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Alfresco vs Box comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 4, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Alfresco
Ranking in Enterprise Content Management
9th
Ranking in Document Management Software
4th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Box
Ranking in Enterprise Content Management
6th
Ranking in Document Management Software
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
40
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Storage (12th), Digital Asset Management (3rd), Content Collaboration Platforms (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Enterprise Content Management category, the mindshare of Alfresco is 7.6%, down from 8.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Box is 4.0%, down from 6.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Enterprise Content Management
 

Featured Reviews

Karthi Keyan - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamlining document management with enhanced digitalization features needed
We used Alfresco as a document management system for automating and digitizing manual forms. Those were the main use cases The digitalization of workflow, forms, operations, and business processes has improved our organization. The most valuable features of Alfresco include its integration with…
Shrikant Pillay - PeerSpot reviewer
Allows you to upload and download files quickly but lacks integration with Office 365
For enterprise users, the data is in a local repository. We use it for files for the end user process. This is a cloud solution. In my current organization, we have over 10,000 people using this solution. I use it very extensively. Users these days are working remotely You can upload your bin,…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the flexibility of the searching elements of the metadata."
"Document repository."
"The digitalization of workflow, forms, operations, and business processes is also significant."
"The most valuable features of Alfresco include its integration with the scanning solution, the ability to search, and the capability to store and index to capture metadata."
"I like the ease of use, sections, and calendar."
"Alfresco allows broad searches with many index fields that you can search on, although the created fields and their values may not be intuitive."
"The product allows engineering teams and developers to introduce new things in a seamless and easy way."
"Sharing and collaborating across files and folders has been a massive game changer."
"The most valuable feature of Box is security."
"Simple file sharing and sync for internal and external customers."
"It is a very user-friendly product."
"The sharing feature, with its various permission settings, such as viewing or uploading, is convenient and helpful."
"It is really easy to load files to and from this solution."
"We've never had a penetration. We've never had a security issue that their support didn't solve. We love their audit trail. We can know exactly when a collaborator opens. We love how you can define a collaborator."
"The ability to collaborate around data anywhere, anytime is the most powerful features of Box."
 

Cons

"Alfresco could improve workflow digitalization and enhance artificial intelligence capabilities."
"The configuration of Alfresco is a big challenge."
"I would like them to consider document capture functionality."
"Alfresco has a very steep learning curve, and unfortunately, during the learning process, it's very easy to make errors, which often are unforgiving."
"Metadata, auto class, disposition log, and legal hold."
"The setup process for Alfresco was complex."
"I think the presentation layer could be improved - currently, it's too complex, and there are too many features cluttered all over the screen."
"Maturity of the enterprise security around user management."
"The room for improvement is in the area of integrations. They need to establish more integrations, especially with Office 365 and Outlook."
"The integration with other products should be improved."
"I haven't really come across a case where we're not able to use it for what it is, so I don't really have anything holding us up or any customers holding us up at this point that I know of. There are always some limitations, but as a technologist, I just live with them, and there is always room for improvement, but I don't have anything quantifiable."
"Better integration with other solutions is needed."
"If there was a plugin that added some sort of toolbar in Office, that would be great."
"One thing that Box would benefit from is a records management component."
"With OneDrive, you can continuously save your files over a Box folder. That is something I wish we could have."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is cheaper compared to head-to-head competitors."
"If you buy Alfresco through a partner, there is usually a OEM licensing option."
"There are costs for any upgrade or additional functions."
"The license for Alfresco is expensive - not the maximum, but close. There are also extra costs once you start building integrations, as implementation seems to be very costly."
"I have to pay for Box. It could be a little cheaper. On a scale from one to ten, I would give the pricing a five."
"A business account has a minimum of three users. If you are more than three people in-house, go for the Enterprise version. All the external users are free of charge."
"I believe Box is cheaper than SharePoint."
"They are very price competitive when pushed. Initially, they come out with a standard list price, but they are willing to be very competitive. The Box price was pretty much equal to or lower than the Citrix price, and Box has more features."
"Box's pricing is excellent."
"Better sign a full year's contract to get a discount."
"We are using the free version of the solution. There is a free version and monthly and yearly subscriptions available."
"Box needs to improve with their pricing in terms of licensing costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Government
14%
Computer Software Company
11%
Insurance Company
9%
Educational Organization
60%
Computer Software Company
5%
Financial Services Firm
4%
Healthcare Company
3%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Would Alfresco give an organization more benefits in terms of cost, features & security as compared to Sharepoint?
Alfresco scores are high on all features of an ECM solution and tools. Back office processing, rated as 3.36 good. Business Process Application 3.55 Good to excellent. Document Management 4.12...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alfresco?
Pricing is considered mid-range, and there are considerations regarding the cost of licensing.
What needs improvement with Alfresco?
Alfresco could improve workflow digitalization and enhance artificial intelligence capabilities.
What do you like most about Box?
The solution is used for data storage and any kind of visualization.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Box?
The solution is expensive when it comes to API calls.
 

Comparisons

 

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Overview

 

Sample Customers

Over 1,300 companies from 180 different countries. Including EuroStar, Saks Fifth Avenue, NASA Langley Research Center, and KLM.
GE, Toyota, P&G, Caterpillar, Flex, Schneider Electric, Sally Beauty, Eurostar, AstraZeneca, AirBnB, Whirlpool, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Nationwide, Aeropostale etc
Find out what your peers are saying about Alfresco vs. Box and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
831,265 professionals have used our research since 2012.