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Research · head to head

Castor EDC vs Dotmatics

Castor EDC logo

Castor EDC

Research

Electronic data capture and eConsent for clinical trials, built for investigator-initiated studies as well as sponsors

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Dotmatics logo

Dotmatics

Research

Research informatics group behind GraphPad Prism, SnapGene, Geneious and LabArchives, now owned by Siemens

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Castor EDC nothing is published: pricing is quoted only after a scoping call and protocol review, so budgeting a grant application means asking for a quote months before the study is funded and hoping the scope holds.; Dotmatics the portfolio was assembled by acquisition and integration between the constituent products is uneven, so buying several Dotmatics brands does not deliver a single connected environment and often means the same manual export steps as before.
  • They diverge on capability: Castor EDC covers Browser-based study build, Dotmatics covers Dotmatics platform.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Castor EDC and Dotmatics actually diverge.

Attributes where Castor EDC and Dotmatics differ
AttributeCastor EDCDotmatics
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Windows, macOS, On-premise

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Research).

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 Castor EDC

  • Browser-based study build
  • 21 CFR Part 11 workflows
  • eConsent
  • ePRO and surveys
  • Randomisation
  • Per-study licensing
  • Grant-funded pricing paths
  • Data export

Only in Dotmatics

  • Dotmatics platform
  • GraphPad Prism
  • SnapGene
  • Geneious Prime and Biologics
  • LabArchives
  • Flow cytometry tools
  • Protein Metrics
  • Siemens ownership

What people use each for

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

Castor EDC

  • An academic hospital running an investigator-initiated trial that cannot fund a sponsor-grade EDC contract or a data management CROnot Dotmatics
  • A medical device company collecting post-market clinical follow-up data with Part 11 audit trailsnot Dotmatics
  • A multi-site registry that needs remote eConsent because participants are recruited nationally rather than at a clinicnot Dotmatics
  • A biotech running a small phase two study that wants the database built by its own clinical team in weeks rather than commissionednot Dotmatics

Dotmatics

  • A pharmaceutical company consolidating compound registration, assay data and biology screening onto one informatics layernot Castor EDC
  • A biotech that already owns Prism, SnapGene and Geneious separately and wants to understand what a group contract would covernot Castor EDC
  • A university licensing LabArchives across departments as an institutional electronic lab notebooknot Castor EDC
  • A biologics group needing sequence analysis, flow cytometry and proteomics tools from one supplier with a single procurement routenot Castor EDC

Where each one falls short

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

Castor EDC

  • Nothing is published: pricing is quoted only after a scoping call and protocol review, so budgeting a grant application means asking for a quote months before the study is funded and hoping the scope holds.
  • Price scales on protocol complexity rather than a simple unit, so two studies with the same participant count can be quoted very differently and there is no public benchmark to argue against.
  • Modules such as eConsent, ePRO and randomisation are quoted on top of the base platform, so the headline EDC figure is rarely the number that appears on the final proposal.
  • It is deliberately lighter than the full sponsor suites, so a study that grows into a global registrational programme needing integrated CTMS, safety, IRT and full trial supply management will need additional systems and the interfaces between them.
  • Regulatory responsibility does not transfer with the software: the platform supports Part 11 compliant workflows, but system validation for your intended use, SOPs and audit readiness remain your obligation and your cost, which sponsors new to EDC consistently underestimate.

Dotmatics

  • The portfolio was assembled by acquisition and integration between the constituent products is uneven, so buying several Dotmatics brands does not deliver a single connected environment and often means the same manual export steps as before.
  • The Siemens acquisition completed in July 2025 with stated revenue synergy targets, which usually translates into pressure to move individually bought desktop licences into larger platform agreements, and small buyers of a single Prism or SnapGene seat should expect that pressure at renewal.
  • Nothing about the enterprise platform is publicly priced, and even the individual applications are increasingly moved to subscription, so total cost across a research group is hard to establish before negotiation.
  • Each acquired product retains its own licence terms, support channel and release cycle, so an organisation using four Dotmatics brands manages four different renewal dates, entitlement models and support experiences.
  • Enterprise deployments require data migration and configuration services, and validated instances for regulated use add both cost and an ongoing customer revalidation duty after each release, so the informatics platform is a programme rather than a purchase.

Pricing, plan by plan

Castor EDC

On request
  • Castor EDC$undefined/year
    • Priced per study on protocol complexity, duration, sites and modules
    • 21 CFR Part 11 and ICH GCP workflows
    • eConsent, ePRO and randomisation modules quoted separately

Dotmatics

On request
  • Dotmatics platform$undefined/year
    • Enterprise informatics platform priced per user per year on quotation
    • Chemistry and biology registration, assay data and ELN modules scoped separately
    • Implementation and data migration services quoted as a separate programme

Which should you pick?

Choose Castor EDC if

  • You need browser-based study build.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want 21 cfr part 11 workflows.
Castor EDC review

Choose Dotmatics if

  • You need dotmatics platform.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, On-premise.
  • You also want graphpad prism.
Dotmatics review

Questions people ask

Is Castor EDC or Dotmatics better?
Neither clearly leads. Castor EDC starts at On request and Dotmatics at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Castor EDC or Dotmatics?
Castor EDC starts at On request and Dotmatics at On request.
Does Castor EDC or Dotmatics run on more platforms?
Castor EDC runs on Web, iOS, Android. Dotmatics runs on Web, Windows, macOS, On-premise.
What is Castor EDC best used for?
Castor EDC is most often used for an academic hospital running an investigator-initiated trial that cannot fund a sponsor-grade edc contract or a data management cro, a medical device company collecting post-market clinical follow-up data with part 11 audit trails, a multi-site registry that needs remote econsent because participants are recruited nationally rather than at a clinic, a biotech running a small phase two study that wants the database built by its own clinical team in weeks rather than commissioned. Of those, an academic hospital running an investigator-initiated trial that cannot fund a sponsor-grade edc contract or a data management cro and a medical device company collecting post-market clinical follow-up data with part 11 audit trails are not what Dotmatics is typically brought in for.
What can Castor EDC do that Dotmatics cannot?
Castor EDC covers Browser-based study build, 21 CFR Part 11 workflows, eConsent, ePRO and surveys. Dotmatics covers Dotmatics platform, GraphPad Prism, SnapGene, Geneious Prime and Biologics.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Castor EDC: Is there a free academic version?

No published free tier. There are academic, non-profit and grant-funded pricing paths, but each is quoted rather than self-service.

Dotmatics: Who owns Dotmatics?

Siemens, which completed a 5.1 billion dollar acquisition on 1 July 2025. Dotmatics now sits inside Siemens Digital Industries Software.

Castor EDC: Is it 21 CFR Part 11 compliant?

It supports Part 11 compliant workflows with audit trails and electronic signatures. Validating the system for your specific use remains your responsibility.

Dotmatics: Is GraphPad Prism a Dotmatics product?

Yes. So are SnapGene, Geneious, LabArchives, FCS Express, OMIQ, Protein Metrics, SoftGenetics and nQuery.

Castor EDC: Do I need a programmer to build a study?

No. Case report forms are configured in the browser, which is the main reason academic groups adopt it.

Dotmatics: Do the products work together?

To varying degrees. They were acquired separately and integration across the portfolio is uneven, so verify the specific pair you care about before assuming it.

Castor EDC: How long does a quote take?

Castor states a full pricing proposal within five business days of sharing the protocol.

Dotmatics: Is enterprise pricing published?

No. The informatics platform is quoted per user per year with modules and services scoped separately.

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