatives

The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side

Etherpad, HedgeDoc, ONLYOFFICE, Collabora Online and Proton Docs

The 5 tools CryptPad is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.

2.6GPA
Etherpad
Free
Open-source real-time collaborative editor you host yourself.
- Only Etherpad lists Windows, macOS and Linux apps.
- CryptPad is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- CryptPad also covers kanban boards and spreadsheets.
CryptPad and Etherpad compared in full
2.6GPA
HedgeDoc
Free
Open-source, self-hosted collaborative Markdown editor.
- CryptPad is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- CryptPad also covers kanban boards, documents and spreadsheets.
- HedgeDoc also covers notes, Markdown, diagrams and presentations.
CryptPad and HedgeDoc compared in full
3.4GPA
ONLYOFFICE
Free plan · from $20/mo
Open-source office suite for documents, sheets, slides and PDFs.
- Only ONLYOFFICE lists Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android apps.
- CryptPad is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- CryptPad also covers kanban boards.
CryptPad and ONLYOFFICE compared in full
2.4GPA
Collabora Online
Free plan · from $3.40/mo
Self-hosted, open-source office suite based on LibreOffice.
- Only Collabora Online lists Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android apps.
- CryptPad is end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- CryptPad also covers kanban boards.
CryptPad and Collabora Online compared in full
3.0GPA
Proton Docs
Free plan · from $3.99/mo
End-to-end encrypted collaborative documents inside Proton Drive.
- Only Proton Docs lists iOS and Android apps.
- CryptPad is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- CryptPad also covers kanban boards and spreadsheets.
CryptPad and Proton Docs compared in full

Part 06 · Questions

Quick answers

The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two

Questions, each answered in a line or two

The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.

Is CryptPad free?

CryptPad has a free plan. Free registered account on cryptpad.fr with 1 GB of storage and 25 MB uploads.

How much does CryptPad cost?

CryptPad lists 6 plans. Free: €0.

What platforms does CryptPad work on?

CryptPad is available on Web.

Does CryptPad offer any discounts?

CryptPad publicly lists the following: 50% off a dedicated instance for education; 50% off a dedicated instance for nonprofits; Lower price with yearly billing on cryptpad.fr.

Does CryptPad have an Android app?

No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 6, 2026. CryptPad is listed for Web.

Does CryptPad have an iPhone app?

No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 6, 2026. CryptPad is listed for Web.

Is CryptPad open source?

Yes. CryptPad is open source, according to its own site.

Is CryptPad end-to-end encrypted?

CryptPad describes itself as end-to-end encrypted on its own site. Nobody here has audited that.

Does CryptPad have a student discount?

50% off a dedicated instance for education. Education customers get 50% off enterprise pricing for their own instance: from €1,500 a year for 50 users and 100 GB instead of €3,000.

Who makes CryptPad?

CryptPad is made by XWiki SAS.

What are the alternatives to CryptPad?

The closest alternatives to CryptPad in our directory are Etherpad, HedgeDoc, ONLYOFFICE, Collabora Online and Proton Docs.

How does CryptPad compare with other docs and wiki tools?

CryptPad's GPA of 3.0 is higher than 43 of the 51 other docs and wiki tools we grade, and level with 3.

Is CryptPad good value for money?

ToolGPA grades CryptPad B for value for money. Its paid plans start at about $5.14 a month, against a middle price of $16.50 for the category: 5 of the 41 others that charge start lower.

Could I make my own version of CryptPad?

To replace CryptPad you would be making a spreadsheet engine with its formulas.

Where this guide comes from

The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from CryptPad’s own pages on Oct 6, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from CryptPad's own pages on 6 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-07-20.

Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by XWiki SAS. Prices change, so check cryptpad.org before you buy.

Part 07 · About

About ToolGPA

Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

3,189

Tools graded, in 94 categories

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries

What else is on toolgpa.com

Scan for the live page

Prices and grades as they are today

Quoting this guide?

Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:

ToolGPA, "CryptPad: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 6, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/cryptpad

Know someone choosing between docs and wiki tools?

Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/cryptpad/guide

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The best-graded docs and wiki tools after CryptPad, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.

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Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what CryptPad’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. CryptPad is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by XWiki SAS. Prices and plans change: check cryptpad.org before you buy.