Is Pactivo cheaper than DocuSign?

It depends on how many people send and how much. DocuSign's UK Standard plan is £20 a user a month on annual billing, with 100 envelopes per user per year. Pactivo is £0.69 an envelope excluding VAT on Starter with monthly billing, with no per-user fees. A firm with many occasional senders usually pays less per envelope; a single heavy sender may not.

Is a Pactivo signature as legally valid as a DocuSign one?

Both are electronic signatures recognised under UK law. Pactivo provides UK eIDAS Simple Electronic Signatures, which are valid for most business documents in England and Wales; its evidence (email passcode, hash-chained audit trail, sealed PDF with a trusted timestamp) is what you rely on if a signature is challenged.

Can I move from DocuSign to Pactivo?

Yes. Upload the same PDFs, place the fields again and save them as templates. Keep your completed DocuSign documents and certificates where they are; they remain your evidence for those agreements.

Compare · DocuSign

Pactivo vs DocuSign

DocuSign is the best-known e-signature platform, with a huge integration catalogue and identity options. Pactivo is narrower: built for UK regulated firms, priced per envelope, with the same sealed evidence and UK data storage on every plan.

By the Pactivo team · Updated 15 October 2026

In short

DocuSign charges per user, with an envelope allowance per user. Its UK Standard plan is £20 a user a month (£240 a year), with 100 envelopes per user per year on annual billing. Pactivo charges per envelope with no per-user fees, so a firm where many people send occasionally pays for what it sends, not for who can send.

DocuSign offers more ways to check a signer, including SMS, knowledge-based checks and paid ID verification, depending on the plan. Pactivo gates every document behind an email passcode on every plan, and does not yet offer ID verification.

On DocuSign's UK pricing page, data residency is not included on Personal, Standard or Business Pro; it is a contact-sales option on Enhanced. Pactivo stores data in the UK on every plan.

Side by side

How you pay

Pactivo: Per envelope, no per-user fees: £0.69 an envelope on Starter (monthly billing), down to £0.36 on Scale (annual billing), excluding VAT.

DocuSign: Per user, with an envelope allowance: Personal £8 a month (5 envelopes a month), Standard £20 and Business Pro £33 a user a month on annual billing (100 envelopes per user per year), Enhanced by quote. Extra envelopes are charged.

Free option

Pactivo: No free plan. You can sign up and send your first envelope without a credit card.

DocuSign: Its UK product page offers a free trial; the terms are not covered on the pricing page.

Checking the signer

Pactivo: Every signer enters a one-time passcode sent to their email before the document opens, on every plan.

DocuSign: SMS and phone authentication through sales on Business Pro and Enhanced, not on Personal or Standard; knowledge-based authentication through sales on Enhanced.

ID verification

Pactivo: Not yet. Identity verification is on the roadmap.

DocuSign: Paid add-on from £2 per verification attempt; 5 included as a one-time bonus on Standard and Business Pro.

Evidence

Pactivo: Hash-chained audit trail, and a signed PDF sealed with a PAdES digital signature and an RFC 3161 timestamp, on every plan.

DocuSign: A tamper-evident seal and audit trails, according to its UK product page. The contents of the certificate are not covered on the pages we checked.

Independent verification

Pactivo: Anyone with the verification code can check a completed document on a public page, without an account.

DocuSign: Not covered on the pages we checked.

Data residency

Pactivo: UK, on every plan.

DocuSign: Not included on Personal, Standard or Business Pro; contact sales on Enhanced.

API

Pactivo: REST API and signed webhooks on Growth and Scale.

DocuSign: APIs and a developer account on Standard, Business Pro and Enhanced; not on Personal.

Integrations and apps

Pactivo: API and webhooks only; no app marketplace or native mobile apps. Signers sign in the browser on any phone.

DocuSign: 1,000+ pre-built integrations, iOS and Android apps, templates; bulk send on Business Pro.

	Pactivo	DocuSign eSignature
How you pay	Per envelope, no per-user fees: £0.69 an envelope on Starter (monthly billing), down to £0.36 on Scale (annual billing), excluding VAT.	Per user, with an envelope allowance: Personal £8 a month (5 envelopes a month), Standard £20 and Business Pro £33 a user a month on annual billing (100 envelopes per user per year), Enhanced by quote. Extra envelopes are charged.
Free option	No free plan. You can sign up and send your first envelope without a credit card.	Its UK product page offers a free trial; the terms are not covered on the pricing page.
Checking the signer	Every signer enters a one-time passcode sent to their email before the document opens, on every plan.	SMS and phone authentication through sales on Business Pro and Enhanced, not on Personal or Standard; knowledge-based authentication through sales on Enhanced.
ID verification	Not yet. Identity verification is on the roadmap.	Paid add-on from £2 per verification attempt; 5 included as a one-time bonus on Standard and Business Pro.
Evidence	Hash-chained audit trail, and a signed PDF sealed with a PAdES digital signature and an RFC 3161 timestamp, on every plan.	A tamper-evident seal and audit trails, according to its UK product page. The contents of the certificate are not covered on the pages we checked.
Independent verification	Anyone with the verification code can check a completed document on a public page, without an account.	Not covered on the pages we checked.
Data residency	UK, on every plan.	Not included on Personal, Standard or Business Pro; contact sales on Enhanced.
API	REST API and signed webhooks on Growth and Scale.	APIs and a developer account on Standard, Business Pro and Enhanced; not on Personal.
Integrations and apps	API and webhooks only; no app marketplace or native mobile apps. Signers sign in the browser on any phone.	1,000+ pre-built integrations, iOS and Android apps, templates; bulk send on Business Pro.

When DocuSign is the better choice

You need ready-made integrations with many business systems, or native mobile apps for senders.
You need ID verification or knowledge-based checks today.
A few people send most of your documents, so a per-user plan with an envelope allowance works out cheaper.
Your counterparties or your group already standardise on DocuSign.

When Pactivo is the better choice

Many people in your firm send now and then, and you would rather pay per envelope than per user.
You want every signer behind a passcode, and the same sealed evidence, on every plan rather than higher tiers.
You need documents stored in the UK without moving to an enterprise contract.
You want clients and counterparties to be able to verify a signed document themselves, without an account.

How we checked

We took every statement about DocuSign eSignature from DocuSign’s own public web pages on 15 October 2026. Prices and plans change, so check the current position on their site before you decide. If something here is out of date or wrong, email hello@pactivo.com and we will correct it.

DocuSign is a trademark of Docusign, Inc. Pactivo is not affiliated with or endorsed by Docusign, Inc..