eLabFTW vs Labfolder

eLabFTW9.0Visit Labfolder8.3Visit

Higher score eLabFTW #3 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software 9.0/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 5 of 5 features Visit eLabFTW

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

• eLabFTW fits best

  Open-source teams needing compliance features

• Labfolder fits best

  Small teams seeking an affordable collaborative ELN

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Side by side

Feature	eLabFTW 9.0/10 Visit ↗	Labfolder 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.0	8.3
Ranking	#3 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software	#8 in Electronic Lab Notebook Software
Best for	Open-source teams needing compliance features	Small teams seeking an affordable collaborative ELN
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	—	—
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	14 days
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted, Desktop	Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms	Web, Windows, macOS, Linux	Web, iOS, Android
Support	Email, Community, Docs	Email, Docs, Tickets
Compliance	SSO/SAML, 2FA	ISO 27001, GDPR, 2FA
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features eLabFTW 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	Experiment records, inventory, templates, signatures, and audit logs Offline synchronization, REST API access, and broad export formats Self-hosting plus managed hosting and support options	Free plan with unlimited research documentation Full-text search, audit trails, signatures, and approval workflows Web, iOS, Android, and REST API access
Cons	Managed hosting and support add separate costs Self-hosting requires GNU/Linux containers The feature set may exceed narrow documentation needs	No offline access Basic plan supports up to 3 group members Narrower integrations than some larger ELN platforms
Our verdict	eLabFTW is an open-source electronic laboratory notebook for academic, industrial, and research laboratories. It combines experiment and protocol records with laboratory inventory, compound management, templates, workflow steps,… 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

• eLabFTW — where it wins

  • Experiment records, inventory, templates, signatures, and audit logs
  • Offline synchronization, REST API access, and broad export formats
  • Self-hosting plus managed hosting and support options

  Where it doesn't

  • Managed hosting and support add separate costs
  • Self-hosting requires GNU/Linux containers
  • The feature set may exceed narrow documentation 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

• eLabFTW9.0/10 · Free plan

  A compliance-ready, open-source ELN with flexible hosting and broad exports.

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

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

  Visit LabfolderFull verdict →