Actionstep vs. PracticePanther

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Actionstep
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
Actionstep in Richmond offers their flagship legal practice management software as an end-to-end solution, containing both matter management tools and business administration automation, with an internal billing and accounting system.N/A
PracticePanther
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
PracticePanther is a legal case management software for attorneys with features like customized workflows, simplified time tracking and billing, native online payment processing, and client portals designed to increase firm efficiency. The software comes with data migration at no additional cost, as well as live training and support to help firms to get up and running quickly. PracticePanther's goals are to help firms to: Save 8+ hours per week on admin…
$49
per month per user
Pricing
ActionstepPracticePanther
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Solo Plan (Billed Annually)
$49
per month per user
Solo Plan (Billed Monthly)
$59
per month per user
Essential Plan (Billed Annually)
$69
per month per user
Essential Plan (Billed Monthly)
$79
per month per user
Business Plan (Billed Annually)
$89
per month per user
Business Plan (Billed Monthly)
$99
per month per user
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
ActionstepPracticePanther
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsData migration, live training, and support available at no additional cost.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
ActionstepPracticePanther
Considered Both Products
Actionstep
Chose Actionstep
I have worked with a lot of software. Each one has a different focus. ActionStep is better at workflow and task automation that the items above, in my opinion. However, having gone through many different deployments, what really matters is identifying your key requirements and …
PracticePanther
Chose PracticePanther
PracticePanther is a fraction of the price and is easier to use than Smokeball. I am obsessed with having everything on my case available to me on one screen, including client messages. It is easy to create cases and archive them, but more importantly, it's easy for me to …
Chose PracticePanther
I used Clio and Clio Grow. What Practice Panther is missing is the side that Clio grows offers. A more robust way on the intake/marketing side. You can use mail chip with Practice Panther but that integration is limited. However, there is a much better software called Lawmatics …
User Ratings
ActionstepPracticePanther
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
ActionstepPracticePanther
Likelihood to Recommend
ActionStep is a powerful CRM and matter management tool. It provides many other good benefits too. For example powerful accounting and billing, time tracking and document management. Only in highly specific areas, like multiple many to many contact relations has it fallen short. But even in this highly specialized area, so many other benefits are provided that it hardly matters.
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For a solo practice, this platform is great. It allows me to spend more time with my clients instead of handling administrative tasks. It is very easy to use and has low processing fees. I have used it for over a year and I am very happy with how this works for my solo practice.
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Pros
  • The workflows are great to automate simple tasks like notifying people when an engagement letter is signed.
  • Mobility. Because it's in the cloud it's easy to access from anywhere.
  • The scratch pad is a good way to take quick notes.
  • ActionStep lets you create custom fields so you can make sure the data you need is collected.
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  • Workflows and task management.
  • User interface and clarity of features.
  • Customer service is expedient and helpful.
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Cons
  • ActionStep is difficult to setup. I suggest working with a consultant which increases cost.
  • Needs mobile app.
  • One of our practice areas, Property Law, request we have a many to many contact relation. ActionStep cannot accommodate this. However, no other software I have reviewed can do this either. ActionStep is the most robust that I have seen and comes closest to making this work.
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  • It's difficult to sync with other applications like Gmail.
  • Invoices can be a bit tricky.
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Usability
No answers on this topic
Very easy to use and intuitive. This does not require complex data entry or toggling between multiple screens.
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Support Rating
No answers on this topic
I love the Support team. Available through chat on any screen on your practice panther. They say they respond within 24 hours but it's usually at most 3 hours and they direct you a solution or that confirm no available solution. The team at PP is always helpful and know how to follow up with issues in a timely manner.
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Alternatives Considered
I have worked with a lot of software. Each one has a different focus. ActionStep is better at workflow and task automation that the items above, in my opinion. However, having gone through many different deployments, what really matters is identifying your key requirements and needs. Then evaluation software against those. Once you have your requirements and software, focus on using that software to fix issues in existing workflow. This, when compared with ongoing training, is what it means to invest in software. Simply purchasing ActionStep or any software without identifying needs, problems in workflow or an investment in training is not a good plan. Neither is comparing the vendors to one another without knowing all of your specific needs.
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I used Clio and Clio Grow. What Practice Panther is missing is the side that Clio grows offers. A more robust way on the intake/marketing side. You can use mail chip with Practice Panther but that integration is limited. However, there is a much better software called Lawmatics that integrates directly with PracticePanther. For PracticePanther and Clio direct head to head, the workflows of task, billing and user interface have better ease of use. To do the same thing, PracticePanther requires fewer clicks to get it done. When you have to do the same tasks over and over, the less clicking the better.
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Return on Investment
  • I love the workflows that can be deployed for practice areas to ensure consistency. This has reduced new employee onboarding time and increased the speed at which we can complete matters.
  • Since ActionStep lives in the cloud, and we have O365 our firm is very mobile without spending lots of money in TS or other such infrastructure.
  • Creating the workflows is a bit complex, so this increases the overall cost and makes an ROI take longer. I suggest spending a bit more initially to get everything setup and working with a consultant to learn how to do this on your own during that initial setup.
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  • It has allowed me to keep up with my time and billing.
  • It has allowed me to keep client information all in one place.
  • It has allowed me to keep up with money that I am owed.
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ScreenShots

PracticePanther Screenshots

Screenshot of Dashboard - Mobile FriendlyScreenshot of DashboardScreenshot of CalendarScreenshot of Time TrackingScreenshot of InvoicesScreenshot of Document Management