There are a host of electronic signature tools available on the market today. We're here to help you compare and contrast some of the leading e-Signature tools on the market to find the best fit for your startup!

Gone are the days of physical contracts and notaries. An electronic signature or e-Signature is a legal way to obtain consent or approval on online contracts. Online contracts are legal, tested, secure, auditable, and verifiable. Getting signatures has never been easier or cheaper with the development of electronic signature solutions over the past decade. Find out which tool adds the most value to your startup by comparing the diverse features they offer. Read ahead to learn more.

What should an early-stage founder look for in an e-signature solution?

Before we delve deeper into the two e-Signature tools; Docusign and Signnow. What are the salient features an early-stage founder should look for in an e-signature tool?

• E-signature functionality - Given we are comparing e-signature solutions, the solution should enable you to send and receive legally binding signatures with the ability to include multiple stakeholders as well as send reminders. These features are table stakes.
• Intelligent document storage and data platform - The information you input into your documents can and should be structured to be available for quick use in other legal agreements.
• Automatic document classification - Whether it’s an NDA, hiring contract, or ESOP agreement, you want a system that can automatically detect and classify all of your documents for you, so you can focus your time elsewhere.
• Integration with HR, Legal, and Finance tools - Your e-signature solution should directly integrate with your tech stack saving you a lot of valuable time by automatically ensuring all company data is synchronized across all your tools. 
• Pre-filled fields - You want your e-signature solution to pull out key information from your HR, finance, and legal tech stack without you having to enter each product and copy-paste data into templates.
• Powerful search - This is a game-changer. You want robust, fast searchability that scans through the text within these documents and helps you find what you’re looking for within seconds.
• Flexible permissions - Contracts and agreements often require multiple stakeholders’ signatures or inputs. You want to be able to collaborate on and share these documents with specific people (e.g. your lawyers, hiring managers, cofounder, etc.) whilst controlling access.
• Compliance advisory - State compliance can be very tricky as it varies from state to state. You want accurate and relevant information to streamline your compliance process.
• Ease of Use - No founder wants to spend time going through a complicated series of steps just to send out a simple hiring contract or an NDA.