Best CRM for law firms
Legal software splits into case management with trust accounting, and intake/CRM tools for winning new clients. Compared on price and which tier actually includes what.
Clio wins for a firm that wants the most established case management platform and is willing to add Clio Grow for intake once the budget allows it. MyCase wins instead for a firm that wants trust accounting included at every tier, including the cheapest, without gating it to the top plan the way PracticePanther does.
The short answer
- Clio Manage's Starter tier is $49/user/month, the only publicly numbered tier; Core, Signature and Elite all require a custom quote, and Clio Grow (intake/CRM) is sold only as an add-on to Manage or bundled into Elite, per clio.com/pricing.
- MyCase starts at $60/user/month (monthly, $50 annual) on Basic, with trust accounting included at every tier, but its Legal CRM intake features are gated to Pro and Advanced, not Basic, per mycase.com/pricing.
- PracticePanther starts at $59/user/month (monthly, $49 annual) on Solo, but trust accounting is gated to its most expensive Business Pro tier at $124/month, while Lawmatics is fully quote-gated and scoped to intake and CRM only, not case management, per practicepanther.com/pricing and lawmatics.com/pricing.
Law firm case management and intake tools compared
| Tool | Starting price | Seats model | Trust accounting included from | Own database? | Intake/CRM? | Best for | Not for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clio Manage | $49/user/mo (Starter) | Per user; Core/Signature/Elite are quote-only | Included at Starter | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Not in Manage; Clio Grow sold separately or bundled at Elite | A firm wanting the most established case management platform, with Grow added later | A firm wanting intake/CRM included at the entry price |
| MyCase | $60/user/mo (Basic, monthly; $50 annual) | Per user | Included at every tier, including Basic | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Legal CRM (intake forms, pipeline) gated to Pro and Advanced tiers | A firm wanting trust accounting on the cheapest tier without an upgrade | A firm wanting intake/CRM features without upgrading past Basic |
| PracticePanther | $59/user/mo (Solo, monthly; $49 annual) | Per user | Gated to the top Business Pro tier ($124/mo monthly) | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Intake forms and texting from Business tier up, not Solo or Essential | A firm that doesn't need trust accounting and wants the lowest entry price | A firm needing trust accounting without paying for the most expensive tier |
| Lawmatics | Pricing on request (custom quote, 3-user minimum) | Custom quote, contact-volume-based | Not applicable, intake/CRM only, no case management | No, hosted multi-tenant SaaS | Yes, its core product: pipeline stages, drip campaigns, automated follow-up | A firm wanting a dedicated intake/CRM tool alongside existing case management | A firm wanting one all-in-one tool instead of pairing two systems |
Figures checked on clio.com/pricing, mycase.com/pricing, practicepanther.com/pricing and lawmatics.com/pricing, September 2026.
How each one fits a law firm
Clio
The most established name in legal practice management, with matter and contact management, unlimited document storage and built-in trust and operating account reconciliation at Starter. Only the Starter tier has a public price; everything above it, and Clio Grow for intake, requires a sales conversation. Not for: a firm wanting a fully self-serve price across every tier.
MyCase
Trust accounting is included from the cheapest Basic tier, which is a real differentiator against PracticePanther. Its Legal CRM (intake forms and pipeline) only appears from Pro up, alongside 8am IQ, an AI writing assistant. Not for: a firm wanting intake and CRM features without paying above the Basic tier.
PracticePanther
The lowest published starting price of the case management tools, with a 7-day free trial. The tradeoff is that trust accounting, intake forms, native e-signature and two-way texting are all gated to its higher tiers, with trust accounting specifically reserved for the top Business Pro plan. Not for: a firm on a budget that specifically needs trust accounting.
Lawmatics
Built entirely around intake and the new-client pipeline: customizable pipeline stages, conflict checking at intake, drip campaigns with logic-based triggers, and appointment booking. It has no case management of its own and integrates with tools like Clio and MyCase instead. Not for: a firm wanting one system instead of pairing an intake tool with case management.
When none of these is the answer
A solo attorney with a small, steady caseload and no active intake pipeline doesn't need dedicated legal software yet. A calendar, a shared drive for documents and a simple spreadsheet for tracking matters covers that stage, and any of these tools add monthly cost and setup time that only pays off once caseload or a growing team makes manual tracking slow.
Disclosure: SalesCrew is our product. It has no matter management, no trust accounting and no conflict checking, so it doesn't replace any tool in this list for running a law firm's casework. Where it could fit is the intake side, closer to what Lawmatics does: outbound and a pipeline for prospective clients, sitting beside a case management system rather than instead of it. It isn't ranked above because it has none of the legal-specific compliance features (trust accounting, conflict checks) every tool here treats as central.
Questions
- What's the difference between Clio Manage and Clio Grow?
- Clio Manage is case and practice management: matters, calendaring, document storage and trust accounting, starting at $49/user/month for its Starter tier. Clio Grow is the intake and CRM side, with a pipeline dashboard and automated workflows, but it isn't sold standalone; it's available to Clio Manage customers or as part of the top Elite plan, per clio.com/pricing.
- Which of these has trust accounting included at the entry tier?
- MyCase and Clio Manage both include trust accounting on every tier, including their cheapest. PracticePanther gates trust accounting to its most expensive Business Pro tier at $124/month (monthly) or $114/month (annual), which is worth checking carefully if trust accounting is a requirement, not an upgrade you're willing to pay for.
- Does Lawmatics replace case management, or just handle intake?
- Just intake and CRM. Lawmatics is explicitly scoped to client intake, marketing automation and pipeline tracking, and integrates with case management platforms like Clio and MyCase rather than replacing them. A firm considering Lawmatics needs a separate case management system alongside it.
- What does 'Legal CRM' mean on MyCase's pricing page?
- MyCase uses that term for client intake forms and pipeline features, and they're gated: available on the Pro and Advanced tiers, not on the cheapest Basic tier at $60/month (monthly) or $50/month (annual). A firm comparing MyCase's headline price to Clio or PracticePanther should check which tier actually includes intake and CRM features before assuming it's included.