Clio

Clio is practice management software for law firms: one system for matters, contacts, documents, time recording, billing, payments and client intake. It's the biggest name in the category — Clio says more than 400,000 legal professionals use it — and unlike most legal tech it sells in both the US and the UK, with UK-specific product pages and pricing.

The product splits into two halves. Clio Manage is the practice management core: matters, documents, calendars, tasks, time tracking and bills, now with AI features included on all plans. Clio Grow is the client-intake layer: lead capture, online consultation forms, scheduling and review requests, bundled into the top plan rather than sold to everyone.

Pricing transparency has gone backwards recently. In the US, Clio publishes only its entry EasyStart price ($49 per user per month); everything above is "Get pricing". In the UK it publishes Core at £79 per user per month, with Signature and Elite again quote-only. So while you can see the entry price in both markets, most firms' real cost needs a sales conversation.

How Clio works

A typical setup looks like this:

1. Set up matters, contacts and custom fields; migrate data in with Clio's free data-migration help.
2. Record time as you work and let AI draft accurate bills on a schedule.
3. Manage documents and calendars — Clio can turn document events into calendar entries and tasks.
4. Bill clients, take online payments, and use the client portal for secure sharing (from mid tiers up).
5. On Elite, run intake through Clio Grow: capture leads, book consultations, request reviews and track referrals.
6. Report on the firm — AI-built reports on profitability and productivity on Signature and Elite.

Key capabilities

Matter management — Contacts, matters, documents, tasks and calendars in one system.

Time and billing — Time tracking with AI-drafted bills on schedule, plus online payments.

AI included on all plans — AI drafting of bills, document-to-calendar conversion and client updates drafted from real matter activity; a fuller Manage AI assistant is an add-on on mid tiers.

Client portal — Secure document sharing and messaging, from Essentials/Signature tiers upward.

Workflow automation — Custom roles, kanban matter stages and templated documents and matters on higher plans.

Reporting — Standard reports on all plans; AI-built profitability and productivity reports on Signature and Elite.

Clio Grow intake — Lead capture and qualification (including Grow AI billed per hired matter), online forms and scheduling, review requests and referral tracking, on Elite.

Ecosystem — 250+ integrations including accounting software and legal research tools.

Clio plans and pricing explained

Pricing differs by region, and most tiers are now quote-only.

United States — Clio publishes only EasyStart, starting at $49 per user per month for solo and very small firms: matters, contacts, time tracking, billing, documents and e-signatures. Essentials, Advanced and Expand (Complete was renamed Expand in 2026) are all "Get pricing". The last publicly reported annual-billing figures — repeated across independent reviewers — were roughly $89 for Essentials, $109–$129 for Advanced and $149–$159 for Expand per user per month; treat those as reported estimates, not official prices. The Manage AI add-on on mid tiers is reported at about $39–$59 extra per user, unverified.

United Kingdom — Clio's UK page publishes Core (Clio Manage) starting at £79 per user per month, with no separate annual rate advertised. Signature adds unlimited custom roles, kanban stages, AI reports, multi-currency and split billing. Elite adds the whole Clio Grow intake suite. Both upper tiers are quote-only.

All plans include AI features, a 7-day free trial with no credit card, 24/5 live support and free training and data migration.

Who Clio is for

Solo and small firms — EasyStart or Core covers the basics at a published price.

Firms sharing files with clients — the client portal starts on mid tiers.

Growing practices — Signature/Advanced adds automation, roles and reporting.

Firms wanting intake built in — Elite bundles Clio Grow.

Who should look elsewhere

Price-sensitive solos should note the entry tier lacks the client portal and (per independent reviewers) some integrations and AI features — the realistic entry point is the mid tier. Firms that hate sales calls should also note most tiers are quote-only now. And non-UK/US firms should check regional availability and compliance fit first.

Getting the most out of Clio

Price the tier you'll actually use — most firms need the client portal, which sits above the published-price entry plan.

Take the 7-day trial and migrate a real matter — data migration is free, so test it properly.

Ask about the Manage AI add-on cost explicitly; it isn't in the headline price on mid tiers.

Get the annual-versus-monthly billing maths in writing — reported savings of around 16–22% are significant but unconfirmed on current quote-gated tiers.