Is Ironclad the right contract management software for your needs?
Ironclad is widely known for its automation and legal-friendly features. But legal teams and contract managers often ask: Is it too complex? Can it adapt to our workflows? And what exactly are we paying for?
If you are looking for answers to all these questions, you are in the right place. This blog provides detailed Ironclad reviews, analyzes its features, and provides information on its real user feedback, pros, cons, and pricing.
This will help you determine whether or not Ironclad is the right CLM software for your business. Furthermore, we will show you why Aavenir is an excellent alternative to Ironclad for AI-driven contract management. Let’s get started.
A Complete Overview of Ironclad
Ironclad is an advanced contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform designed to streamline contract creation, negotiation, execution, and analysis. It uses AI-driven automation to accelerate contract workflows, reduce manual effort, and enhance compliance.
With features like automated contract review, real-time collaboration, and intelligent analytics, Ironclad helps businesses manage contracts efficiently while gaining deeper insights into obligations, risks, and opportunities.
Here’s a quick overview of Ironclad. We have also compared this platform against our solution, Aavenir AI contract management software, to help you assess the two platforms:
| Aspects |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| G2 Rating | 4.5 Stars | 4.3 Stars |
| Free Trial | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| ServiceNow Integration | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Transparent Pricing | ❌ | ✔️ |
| Quality Support | 8.9/10 | 8.8/10 |
| Cost | $$$ | $$ |
According to IDC Research, Ironclad has been recognized as a leader in the IDC MarketScape's 2024 Worldwide Contract Lifecycle Management Software for Corporate Legal Vendor Assessment.
Who Should Use Ironclad?
- Legal Teams: Ironclad offers secured ways to create and collaborate on contracts, enhancing efficiency and reducing manual workload.
- Sales Departments: This platform accelerates contract turnaround time (TAT) and helps sales teams close deals faster, increasing revenue.
- Procurement Teams: With Ironclad, organizations can streamline vendor agreements and procurement processes, ensuring compliance and operational efficiency.
- Marketing Teams: Ironclad can manage marketing-related contracts, such as sponsorship and partnership agreements, for smoother collaborations.
- Human Resources: HR departments can use this platform to manage employment agreements and other contractual documents, ensuring consistency and compliance.
In short, Ironclad is appropriate for medium to large-scale enterprises in industries that handle high-stake contracts at scale.
What Makes Ironclad Stand Out?
The features that make Ironclad stand out from its alternatives are listed below:
- AI-Powered Data Extraction: Ironclad uses artificial intelligence to automatically tag and index contract data. It detects over 194 contract properties, such as contract value, counterparties, and key dates. This eliminates the need for manual data entry and enhances data accuracy.
- Automated Workflows: With Ironclad, you can customize workflows to streamline the contract review and approval process. This reduces bottlenecks and ensures compliance with organizational policies.
- Centralized Contract Repository: Ironclad offers a secure, centralized contract repository for all contracts, facilitating easy access and management. The Optical Character Recognition (OCR) feature helps transform unstructured data files into searchable text, enhancing document retrieval.
- Seamless Integrations: Ironclad integrates with tools like Dropbox, Docusign, Salesforce, Google Drive, Adobe Sign, and OneDrive. Additionally, it offers a public API for configuring custom applications, ensuring compatibility with existing business systems.
- User-Friendly Interface: The platform offers an intuitive, browser-based DOCX editor and collaboration capabilities, making it accessible to users across different departments without extensive training.
Struggling with Ironclad’s Complex Workflows?
Switch to Aavenir’s intuitive, no-code workflows and simplify contract creation, approvals, and compliance management.
This was a brief overview of Ironclad. Moving forward, let’s focus on user reviews and get insights into real-world experiences with the platform.
Ironclad Reviews
Here are the user reviews and feedback from reliable review platforms like G2 and Capterra. The reviews listed below showcase the users’ experience with Ironclad.
Positive Reviews
5/5 stars
Ironclad is an excellent tool for us as we engage in 100s of NDA monthly. Using Ironclad is extremely frequent for our daily tasks, where the process is simple, it is easy to track the action, and we can see revisions/versions of the document, making the process extremely smooth and user-friendly.
David Z.
Business Development Manager
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
5/5 stars
Ironclad helps our company with contract management and centralizes our contract workflow and review in one place. It is great for collaboration, reviewing drafted contracts, comments, and tracking changes.
Annie G.
Sr. Accountant
Accounting, 11-50 employees
5/5 stars
For me, intuitive AI and extremely fast response times make Ironclad stand out against any other platform I use for work in the licensing industry. Most other platforms look and feel like vestiges of early 2000s internet design and functionality, with very low response times.
