# Best free client portal software in 2026 Updated 2026-11-08. Source: https://bestclientportals.com/best-free-client-portal A free client portal lets you give a client one place for requests, files and approvals without paying anything. Many free plans are trials in disguise or strip out key features. Dora is our top pick: your first client is free forever with every feature included, unlimited team seats and its AI account manager, so you can run a real client on it before paying a cent. Free plans vary wildly. Some cap contacts, some hide approvals or branding behind paid tiers, and some expire after two weeks. We compared what each free option includes, how long it lasts, and whether it's enough to run a real client on. ## The shortlist 1. **Dora**: Best free plan overall (from Free, then $10/client/mo) 2. **Assembly**: Best free starter plan with billing (from Free, then $49/mo) 3. **Zendo**: Best free option for productized services (from Free, then $29/mo) 4. **Plutio**: Best low-cost all-in-one for freelancers (from $19/mo) 5. **Softr**: Best free option to build your own (from Free, then $25/mo) ## 1. Dora: Best free plan overall Dora's first client is free forever, and nothing is held back: the branded portal, the AI account manager, approvals, email intake and unlimited team seats. When you add a second client it's $10 a month per client, so you only pay as you grow. What it is: A client portal with a built-in AI account manager that briefs requests, chases clients and gets work signed off. Strengths: - Dora, the AI account manager, turns vague requests into clear briefs and asks clients only for what's missing - Follows up with quiet clients and collects approvals in one click, with optional auto-approve - Clients can send requests and replies by email or through their own AI agent, so they don't have to learn a new tool - Sets up from your website in minutes - Unlimited team seats; you pay only per client - Monthly allowances, estimates for extra work, weekly client summaries and a delivery record - 46 built-in integrations plus any MCP Registry server, an MCP server and API, including Slack, Linear, Jira, ClickUp and Notion Limitations: - No client invoicing or payments built in; use your existing billing tool - Full custom-domain white label is set up on request rather than self-serve - Newer than most tools on this list Pricing: First client free, Each additional client $10/mo. Pricing grows per client. ## 2. Assembly: Best free starter plan with billing Assembly's free plan covers up to 5 active client contacts with one internal user, and paid plans add contacts, a custom domain and more. What it is: A polished branded client portal, formerly Copilot, with billing, forms and an AI app builder. Strengths: - Clean, modern portal clients find easy to navigate - Billing, forms and contracts inside the portal - AI app builder deploys custom apps into the portal - Free plan for up to 5 active contacts Limitations: - Plans capped by active client contacts and internal users - Custom domain and badge removal need Professional ($139/mo) - Request briefing and client follow-up stay with your team Pricing: Free free, Starter $49/mo, Professional $139/mo, Advanced $599/mo. Pricing grows by client contacts. ## 3. Zendo: Best free option for productized services Zendo's free plan covers up to 3 clients for businesses selling packaged services, with paid plans from $29 a month. What it is: A client portal for selling and delivering productized, subscription and custom services. Strengths: - Free plan for 3 clients - Service catalog with order forms and checkout - No transaction fees Limitations: - One internal user included; each extra costs $8 to $17/mo - Custom domain needs Pro ($59/mo) - No AI or automated follow-up Pricing: Free free, Core $29/mo, Pro $59/mo, Agency $99/mo. Pricing grows by plan, with paid extra users. ## 4. Plutio: Best low-cost all-in-one for freelancers Plutio isn't free, but its trial and entry plan give freelancers proposals, invoicing and a client portal in one place. What it is: An all-in-one workspace for freelancers and small teams with projects, proposals, invoices and a client portal. Strengths: - Many tools in one app at a low entry price - AI credits on every plan - No transaction fees Limitations: - Core is limited to 9 clients and no team - White label costs extra below Max - Can feel crowded Pricing: Core $19/mo, Pro $49/mo, Max $199/mo. Pricing grows by plan. ## 5. Softr: Best free option to build your own Softr has a free plan for building a simple portal on top of your own data, if you're happy to design it yourself. What it is: A no-code and AI app builder for making your own client portal on top of your data. Strengths: - Fully customizable layout - Works on Airtable, Sheets, HubSpot, Notion and SQL - Free plan Limitations: - You build and maintain the portal yourself - No built-in request workflow - Low client user limits per plan Pricing: Free free, Basic $25/mo, Pro $119/mo, Business $395/mo. Pricing grows by builders and app users. ## What to look for ### Read the limit, not the word free Every free plan here caps something, and the cap decides who it suits. Dora caps clients at one. Assembly caps active contacts at 5 and internal users at 1. Zendo caps clients at 3 and published services at 1. Softr caps app users at 5. Plutio has no free plan, only a 7-day trial. A contact cap and a client cap are not the same thing. One client with three people on their side uses three of Assembly's five contacts. Dora prices by client, not by the people on the client's side, so a client with several stakeholders still counts once. ### Check what's switched off on the free tier Some free plans keep the core and remove what makes you look professional. Zendo's free plan carries its branding; removing 'Powered by Zendo' takes the $99 Agency plan, and a custom domain needs Pro at $59. Assembly's free plan includes 75 build credits a month for its AI app builder and 3 apps. Softr's free plan includes 5 AI credits and 5,000 records. Dora holds no features back on the free client: the branded portal, email intake, approvals and the AI account manager are all there. What's smaller is capacity. The free client comes with 1 GB of storage and a smaller Dora allowance, and each paid client adds more of both. ### Test it on a client who replies late A free plan is a trial you control. Use it on a real client, ideally a busy one who sends half-formed requests and lets reviews sit. That's the client who shows