Startups need to sign employment contracts, NDAs, advisory agreements, and service contracts — but only a handful per year. A £25/month enterprise signing tool is dead money. You have better things to spend your runway on.
Quill costs £1.99 per document. No subscription, no annual commitment, no account balance. You pay when you send, and your signers do not need to create accounts. For a startup signing 10-15 documents a year, that is under £30 — not £300.
| Enterprise esign tool | Quill | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £15-25/month | £1.99 per document |
| Annual cost (12 documents) | £180-300 | £23.88 |
| Annual cost (5 documents) | £180-300 | £9.95 |
| Unused months | Still charged | £0 |
| Setup time | Account, team, templates | None |
| Signers need accounts | Sometimes | Never |
Most startups under 20 people sign the same types of documents:
These documents come in bursts — three contracts when you hire, then nothing for two months, then an NDA before a fundraise. A subscription tool charges the same in busy months and quiet months. Quill charges nothing when you are not sending. You can sign an NDA online or send an employment contract for signature in under five minutes.
Startups do not have time to set up templates, configure workflows, or manage user seats. Quill has none of that. Upload a PDF, add signers, place fields, pay £1.99, send. The whole process takes under five minutes.
Your signers — whether they are a new hire, an advisor, or an investor — get an email with a secure link. They sign in their browser without creating an account or installing anything.
Every document signed through Quill includes a full audit trail with timestamps, IP addresses, and consent records. A SHA-256 hash provides tamper evidence. Signatures are legally binding under UK law and US law. See the full pay-per-document pricing.
How it works
Drop in the contract, agreement, or document you need signed. Any standard PDF works.
Add your signers and click where each person needs to sign. Assign fields to the right people.
Pay and your signers receive an email with a secure link. They sign in their browser — no account needed.
Pricing
No subscription. No monthly fee. No account balance. You pay when you send, and only when you send.
Legal validity
Quill produces Simple Electronic Signatures (SES), recognised under the Electronic Communications Act 2000 (UK), EU eIDAS Regulation, and the US ESIGN Act. SES are legally valid for the vast majority of commercial contracts and agreements.
Audit trail
Every signed document includes a certificate page recording signer names, emails, timestamps, IP addresses, and consent records.
Tamper evidence
A SHA-256 hash of the completed PDF is computed and stored. Any modification to the document after signing is detectable.
6-year retention
Audit data and signed documents are retained for 6 years, then permanently deleted.
Related
A signing tool that costs less than your morning coffee
Freelancers do not send 100 contracts a month. Quill is £1.99 per document — no subscription, no account needed. Get contracts signed in three minutes.
Electronic signatures that match small business budgets
Small businesses do not need enterprise signing tools. Quill is £1.99 per document — no subscription, no per-seat pricing, no wasted spend.
A DocuSign alternative that does not charge monthly
DocuSign starts at £10/month with envelope limits. Quill is £1.99 per document with no subscription, no envelope caps, and no annual commitment.
Are electronic signatures legally binding in the UK?
Yes, for most commercial contracts. Electronic signatures are legally valid under the Electronic Communications Act 2000 and retained UK eIDAS regulation. Here is what you need to know.
Upload a PDF, add your signers, and send. Takes under five minutes.