Formlio vs PandaDoc: web proposals for creative studios
Formlio and PandaDoc both get proposals signed online. PandaDoc fits sales and operations teams that need contracts, CRM sync and payments, which start on Business at $49 a seat a month. Formlio fits studios, agencies and freelancers who want proposals that look like their own work, with their fonts, motion and session replay from $21.58 a seat.
What you pay.
Prices in USD, per seat. Checked on pandadoc.com, support.pandadoc.com and formlio.com on 2026-11-05.
| Plan | Formlio | PandaDoc |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes. Every feature, 2 publications per 30 days, with a Made with Formlio badge | Yes. 5 documents a month, without custom branding or pricing tables |
| First paid plan, one seat | Starter: $27 a month, or $259 a year. 5 publications per period | Starter: $19 a month, billed yearly ($228 a year) |
| Your brand, no vendor badge | Starter and up | Custom branding from Business: $49 a month, billed yearly. "via PandaDoc" leaves email subjects on the same plan |
| Your own domain | Pro: $41 a month, or $394 a year. Documents and links on your domain | Emails only: paid add-on on Business annual. Document links stay on app.pandadoc.com |
| Extra fees | None. Viewers are free; tax added at checkout | Usage credits for API, Zapier, Make, Forms and bulk send, up to $5 per document in overage. Salesforce is a paid add-on |
Sources:PandaDoc pricing (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: white-label delivery emails (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: remove via PandaDoc from subject (2026-11-05)Formlio pricing (2026-11-05)
Which one makes a proposal look like your studio made it?
PandaDoc's drag-and-drop editor is quick to pick up, and its themes control colours, fonts, tables, headers and backgrounds across a document. Video blocks take Wistia, Vidyard, YouTube and Vimeo links. Custom fonts come from Google Fonts only, and PandaDoc lists custom branding from Business.
Formlio is made for proposals that are part of the pitch. Upload your own fonts on any plan, Free included. Blocks move as the client scrolls: text reveals, number tickers, hand-drawn highlights, gallery transitions. And you can pin a video or voice bubble next to your pricing to walk the client through it yourself.
What does a small studio pay to send proposals in its own brand?
PandaDoc Starter, at $228 a seat a year, costs less than Formlio Starter at $259. But PandaDoc lists custom branding from Business, at $49 a seat a month billed yearly, with no seat minimum listed. Formlio Starter removes the Made with Formlio badge and allows five publications per billing period; unlimited publications and your own domain need Pro, at $394 a seat a year.
What can you see after you hit send?
PandaDoc sends real-time notifications and keeps an audit trail on every plan. From Business, recipient analytics show views, total time, time per page, PDF downloads and link clicks, and its blog describes engagement heatmaps that summarise which sections got the most attention. For signing, it names ESIGN, UETA and eIDAS, and adds qualified electronic signatures on annual Business and Enterprise plans.
Formlio shows opens and time per section, then adds mouse-tracking heatmaps and a full session replay on every plan, so you see where the client paused on your pricing. Clients approve with a slide or sign on the page, and each signature records consent, time, IP and a fingerprint of the document. Formlio signatures comply with eIDAS in the EU and ESIGN and UETA in the US.
What each one does.
Checked against each product's site and help docs on 2026-11-05.
