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Legal · head to head

CosmoLex vs Filevine

CosmoLex logo

CosmoLex

Legal

Practice management with a full legal general ledger and trust accounting built in

From
$89/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Filevine logo

Filevine

Legal

Configurable case management for plaintiff litigation, intake and mass tort firms

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CosmoLex the built-in accounting suits a single law firm entity, so practices with multiple entities, payroll or unusual revenue recognition still need an external accountant and a second system.; Filevine there is no built-in general ledger or three-way trust reconciliation, so the firm still pays for and reconciles QuickBooks separately, which undermines the single-system argument used during the sale.
  • They diverge on capability: CosmoLex covers Built-in general ledger, Filevine covers Project templates.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CosmoLex and Filevine actually diverge.

Attributes where CosmoLex and Filevine differ
AttributeCosmoLexFilevine
Starting price$89/monthOn request
Pricing modelPer user per monthquote

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Legal).

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 CosmoLex

  • Built-in general ledger
  • Three-way trust reconciliation
  • Time and expense capture
  • Billing and LEDES
  • CosmoLex Pay
  • Matter management

Only in Filevine

  • Project templates
  • Lead Docket intake
  • Document assembly
  • Vinesign
  • Case texting
  • Reporting and dashboards

What people use each for

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

CosmoLex

  • A two to ten lawyer firm that wants to stop paying for and reconciling QuickBooks alongside its practice systemnot Filevine
  • A firm that has failed or fears failing a bar trust account audit and needs three-way reconciliation as standardnot Filevine
  • A solo practice with no bookkeeper that needs the books to be correct without accounting knowledgenot Filevine
  • A firm doing insurer defence work that must produce LEDES invoices without a separate billing toolnot Filevine

Filevine

  • A personal injury firm that wants advertising spend, intake conversion and settlement value reported in one placenot CosmoLex
  • A mass tort practice managing thousands of claimants against shared case phases and bulk document generationnot CosmoLex
  • A firm replacing spreadsheets and shared drives where each practice area has different deadline rulesnot CosmoLex
  • An immigration or workers compensation practice that needs form-heavy document assembly from case datanot CosmoLex

Where each one falls short

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

CosmoLex

  • The built-in accounting suits a single law firm entity, so practices with multiple entities, payroll or unusual revenue recognition still need an external accountant and a second system.
  • Document management is basic storage rather than versioned matter-centric DMS, so firms with heavy document workflow outgrow it and bolt on something else.
  • The integration catalogue is materially smaller than Clio, so niche intake, e-discovery or automation tools often require manual export instead of a native connection.
  • Ownership sits with ProfitSolv alongside Tabs3, TimeSolv and Rocket Matter, and buyers have limited visibility into which brand receives investment over a three-year contract.
  • The interface and reporting feel dated next to newer competitors, and custom reporting in particular often means exporting to a spreadsheet.

Filevine

  • There is no built-in general ledger or three-way trust reconciliation, so the firm still pays for and reconciles QuickBooks separately, which undermines the single-system argument used during the sale.
  • Pricing is quoted per user with an implementation fee, so a firm with paralegals and case managers who log in occasionally pays full seat cost for light users.
  • Configuration flexibility becomes a liability without an internal owner, and firms that skip that role commonly end up with duplicate fields and reports nobody trusts.
  • It is built around contingency and litigation workflow, so corporate, conveyancing and other transactional practices find the project model a poor fit.
  • Implementation commonly runs weeks to months with paid professional services, and the annual contract starts before the firm is live, so the first year buys less usable time than it appears to.

Pricing, plan by plan

CosmoLex

$89/month
  • CosmoLex$89/month
    • Per user per month billed annually, higher month to month
    • General ledger and trust accounting included rather than sold as an add-on
    • Payment processing charged at card and bank transaction rates

Filevine

On request
  • Filevine$undefined/year
    • Quoted per user per month on an annual contract
    • Separate one-off implementation and configuration fee
    • Lead Docket, Vinesign and AI drafting priced as add-on modules

Which should you pick?

Choose CosmoLex if

  • You need built-in general ledger.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want three-way trust reconciliation.
CosmoLex review

Choose Filevine if

  • You need project templates.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want lead docket intake.
Filevine review

Questions people ask

Is CosmoLex or Filevine better?
Neither clearly leads. CosmoLex starts at $89/month and Filevine at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CosmoLex or Filevine?
CosmoLex starts at $89/month and Filevine at On request.
Does CosmoLex or Filevine run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is CosmoLex best used for?
CosmoLex is most often used for a two to ten lawyer firm that wants to stop paying for and reconciling quickbooks alongside its practice system, a firm that has failed or fears failing a bar trust account audit and needs three-way reconciliation as standard, a solo practice with no bookkeeper that needs the books to be correct without accounting knowledge, a firm doing insurer defence work that must produce ledes invoices without a separate billing tool. Of those, a two to ten lawyer firm that wants to stop paying for and reconciling quickbooks alongside its practice system and a firm that has failed or fears failing a bar trust account audit and needs three-way reconciliation as standard are not what Filevine is typically brought in for.
What can CosmoLex do that Filevine cannot?
CosmoLex covers Built-in general ledger, Three-way trust reconciliation, Time and expense capture, Billing and LEDES. Filevine covers Project templates, Lead Docket intake, Document assembly, Vinesign.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CosmoLex: Do I still need QuickBooks?

No. CosmoLex carries its own general ledger and trust ledgers, which is the main reason firms choose it over Clio or MyCase.

Filevine: Does Filevine handle trust accounting?

No. It tracks case costs and settlement disbursement but has no legal general ledger, so trust accounting is done in QuickBooks or a dedicated legal accounting product.

CosmoLex: Does it handle IOLTA compliance?

Yes. Trust ledgers, overdraft prevention and three-way reconciliation are in the core product rather than in a paid tier.

Filevine: Is pricing published?

No. Filevine quotes per user per month on an annual contract and adds an implementation fee, so compare total first-year cost rather than the seat rate.

CosmoLex: Who owns CosmoLex?

ProfitSolv, a private-equity backed group that also owns Tabs3, TimeSolv, ImagineTime and Rocket Matter.

Filevine: Is it suitable for a two-person firm?

Rarely. The configuration overhead and contract minimums suit firms with dedicated intake and case management staff.

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