Celso J.
Licensing Coordinator
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Critical Reviews
3.5/5 stars
I dislike that Ironclad doesn't have an import function for contracts from the previous SOWs. I create/renew SOWs with the same vendors every few months, and I need to type in the same contract info every time.
Verified User in Computer Games
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
4/5 stars
As a very forward-looking product, I wish there was more prescriptiveness within the product that shows you what best-in-class CLM looks like. As it exists, it's very choose your own adventure which is daunting if you don't have a full-time admin.
Verified Reviewer, COO
Computer Software, 51-200 employees
2.5/5 stars
The business model seems to have shifted to more of a "self-serve" by searching through Help Topics and Community Forums. I understand the theory behind this; however, these platforms are not structured in a way that is helpful for anything beyond basic questions.
Cindy P.
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Now that we've examined what users say in Ironclad’s reviews, let's look at the pros and cons of Ironclad to see what makes this platform shine and where it might fall short.
Pros & Cons of Ironclad
Ironclad simplifies contract management but has its strengths and limitations. Here are the pros and cons of Ironclad to consider:
Pros of Ironclad
- User-Friendly Interface: Ironclad's design is intuitive and straightforward, making it easy for users to create workflows and manage contracts efficiently.
- Comprehensive Contract Management: The platform centralizes contract workflows, facilitating collaboration during contract reviews and tracking changes effectively.
- Automation Capabilities: Ironclad automates contract generation, email notifications, and document storage, reducing manual tasks and enhancing efficiency.
- Integration Support: It integrates seamlessly with various business tools, enhancing its adaptability within existing workflows.
Cons of Ironclad
- Learning Curve: New users may experience a steep learning curve, requiring additional training and support.
- Customization Limitations: The platform has restrictions on customization features, like limitations on file formats and specific metadata tracking.
- Pricing Structure: Ironclad is considered one of the more expensive CLM software options in the market, making it unsuitable for budget-conscious organizations.
- Search Functionality: The search feature may require improvement, as users have reported difficulty locating specific documents, especially those with generic names.
Having discussed Ironclad's pros and cons, let's focus on its pricing structure to understand the costs associated with using this platform.
Ironclad Pricing
Ironclad offers customized pricing plans to meet an organization's specific needs. The prices are based on factors like the number of users, contract volume, and required features.
While exact pricing details are not publicly disclosed, data from Vendr shows that a median Ironclad buyer pays USD 39,713 per year for the platform.
These figures are approximate and can vary based on factors such as:
- Number of User Licenses: The total number of users accessing the platform influences the overall cost.
- Implementation Fees: Costs associated with deployment complexity and scope.
- Base Fees: The minimum cost of the platform, covering core modules and essential features.
Ironclad’s pricing is customized to the organization’s specific requirements. So, it is advisable to contact Ironclad directly for a personalized quote.
If Ironclad’s cost exceeds your budget, you can opt for alternative contract management platforms Aavenir. This platform provides predefined packages, making it easier for organizations to estimate costs upfront.
Aavenir offers two packages: the CLM Essentials package and the CLM Expedite package. The CLM Essentials package is ideal for businesses that need centralized contract storage and automated alerts. The CLM Expedite package is designed for organizations looking to enhance contract authoring accuracy and streamline approval workflows.
Looking for an Affordable Alternative to Ironclad?
Aavenir provides flexible, transparent pricing with no hidden fees and modules that scale with your business.
Now that we've discussed the cost of Ironclad, let's examine its features that help streamline contract processes.
Ironclad Features
Ironclad is loaded with features that make managing contracts simpler and more efficient. Some of the core features of Ironclad are:
Contract Creation and Workflow Automation
Ironclad enables users to build contracts from pre-approved templates and automate complex contract lifecycle management workflows with drag-and-drop tools. This reduces manual effort and accelerates the approval process across departments. You can set up conditional workflows, automated reminders, and task assignments, ensuring contracts move forward without delays.Collaboration and Negotiation
Ironclad ensures easy collaboration with real-time contract editing and version control. Multiple users can review, suggest changes, and negotiate clauses directly within the platform, eliminating the need for long email threads and multiple document versions. Additionally, it tracks every change and maintains audit trails, making the negotiation process transparent and well-documented.AI-Powered Assistance
With artificial intelligence, Ironclad improves contract management tasks. Its AI capabilities assist in reviewing, drafting, and researching contracts, improving accuracy and efficiency. Features like automatic contract data tagging and redline suggestions speed up contract turnaround times and reduce manual effort.
