Sending important documents as email attachments means losing control the moment you hit send. You have no idea who opened it, whether they read past slide two, or if it got forwarded to someone you have never met. That is why anyone sharing pitch decks, data rooms, investor reports, or sales materials now uses a platform that gives them a trackable link with analytics and access controls.
Three platforms come up most: DocSend (the category pioneer, owned by Dropbox since 2021), Papermark (the open-source challenger), and Pitchwise (the platform that packs enterprise-level document sharing, data rooms, and analytics into startup-friendly pricing). All three let you share a secure link and see who opens it. The differences are in what else they offer — and what they cost.
Quick Comparison: The Features That Matter
The pricing gap is striking. Pitchwise gives you data rooms at $24/month. DocSend charges $150+ for the same capability. Papermark’s data room tier starts at $175/month. For the core features most teams actually use—slide-level analytics, access controls, branded links, and data rooms—Pitchwise delivers the most per dollar.
Also Read - Meet Pitchwise: A Fundraising and Diligence Platform Built for the Way Founders Actually Raise
Pitchwise: Enterprise Features, Startup Pricing
Pitchwise is used by over 5,000 companies, with more than 15,000 documents shared securely on the platform. It serves teams across fundraising, investor reporting, sales, M&A advisory, and venture scouting, anywhere sensitive documents need to be shared with control and visibility.
The core workflow is straightforward. Upload your document (or build a one-pager directly in the platform), generate a secure branded link, set your access controls, and share. From there, Pitchwise tracks everything: who viewed it, which pages they spent time on, how many times they came back, and when. Real-time notifications alert you the moment someone opens your link, so you can follow up while you are top of mind.
What sets Pitchwise apart from both Papermark and DocSend is how much capability it packs into its price points:
Access controls go beyond the basics. Beyond email gating and download prevention (which all three platforms offer), Pitchwise includes domain-level allow/block lists. You can restrict access to specific email domains, which is useful when you want only partners at a particular firm to see your materials or when you need to block competitor domains entirely. Link expiration and revocation are also included.
Data rooms are accessible, not gated behind premium pricing. Pitchwise Pro includes one data room at $24/month ($17/month annual). Compare that to Papermark’s data room tier at $175/month or DocSend’s Advanced plan at $150–250/month. For anyone running due diligence — whether fundraising, M&A, or partner onboarding — this pricing difference is significant.
Fundraising resources are built in. Neither Papermark nor DocSend offers all of the investor lists, pitch deck templates, financial model templates, or fundraising guides. Pitchwise’s Resources section includes curated investor lists, pitch deck templates, guides, podcasts, and valuation resources, all useful contexts that no amount of document tracking can replace.
Download the Complete VC Directory for Different Markets→
Papermark: Open-Source Flexibility
Papermark launched in 2023 as an open-source DocSend alternative and gained rapid traction on Product Hunt. Its core proposition is transparency: open-source code you can inspect, self-host, and customise.
The document-sharing features are solid. You get page-by-page analytics, email gating, password protection, link expiration, and download controls on all plans, including free. Paid plans add custom branding, custom domains, dynamic watermarking (stamps the viewer’s email and IP on every page), and screenshot protection. According to Papermark’s 2024 metrics report, approximately 3,000 pitch decks were shared through the platform, generating over 8 million data points on investor engagement.
The main trade-off is pricing on the upper tiers. Free works well for basic sharing. Pro at $24–39/month is reasonable for single users. But data rooms start at $175/month, which is higher than Pitchwise for that specific feature. Papermark’s sweet spot is teams that value open-source principles, want self-hosting for data sovereignty, or need screenshot protection — a feature unique to Papermark among these three.
Papermark is a document sharing platform. It has some extra resources like investor lists, but not a full suite of fundraising resources. It tracks what happens after you share a file, but it does not help you prepare materials.
DocSend: The Category Incumbent
DocSend was founded in 2013, acquired by Dropbox in 2021, and is used by over 34,000 companies. It is the tool many VCs and accelerators still reference by name. That brand recognition has real value.
DocSend’s analytics have per-page tracking, download monitoring, team-wide engagement reporting, and native integrations with Salesforce, Gmail, Outlook, and Zapier, making it the most deeply connected option in an existing enterprise stack. It also includes built-in eSignatures on all plans and One-Click NDAs on Advanced.
The issue is cost. There is no permanent free plan. The Personal plan starts at $10–15/user/month but with limited storage and basic file types. The Standard plan ($45–65/user/month) unlocks team features. The Advanced plan ($150–250/month, 3 users included) is required for watermarking, NDAs, custom branding, and data rooms.
According to Ellty’s pricing analysis, user sentiment on cost is consistently mixed. Features available at much lower price points on Pitchwise and Papermark, like custom branding and data rooms, require DocSend’s most expensive plan.
Also read: 7 DocSend Alternatives That Cost Less (2026 Comparison)
What You Actually Pay: Real Scenarios
Getting started: Pitchwise offers a 14-day free trial with full Pro features and no credit card, after which you get on a free plan with streamlined features. Papermark Free gives you 50 links with basic analytics. DocSend has a free trial period but no free plan. $10–15/month from day one.
Winner: Pitchwise — you get the full product from day one and can use some features without paying.
Active deal process (1 user): Pitchwise Pro at $24/month gives you unlimited decks, a data room, advanced analytics, and allow/block lists. Papermark Pro is $24–39/month for similar tracking but no data room. DocSend Personal is $10–15/month but with no branding and limited analytics.
Winner: Pitchwise — the most complete feature set at a comparable price.
The Bottom Line
Papermark and DocSend are strong document-sharing platforms. DocSend has the deepest integrations and the most established brand. Papermark has open-source transparency and self-hosting. Both track documents well.
But the conversation has shifted. It is no longer enough to just track who opened a file. You need a platform that helps you organise materials, control access at the domain level, run data rooms for due diligence, and act on engagement data, without paying enterprise prices.
That is what Pitchwise delivers. The same core analytics as DocSend and Papermark, plus data rooms at a fraction of the price, plus domain-level access controls, plus a library of investor lists, templates, and guides. Whether you are a founder sharing a pitch deck, an M&A advisor running due diligence, or a sales team managing sensitive proposals, Pitchwise gives you more per dollar than either alternative.
Decision Matrix
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Pitchwise only for startup founders?
No. Pitchwise is used across fundraising, investor reporting, partner due diligence, sales, M&A advisory, and venture scouting. Any workflow where you need to share sensitive documents with tracking and access controls is a fit.
Is Papermark really free?
Papermark has a free plan with unlimited documents, 50 links, and basic analytics. The open-source codebase can also be self-hosted at no cost. Custom branding, watermarking, and data rooms require paid plans starting at $24–39/month.
Does DocSend have a free plan?
No. DocSend offers a 14-day trial but no permanent free tier. Paid plans start at $10–15/user/month.
Which tool has the best analytics?
All three offer slide-level analytics, real-time notifications, and email gating. DocSend’s analytics integrate most deeply with CRMs like Salesforce. Papermark provides unique aggregate benchmarking data. Pitchwise’s analytics are designed to drive immediate action — you see who engaged and what they focused on and can follow up with context.
Can I switch from DocSend to Pitchwise easily?
Yes. Upload your decks to Pitchwise and share new links. Your old DocSend links continue working while you transition. Most users complete the switch in under an hour.
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