| Feature | Formlio | PandaDoc |
|---|---|---|
| Design | ||
| Templates | ||
| Your own fonts | Upload files, every plan | Google Fonts only |
| Blocks that animate on scroll | ||
| Video embeds | ||
| Engagement | ||
| View notifications | ||
| Time per section or page | Per section, every plan | Per page, Business and Enterprise |
| Heatmaps | Mouse tracking, every plan | Section attention summaries |
| Session replay | ||
| Named viewers | Private link, every plan | Recipient analytics, Business and Enterprise |
| Closing | ||
| Interactive quotes with optional add-ons | Every plan | Business and Enterprise |
| E-signature | ||
| Multiple signers | ||
| Collect payment on the page | Business and Enterprise | |
| Integrations | ||
| CRM (HubSpot, Pipedrive, Salesforce) | From Business; Salesforce is a paid add-on | |
| Zapier | Optional, usage credits | |
| Slack | ||
| Public API | Limited on Free; usage credits on paid plans | |
| ChatGPT and Claude connector | ||
Sources:PandaDoc pricing (2026-11-05)PandaDoc features (2026-11-05)PandaDoc custom branding (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: document design (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: content blocks (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: document analytics (2026-11-05)PandaDoc blog: document tracking (2026-11-05)PandaDoc help: optional pricing items (2026-11-05)PandaDoc e-signature requests (2026-11-05)PandaDoc official facts (2026-11-05)Formlio pricing (2026-11-05)
When is PandaDoc the better choice?
Choose PandaDoc if your documents run through a sales or contract process. It covers contracts, redlining, CRM integrations, payments and an API, and adds qualified electronic signatures, ID verification and optional CPQ. Teams that need HIPAA compliance or high-volume document generation are also better served there. And if you mainly need low-cost signatures, its Starter plan costs less than Formlio Starter.
Choose Formlio if you're a studio, agency or freelancer whose proposal is part of the pitch. You get your own uploaded fonts, motion, mouse-tracking heatmaps and session replay on every plan, and a free plan with every feature. Formlio has no CRM integration or payment collection today.
Common questions about Formlio and PandaDoc.
Price, free plans, e-signatures, CRM, custom domains and switching, answered with the numbers.
It depends on what you need. PandaDoc Starter is $228 per seat a year, below Formlio Starter at $259. But PandaDoc lists custom branding, pricing tables, payments and recipient analytics from Business, at $588 per seat a year. Formlio includes those branding, quoting and analytics features on Starter, with five publications per period.
Both have one. PandaDoc Free covers e-signatures with five documents a month, without custom branding or pricing tables. Formlio Free includes every feature, including interactive quotes, e-signatures, heatmaps and session replay, with two publications per 30 days and a Made with Formlio badge. Choose by whether you mostly sign files or send designed proposals.
Yes. Formlio e-signatures comply with eIDAS in the EU and ESIGN and UETA in the US. Signers verify their email by code, and each signature records consent, time, IP address, browser and a document fingerprint. PandaDoc names the same laws and also offers qualified electronic signatures on annual Business and Enterprise plans.
No. Formlio has no CRM integrations and no Zapier today. It has built-in pipeline stages and automation rules that move a deal, send an email or alert a teammate. PandaDoc lists CRM integrations from Business, including HubSpot and Pipedrive, with Salesforce as a paid add-on, so it fits better if CRM sync is a must.
Yes, on Formlio Pro at $394 a seat a year, with no add-on fee. Point a CNAME at formlio.link and SSL is set up for you. PandaDoc's email white-labeling is a paid add-on on Business annual, and its help centre says this feature does not change document links on app.pandadoc.com.
Yes. Start on the Free plan, upload your fonts and brand colours once, then rebuild your main proposal from a template or from blocks and save the blocks you reuse. PandaDoc documents don't import automatically, so move your main template first, then send new proposals from Formlio while open PandaDoc deals close.
More comparisons
All comparisons →- Formlio vs Mutinyclient proposals or AI sales assets
- Formlio vs Docusignsign a document or send a proposal
- Formlio vs DocSendmake the proposal or track the file
- Formlio vs Pitchclient proposals or presentation decks
- Formlio vs Offorteweb proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Prosperoweb proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Gammaclient proposals or decks in minutes
- Formlio vs Google Slidesclient proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Docspoweb proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Canvaclient proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Proposifyweb proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Better Proposalsweb proposals for creative studios
- Formlio vs Qwilrweb proposals for creative studios
Make it. Send it. Close it.
Free forever plan
Free forever plan
Free forever plan
Free forever plan