A shopVOX alternative without the per-user meter running.
Give shopVOX its due: Online Proofing is in the base Express tier, not upsold later, and the "no login" link-based approval is the right call — same one we make. What changes the maths is the price shape. Express starts at $109 before anyone touches it, then $29 for every person after the first. Proof System is $12 a month, flat, whether it's one person or five.
The comparison
| Feature | Proof System | shopVOX |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price, one person | $12 / month, flat | $109 / month + $29 / user |
| Free plan | Yes — forever, real jobs, no card | No — 14-day trial with full access |
| Adding a second staff login | Included — flat price either way | +$29 / month per person |
| Customer needs a login to approve | No — opens from a link | No — a secure link, by their own description |
| Markup on the artwork itself | Pins, drawing and notes, on the proof | Comment and request changes — no drawing tool described in their own materials |
| White-labelled for your shop | From $12 / month | Not stated on their pricing page |
| Accounting integrations (QuickBooks etc) | Not built in | QuickBooks Online, Sage One, Xero — included from Express |
| Online store / e-commerce | Not offered | Add-on suite, $199 / month + setup |
shopVOX figures from shopvox.com/pricing, checked 25 Aug 2026. shopVOX is a trademark of its own owner; nothing here is affiliated with or endorsed by them.
Where shopVOX genuinely wins
shopVOX is a considerably bigger platform, and it shows in the add-on list: QuickBooks, Sage and Xero integrations from the base tier, a vendor catalog, purchase orders, an inventory module, and an e-commerce suite for shops that want to sell direct. None of that is a small thing to build yourself, and Proof System does not attempt to replace it. If a shop's real bottleneck is accounting sync or inventory, not proofing, shopVOX's breadth is the more honest answer.
PRO adds sales CRM, API access and webhooks on top — real infrastructure for a shop running its whole operation through one system.
Why shops switch anyway
The per-user charge is the thing that compounds. A five-person shop on shopVOX PRO — the tier with API access and CRM — is $249 plus $49 a head: $445 a month before any add-on. The same five people on Proof System's top rung, Studio, is $29 flat, because nothing here charges per seat at all.
And there is no way to try shopVOX without a clock running — 14 days, then a decision. Proof System's free plan has no expiry: 20 active jobs and 5 proofed a month, on real work, for as long as it takes to be sure.
One price, however many people are on it.
Free plan, no card, no per-seat charge — start on a real job today.