ELabELN vs Labfolder

ELabELN9.2Visit Labfolder8.3Visit

Higher score ELabELN #2 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software 9.2/10 Paid ✓ 5 of 5 features Visit ELabELN

vs

Labfolder #8 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software 8.3/10 Free plan · 14-day trial Free planFree trial✓ 4 of 5 features Visit Labfolder

• ELabELN fits best

  Regulated labs needing broad deployment options

• Labfolder fits best

  Small teams seeking an affordable collaborative ELN

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Side by side

Feature	ELabELN 9.2/10 Visit ↗	Labfolder 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.2	8.3
Ranking	#2 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software	#8 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software
Best for	Regulated labs needing broad deployment options	Small teams seeking an affordable collaborative ELN
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	—	14 days
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted, Mobile	Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms	Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android	Web, iOS, Android
Support	Community, Docs · 24/7	Email, Docs, Tickets
Compliance	SOC 2, GDPR, SSO/SAML, 2FA	ISO 27001, GDPR, 2FA
Integrations	10 integrations	5 integrations
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features ELabELN 5/5 · Labfolder 4/5
Audit trail	✓	✓
Electronic signatures	✓	✓
Approval workflows	✓	✓
Offline access	✓ (best)	—
API access	✓	✓
Specs
Search scope	Full_text_and_metadata	Full_text
Export formats	PDF, ZIP, CSV, JSON, .eln	PDF, XHTML
Our review
Pros	Full-text and metadata search across experiments, files, samples, and protocols Audit trails, electronic signatures, approvals, and granular permissions Cloud, on-premises, web, desktop, mobile, and self-hosted deployment options	Free plan with unlimited research documentation Full-text search, audit trails, signatures, and approval workflows Web, iOS, Android, and REST API access
Cons	There is no free plan for initial evaluation The product is paid, with academic and nonprofit pricing handled by quotation Its broad feature set may be more than a narrowly focused lab needs	No offline access Basic plan supports up to 3 group members Narrower integrations than some larger ELN platforms
Our verdict	ELabELN is an electronic lab notebook for academic, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, contract research, and other laboratory teams. It supports rich experiment records with text, tables, structured fields, images, files, and chemical… Read the review →	Labfolder is a browser-based electronic lab notebook for individual researchers, academic groups, and industry laboratories. It supports experiment records with text, tables, sketches, images, files, and chemical structures, plus reusable… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• ELabELN — where it wins

  • Full-text and metadata search across experiments, files, samples, and protocols
  • Audit trails, electronic signatures, approvals, and granular permissions
  • Cloud, on-premises, web, desktop, mobile, and self-hosted deployment options

  Where it doesn't

  • There is no free plan for initial evaluation
  • The product is paid, with academic and nonprofit pricing handled by quotation
  • Its broad feature set may be more than a narrowly focused lab needs

• Labfolder — where it wins

  • Free plan with unlimited research documentation
  • Full-text search, audit trails, signatures, and approval workflows
  • Web, iOS, Android, and REST API access

  Where it doesn't

  • No offline access
  • Basic plan supports up to 3 group members
  • Narrower integrations than some larger ELN platforms

• ELabELN9.2/10 · Paid

  A mature ELN with broad deployment, compliance, integration, and data-management coverage.

  Visit ELabELNFull verdict →
• Labfolder8.3/10 · Free plan · 14-day trial

  An affordable collaborative ELN with strong documentation, workflows, and audit controls.

  Visit LabfolderFull verdict →