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Government · head to head

American Legal Publishing vs Clerk

A

American Legal Publishing

Government

Municipal Code Solutions

From
$150/month
Free plan
No
Clerk logo

Clerk

Cybersecurity

Drop-in user authentication and management for developers

From
Free
Free plan
Yes

The short version

  • Only Clerk has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: American Legal Publishing a 2019 recodification contract between American Legal Publishing Corporation and the City of Dry Ridge, Kentucky, publicly posted by a separate Kentucky municipality as a model agreement, sets a base codification cost of $9,485 (USD) plus per-page increase rates of $18 (single column) and $21 (dual column) once the code exceeds the estimated page count, a one-time $550 setup fee to put the code in a searchable online format, $495 per year to host the code online after that, and a five-year supplement plan billed at $18-21 per reprinted page plus $200 per annual statutory update. This is one specific signed municipal contract, not a general price list, and actual costs for other municipalities will scale with code length.; Clerk pricing scales with monthly retained users, which can grow expensive quickly for consumer apps with large user bases.
  • They diverge on capability: American Legal Publishing covers Code Codification, Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which American Legal Publishing and Clerk actually diverge.

Attributes where American Legal Publishing and Clerk differ
AttributeAmerican Legal PublishingClerk
Starting price$150/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebweb, ios, android, api
CategoryGovernmentCybersecurity
Founded1912Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in American Legal Publishing

  • Code Codification
  • Online Publishing
  • Print Services
  • Editorial Support
  • Code Search
  • Legislative Systems
  • Document Management
  • Public Portals

Only in Clerk

  • Prebuilt UI components
  • Organization management
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Social sign-on
  • Billing
  • Enterprise connections

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

American Legal Publishing

  • Citizen Servicesnot Clerk
  • Records Managementnot Clerk
  • Public Safetynot Clerk
  • Civic Engagementnot Clerk

Clerk

  • Adding sign-in and user profiles to a web or mobile app quicklynot American Legal Publishing
  • B2B SaaS apps needing organizations and role-based accessnot American Legal Publishing
  • Startups wanting prebuilt UI instead of building auth in-housenot American Legal Publishing
  • Apps needing MFA and fraud detection out of the boxnot American Legal Publishing

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

American Legal Publishing

  • A 2019 recodification contract between American Legal Publishing Corporation and the City of Dry Ridge, Kentucky, publicly posted by a separate Kentucky municipality as a model agreement, sets a base codification cost of $9,485 (USD) plus per-page increase rates of $18 (single column) and $21 (dual column) once the code exceeds the estimated page count, a one-time $550 setup fee to put the code in a searchable online format, $495 per year to host the code online after that, and a five-year supplement plan billed at $18-21 per reprinted page plus $200 per annual statutory update. This is one specific signed municipal contract, not a general price list, and actual costs for other municipalities will scale with code length.

Clerk

  • Pricing scales with monthly retained users, which can grow expensive quickly for consumer apps with large user bases.
  • Enterprise SSO connections beyond the first are billed as add-ons, adding cost for larger organizations.
  • The Business tier's extra dashboard seats cost $20/month each, which adds up for larger teams.
  • Enterprise-tier features like the 99.99% uptime SLA require annual contracts rather than flexible monthly billing.

Pricing, plan by plan

American Legal Publishing

$150/month
  • Online Code$150/month
    • Online Publishing
    • Code Updates
    • Search

Clerk

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 50,000 MRU limit per app
    • Up to 3 dashboard seats
    • Unlimited applications
  • Pro$25/month
    • 50,000 MRUs included, $0.02/MRU overage
    • Up to 3 dashboard seats
    • 1 Enterprise Connection included
  • Business$300/month
    • 50,000 MRUs included with volume pricing
    • 10 dashboard seats included
    • SOC2 report and priority support
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom pricing, annual billing
    • 99.99% uptime SLA
    • HIPAA available, dedicated Slack channel

Which should you pick?

Choose American Legal Publishing if

  • You need code codification.
  • You also want online publishing.

Choose Clerk if

  • You need prebuilt ui components.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, ios, android, api.
  • You also want organization management.

Questions people ask

Is American Legal Publishing or Clerk better?
Neither clearly leads. American Legal Publishing starts at $150/month and Clerk at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, American Legal Publishing or Clerk?
Clerk has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $150/month for American Legal Publishing and Free for Clerk.
Does American Legal Publishing or Clerk run on more platforms?
American Legal Publishing runs on Web. Clerk runs on web, ios, android, api.
Can I use Clerk for free?
Yes. Clerk has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. American Legal Publishing starts at $150/month.
What is American Legal Publishing best used for?
American Legal Publishing is most often used for citizen services, records management, public safety, civic engagement. Of those, citizen services and records management are not what Clerk is typically brought in for.
What can American Legal Publishing do that Clerk cannot?
American Legal Publishing covers Code Codification, Online Publishing, Print Services, Editorial Support. Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components, Organization management, Multi-factor authentication, Social sign-on.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Clerk: What does Clerk cost?

Clerk's Hobby plan is free with a 50,000 MRU limit; Pro is $25/month ($20/month billed annually), Business is $300/month ($250 annually), and Enterprise uses custom annual pricing.

Source
Clerk: Is there a free plan and what are its limits?

Yes, the Hobby plan is free with a 50,000 monthly retained user (MRU) limit per app, up to 3 dashboard seats, and unlimited applications, with no credit card required.

Source
Clerk: How is usage metered?

Clerk meters by monthly retained users (MRUs) — users who return to the app at least a day after signing up — with overage billed at $0.02 per MRU beyond the included 50,000 on paid plans.

Source
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