DocuWare vs M-Files

DocuWare

Splitting, AI classification and extraction with confidence scores are documented, with vendor name, amount, due date and line items captured automatically at filing time — metadata set at capture, as it should be. A custom extraction model is trainable on a few sample documents without coding, extracted bank details are validated, low-quality and skewed scans are handled, and e-invoices are received and validated for PEPPOL. I found no public information on mailbox or Microsoft 365 intake, duplicate detection at capture, XRechnung or ZUGFeRD read as structured data, or where the AI processing runs.

M-Files

Scanner and drag-and-drop intake is documented with conversion to searchable PDF when the OCR licence and module conditions are met, and the Outlook Pro add-on archives emails and attachments with metadata, permissions and workflows. The metadata-driven architecture classifies documents automatically, but we found no public information on field extraction with a validation step, duplicate detection, or XRechnung and ZUGFeRD read as structured data.

DocuWare

The pages describe concurrent editing with the option to lock a document for other users, workflow tasks assigned to named employees or roles, and a workflow history recording which user made which decision; an archiving page states a system's history should be viewable and exportable in a common file format. I found no public information on version history with restore, a permission model per folder or document type, single sign-on or directory sync, or an audit log of who read or changed a document — for a records system that is the gap I care about most.

M-Files

Check-out is documented for objects such as documents, the Event Log records changes and modifications to the vault including workflow changes, and both editions list version control and access controls, with Enterprise adding an extended audit log with exports and federated authentication. We found no public information on restoring earlier versions, rights per document type or department, or directory sync with Entra ID or LDAP.

DocuWare

Revisionssichere Archivierung is claimed for invoice processing, and the German archiving pages give real retention guidance — eight years for booking records since January 2025, ten for annual accounts, six for business letters, e-invoices kept in digital original form — and mention workflow tools that respect legal rules for protecting or destroying documents at set times. But the claim is only a word: I found no public information on how immutability of archived documents is achieved, WORM storage, an auditor's report, a sample Verfahrensdokumentation, legal hold, or the tax-audit data export.

M-Files

Retention policies are named as part of built-in governance, administrators with full control of the vault can mark objects for archiving and clear the marker, and PDF/A conversion with long-term-validation signatures is documented in support articles. We found no public information on GoBD-compliant or revisionssicher archiving, how immutability of archived documents is achieved, retention periods per document type, or an auditor's report.

DocuWare

The Workflow Manager is documented properly: drag-and-drop modelling without programming, triggers from web forms, document types, status changes and due dates, deadlines with automatic escalation, substitution rules, self-updating task lists with email notification, assignment to employees or roles, a controller who can intervene, and a history of each user's decisions. Invoice processing adds dynamic approval workflows sending invoices directly to the accounting system, preconfigured single or multi-step approvals, a claimed 500+ integrations, DATEV and Varial in named reference projects, an API for real-time data flow, and CSV export usable by any accounting or ERP system. I found no public information on REST API documentation with webhooks, connectors for SAP or Microsoft Dynamics with their scope, or e-signature integration.

M-Files

Graphical workflow automation ships in both editions, Enterprise adds no-code document automation and approval assignments, and the connector set is concrete: SAP as content repository and data import, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, Amazon S3, and an Adobe Acrobat Sign e-signature package, with a published API reference. We found no public information on substitutes and escalation in workflows, a DATEV or accounting handover, or REST webhooks and events.

DocuWare

Full-text and index-data search are documented with access from home office and mobile, which covers finding the 2019 contract again. The export pages document filtered, time-controlled export of index data and table-field content such as posting items to CSV for any accounting or ERP system, with nearly all export functions included in every cloud license and on-premises export via additional licenses on PROFESSIONAL or ENTERPRISE Server. I found no public information on bulk export of the documents themselves together with their metadata and versions in a documented structure, saved searches, or the post-termination retrieval window — the exit is only partly designed.

M-Files

Executed searches can be saved as views and renamed, giving repeatable retrieval, and the Smart Migration tool names an import path. We found no public information on bulk export of documents together with their metadata and versions, a complete export including the audit trail, or the post-termination retrieval window.

DocuWare

The pages prove European elements: DocuWare GmbH at a Germering address as controller, German governing law with Munich venue, and a genuine on-premises edition with licence terms for locally installed systems; one captured page also names dedicated data centres in the EU and the USA with triple mirroring, while where cloud documents are stored is not confirmed on the vendor's own captured pages. I found no public information on the ownership, on subprocessors or AI providers that would read document content, a published DPA, or certifications with their scope.

M-Files

The privacy policy publishes a data-processing agreement addendum in several languages and names M-Files as processor and controller under GDPR, and the trust centre confirms a choice between cloud and on-premises deployment. We found no public information on the contracting entity's jurisdiction or the storage locations for the standard cloud edition; only the optional Premium Cloud add-on is named as hosted in Microsoft Azure, and the qualified-subprocessor list is only linked.

DocuWare

No price figure appears on any captured page — the terms speak of agreed prices, ex works, plus statutory VAT, payable in 14 days where credit-insured or by prepayment or cash on delivery otherwise. The public pages give licence structure only: nearly all export functions included in every cloud license, on-premises export as additional licenses on PROFESSIONAL or ENTERPRISE Server, Workflow Manager as an on-premises add-on, add-on purchases tied to a current maintenance and support subscription, and a free demo followed by a 30-day trial. A buyer cannot compute a single euro of cost from these pages.

M-Files

The editions page publishes one priced edition — Essentials at "€65 monthly / per seat" — with the billing period stated and the inclusions of both plans listed. We found no public information on the price of the Enterprise edition, add-on and storage prices, or onboarding and implementation costs.