Centralized Repository
Ironclad has a centralized storage system for all contracts, ensuring easy access, organization, and management of finalized agreements. This repository enhances visibility and control over contractual documents, allowing for efficient retrieval and auditing.E-Signature Capabilities
With Ironclad, you get native e-signature functionality to streamline the signing process and reduce the time required to execute contracts. This feature eliminates the need for third-party e-signature tools, providing a seamless and integrated signing experience within the platform.Analytics and Reporting
This platform offers comprehensive analytics and reporting tools, enabling users to gain insights into contract performance and identify areas for improvement. With AI-powered contract intelligence, you can analyze contract data against contract management KPIs, facilitating data-driven decision-making.Now that you know about Ironclad’s key features, you are ready to decide whether or not this platform is the right choice for you. If you are looking for Ironclad alternatives, various options, including Aavenir Contractflow, are excellent options. Let’s compare these two platforms.
Ironclad vs. Aavenir: A Quick Comparison
Choosing the best Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) software is crucial for optimizing contract processes within an organization. Below is a comparison between Ironclad and Aavenir Contractflow, highlighting key features and considerations:
| Factors | | |
|---|---|---|
| AI Capabilities | AI-assisted contract review, risk flagging, and suggestions for edits. | AI-powered contract analysis with risk detection and insights. |
| Workflow Automation | Customizable contract workflows; setup may need IT help. | Pre-built, ready-to-use workflows with simple customization. |
| Clause Library | Central library with approved clauses and search filters. | Easy-to-use clause and template library for faster drafting. |
| Compliance Tracking | Regulatory alerts and audit logs to help maintain compliance. | Automated compliance checks, reporting, and reminders. |
| Contract Repository | Secure, centralized storage with advanced search filters. | Cloud-based, searchable repository with easy contract access. |
| Integrations | Integrates with Salesforce, Docusign, and Google Drive. | Seamless ServiceNow-native integration with other platforms. |
| Pricing | Custom pricing and additional costs for premium features. | Transparent pricing that scales with business needs. |
| Implementation | Longer setup time with more resource involvement. | Fast onboarding with guided support and training. |
| Customization | High customization but may require technical effort. | No-code customization for workflows and templates. |
Ironclad and Aavenir both deliver strong contract lifecycle management solutions, but they cater to different needs. Ironclad excels in handling complex workflows for large enterprises with advanced automation and legal team collaboration features.
Aavenir focuses on simplicity, agility, and AI-powered automation. It’s an ideal choice for businesses that need quick setup, transparent pricing, and smooth integration with ServiceNow.
Speed Up Contract Cycles By 80% With Aavenir
Leverage automated workflows, smart clause suggestions, and AI assistance to speed up your contract TAT.
After comparing Ironclad and Aavenir, let's explore why Aavenir emerges as a strong alternative offering unique advantages for contract management.
Why is Aavenir the Perfect Ironclad Alternative?
Aavenir emerges as the ideal alternative to Ironclad by offering greater flexibility, transparent pricing, and truly intelligent contract automation. With Aavenir Contractflow, organizations experience a 40% reduction in contract cycle times and 5X faster approvals through AI-driven workflows and proactive alerts.
Unlike Ironclad’s rigid setup, Aavenir’s highly customizable contract lifecycle management platform integrates effortlessly with ServiceNow and other enterprise systems. Trusted by Fortune 500 companies, Aavenir helps legal, procurement, and finance teams achieve smarter, faster contract management.
If you’re ready to streamline your contracts, request an Aavenir demo today.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How does Ironclad compare to other contract lifecycle management alternatives?
Ironclad is known for its automation and collaboration features, making it suitable for large enterprises. However, its complexity and pricing may be challenging for some organizations. Aavenir offers AI-driven CLM solutions built on ServiceNow, providing seamless integration and user-friendly deployment.
2. Are there hidden costs with Ironclad beyond the base subscription?
Ironclad's pricing is customized based on factors such as the number of users, contract volume, and specific features required. Companies can expect to pay around $39,713, which may vary depending on their specific business needs. Additionally, costs may increase by adding premium modules, advanced analytics, API access, and complex integrations.
3. What’s the most significant advantage of choosing Aavenir over Ironclad?
Aavenir offers a flexible, AI-driven CLM solution emphasizing ease of use and rapid deployment. Built natively on ServiceNow, Aavenir enables enterprises to standardize and automate contract creation and management, reducing the need for extensive IT involvement.
4. Does Ironclad support mobile access and on-the-go contract approvals?
Ironclad facilitates mobile-friendly contract acceptance, which can enhance customer retention. However, comprehensive mobile functionalities, including full contract authoring and editing, may be limited.