you whether a portal saves time or just moves the mess somewhere new. Watch what happens when they reply from email, send a request without the details, or ignore a review for a week. In Dora, missing details get asked for, a quiet client gets two email nudges before your team is told, and approval takes one click. ### Know the price of client number two The free plan matters less than the first step up. Dora's second client costs $10 a month, charged when you add them. Zendo's Core plan is $29 with unlimited clients. Assembly's Starter is $49 for 50 contacts. Softr's Basic is $25 for 5 client users. Plutio's Core is $19 for up to 9 active clients. Also check what happens if you stop paying. On Dora you can cancel anytime from Billing, keep your clients to the end of the month, then drop back to one free client. Zendo's 14-day Pro trial falls back to its free plan when it ends. ## What it costs Assume a solo freelancer growing from one client to five, with two contacts per client. At one client, Dora, Assembly, Zendo and Softr all cost nothing, and Plutio is $19 after its trial. At five clients, Dora is $40 a month. Zendo is $29 on Core, since its free plan stops at 3 clients. Plutio stays at $19, inside Core's 9-client limit. Ten contacts pass Assembly's free limit of 5, so you'd move to Starter at $49. Softr's Basic plan covers 5 client users, so ten client logins means Pro at $119. On raw price, Plutio and Zendo are cheapest at five clients. The difference is what the money buys: Dora's $40 includes the AI account manager that briefs requests and chases clients, while the cheaper plans give you a portal and leave follow-up to you. Adding a teammate doesn't change Dora's price; Zendo adds $8 a month per extra user on Core, and Plutio's Core plan has no team members at all. ## How to choose - You want to run a real client free, with briefing and follow-up included: **Dora** - Your clients each have one contact and you want billing ready when you upgrade: **Assembly** - You sell one packaged service and want clients to order it from a checkout page: **Zendo** - You'll pay a little from day one to get proposals and invoicing in the same app: **Plutio** - You want to design your own portal on Airtable or Google Sheets: **Softr** Common mistakes: - Confusing a trial with a free plan. Plutio's 7-day trial ends and asks for payment; a free-forever plan doesn't. - Counting clients when the plan counts contacts. A client with four stakeholders can fill most of a 5-contact free plan alone. - Putting your easiest client on the free plan. You learn more from the client who replies late. - Ignoring the upgrade path. What the first paid plan costs and includes matters more than the free tier itself. ## How we compared - **What's included:** Whether the free plan has the features you'd actually use with a client. - **Time limit:** Free forever, or a trial. - **Client experience:** Whether the free version feels finished from the client's side. - **Upgrade cost:** What it costs once you outgrow the free plan. ## The verdict If you want to run a real client for free with nothing locked away, Dora is the clear choice. If you specifically want to build a custom portal on your own data, Softr's free plan is the alternative. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is there a free client portal? Yes, several client portals have free-forever plans. Dora is free for your first client with every feature, and Assembly, Zendo, Softr, SuperOkay and FuseBase all offer free tiers with tighter limits. SuperOkay's free plan covers one client and one project, and FuseBase's covers one client portal. ### What's the catch with free client portals? The catch is usually a cap or a missing feature. Common ones are a single internal user, a handful of contacts, vendor branding you can't remove, or a small storage limit, such as 0.5GB on SuperOkay and 1GB on Zendo. Dora's free plan has every feature; its limits are one client, 1 GB of storage and a smaller allowance for Dora's AI. ### What does a client portal cost after the free plan? The first paid step on these tools runs from $10 to $49 a month. Dora adds $10 a month per client from the second client, SuperOkay Solo is $12 for 3 clients, Softr Basic is $25, Zendo Core is $29, FuseBase Solo is $39 and Assembly Starter is $49. Check what each step adds, since some raise the client limit and others only add contacts or users. ### Do I need a credit card to start a free client portal? Not for most tools here. Dora's free client needs no card, and Zendo's 14-day Pro trial needs none and drops to its free plan when it ends. FuseBase's trial also falls back to its free plan if you don't add a card, and Plutio's 7-day trial asks for no card, though it has no free plan afterward. ### Can my team use a free client portal too? Only on some free plans. Assembly's and Zendo's free plans each include 1 internal user, and SuperOkay's free plan has no team members. Dora's free client comes with unlimited team seats, and Softr's free plan allows up to 3 builders. ### Does a free client portal include my branding? Usually your logo, rarely full white label. Dora puts your logo and name on the portal and every email on the free client. SuperOkay's free plan has no white label or custom domain, and Softr's custom domain starts on Basic at $25 a month. ### Do free client portals include AI? A few include a small AI allowance. Dora's free client includes the AI account manager with a smaller allowance, and on the free client alone she pauses completely if usage reaches twice that allowance. Assembly's free plan includes 75 build credits a month for its app builder, FuseBase's includes 20 AI prompts, and Softr's includes 5 AI credits. ### What happens to my data if I stop using a free client portal? Check this before you start, because export options vary and aren't always published. With Dora, you can cancel paid clients anytime from Billing and drop back to one free client, and you email Dora's team to export or delete your company's data. Deleted data is removed from Dora within 30 days and from backups after that. ### Why is Dora the top pick? Dora is our top pick because its free plan is a full product, not a trial: every feature, unlimited team seats and the AI account manager, with no time limit. That lets you run a real client through briefing, follow-up and sign-off before paying anything. The limit is one client, and each one after that is $10 a month. Prices and features from each vendor's site, checked 2026-11-08.