ChaseDocs
The SmartVault alternative that never becomes the vault
SmartVault is a document management system, and a good one — your clients' files live inside it, with unlimited storage to match. ChaseDocs takes the opposite position. Uploads route straight into cloud storage you already own, AI checks each document as it lands, and you pay one flat price per firm instead of per user. We keep the checklist and a pointer, never the file.
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The short version
Last updated 2026-08-12SmartVault is a document management system that also collects documents. ChaseDocs is a collection layer that sits in front of storage you already own. SmartVault holds your files, offers unlimited storage, and charges per user with a seat minimum. ChaseDocs writes each upload into your own Google Drive™ and charges one flat price per firm.
Why firms look for a SmartVault alternative
They don't want to be the custodian of a vault
Holding years of clients' bank statements, IDs and returns in a third-party platform is a liability that grows quietly. Keeping the file of record in your own cloud shrinks it.
Per-user pricing punishes a small practice
A seat minimum means the smallest bill is three seats whether or not you have three people, and every hire raises the bill again. A flat per-firm price does not.
Their clients answer on WhatsApp, not email
Email requests get missed and the follow-up ends up in a chat thread anyway. Sending the request where the client already is removes a step nobody enjoys.
They want the AI to check the file coming back
Composing the request is the easy half. Right type, correct period, readable, complete — checked before a human spends time on it.
ChaseDocs vs SmartVault at a glance
- 1 This is the core difference. SmartVault is the document vault — that is the product. ChaseDocs routes each upload into storage you already own and keeps a pointer, plus a transient encrypted copy for the AI pass that is dropped straight after.
- 2 ChaseDocs connects Google Drive today, with Dropbox, OneDrive and S3 on the roadmap. SmartVault has a deep integration catalogue, but every one of them is a workflow integration — we found none that files documents into a customer's own cloud, on any tier.
- 3 SmartRequestAI reads the client's prior-year return to generate the request — real document AI, pointed at composing the ask rather than checking the answer. We found no documented check of what the client uploads back.
- 4 A genuine SmartVault strength, and unlimited on every tier. ChaseDocs has no storage allowance to run out because it holds no documents — which is the point, but it also means no vault if a vault is what you want.
- 5 SmartVault meters per user with a 3-user minimum on the entry tier, so the smallest possible bill is three seats whether or not you have three people. ChaseDocs prices per firm on active requests; adding a colleague on a plan with seats available costs nothing extra.
- 6 SmartVault: Business Pro billed monthly ($55/user/mo billed annually), 3-user minimum — about $1,980/yr at the annual rate. The two are not directly comparable — theirs buys a document management system, ours buys the collection layer in front of storage you already pay for.
SmartVault pricing and features here were read from their own pricing page on 2026-08-12. Products change — check their current page before you decide, and ours for ChaseDocs.
Switch to ChaseDocs if…
- You want the file of record in your own cloud, not a vendor vault.
- You are a small practice and a per-seat minimum costs more than it should.
- Your clients answer on WhatsApp faster than they answer email.
- You want AI to check each upload, not just help you compose the request.
- You already have storage you trust and pay for.
Stay with SmartVault if…
- You want a document management system, not a collection layer — a permanent home for firm and client files.
- Unlimited storage on every tier is worth paying for.
- You need the tax and accounting ecosystem: tax prep software, practice management, document fetching.
- Automatic workpaper assembly is part of how your practice works.
- You are a US firm and the IRS Pub 4557 / FTC Safeguards / GLBA compliance framing is what you are buying.
See it in your own words
Same product, described with the documents you actually chase.
Accounting & bookkeeping
Bank statements, tax forms and KYC documents, checked against the period you asked for.
Read moreImmigration & relocation
Assignee passports, degree certificates and the employer's pack, checked against the start date.
Read moreEducation & study abroad
Student passports, transcripts and visa evidence, checked against your intake dates.
Read moreYou can run both for a cycle
There is nothing to migrate into ChaseDocs, because it never becomes the home for your files. Collect through ChaseDocs while SmartVault stays the archive, and decide after one real cycle.
- 01
Rebuild your checklist as a template
Add the documents and questions you request each period. Reuse it for every client, every cycle.
- 02
Connect your own cloud storage
Link Google Drive so uploads route straight there and stay yours. Or start on the zero-config encrypted fallback and connect Drive later.
- 03
Send your first request over WhatsApp
Your client uploads with no login, AI checks each file, and reminders chase them so you do not have to. Keep SmartVault as the archive while you evaluate.
SmartVault alternative FAQ
Is ChaseDocs a good SmartVault alternative?
It depends on which job you are buying for. SmartVault is a document management system — a vault your firm's documents live in permanently, with unlimited storage, tax-software integrations and automatic workpaper assembly. ChaseDocs is the collection layer that sits in front of storage you already own: it sends the request, chases over WhatsApp or email, checks each upload with AI, and files it into your own Google Drive. If you want a system of record, SmartVault is the better buy. If you already have one and what hurts is the chasing, ChaseDocs is the closer fit.
Where do my clients’ documents actually live?
In your own cloud. You connect Google Drive, and every accepted upload is written there — the file of record is yours from the moment it arrives. ChaseDocs stores the checklist, the AI validation result and a pointer, plus one transient encrypted copy used for the AI pass and deleted right after. If you would rather not connect storage on day one, a short-retention encrypted ChaseDocs bucket is the zero-config fallback. With SmartVault, the documents live in SmartVault: that is the product, and their storage is unlimited because of it.
How does the pricing compare?
Different meters, which matters more than the headline numbers. SmartVault charges $75/user/mo — Business Pro billed monthly ($55/user/mo billed annually), 3-user minimum — about $1,980/yr at the annual rate — so a two-person practice still pays for three seats on the entry tier. ChaseDocs charges per firm from $29/month, metered on how many document requests are active at once rather than how many people log in. See our pricing section for current plans; the app is authoritative. Figures for SmartVault were read from their pricing page on 2026-08-12.
Where does SmartVault still win?
In several places worth being straight about. Unlimited storage on every tier is real value for a document-heavy practice. Their tax and accounting ecosystem runs deep — tax prep software, practice management, document fetching. The automatic workpaper assembly, where answers and documents are filed as bookmarked workpapers, is genuinely differentiated and hard to replicate. And their compliance posture is built for US firms specifically: SOC 2 Type 2, IRS Pub 4557, FTC Safeguards, GLBA. ChaseDocs is a collection tool with customer-held custody, not a document management system, and it does not pretend otherwise.
What does switching involve?
There is nothing to migrate into ChaseDocs, because ChaseDocs never becomes the home for your files. Your existing documents stay in SmartVault, or you export them to your own Drive first if you are leaving entirely. Then you rebuild your document checklist as a reusable template, connect your storage, and send your first request. Most firms are live the same day, and you can run both side by side for a cycle — collect through ChaseDocs while SmartVault stays the archive.
Collect without becoming the vault
Send one branded request. Every upload lands in your own cloud, checked by AI before you look at it.
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