Research · head to head
LabArchives vs Microsoft OneDrive
LabArchives
Research
Electronic lab notebook with witnessing, version history and long-term institutional retention
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Microsoft OneDrive
File Storage
Cloud storage that comes with Microsoft 365
- From
- $1.99/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only LabArchives has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: LabArchives the corporate rate is roughly 75 per cent above the academic rate for the same product, so a university spinout crossing into commercial status faces a step change in cost at exactly the point its budget is tightest.; Microsoft OneDrive free tier not available; minimum cost is $1.99/month for 100 GB storage
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which LabArchives and Microsoft OneDrive actually diverge.
| Attribute | LabArchives | Microsoft OneDrive |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $1.99/month |
| Pricing model | Per user per year | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android | Web |
| Category | Research | File Storage |
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 LabArchives
- Versioned entries
- Witnessing and signing
- Inventory
- Scheduler
- Education edition
- Single sign-on
- Structured data entry
- DOI and repository publishing
Only in Microsoft OneDrive
Nothing recorded that LabArchives does not also cover.
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
LabArchives
- A university group that must keep research records after a PhD student leaves, rather than losing them with a laptopnot Microsoft OneDrive
- A core facility that needs instrument booking and a shared record of who ran what and whennot Microsoft OneDrive
- A small biotech building patent-defensible evidence of invention with witnessed, timestamped entriesnot Microsoft OneDrive
- A teaching department running undergraduate laboratory courses where instructors need to see and grade notebook worknot Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft OneDrive
- Personal cloud storage and file backupnot LabArchives
- Family file sharing and collaborationnot LabArchives
- Business document managementnot LabArchives
- Enterprise ransomware protectionnot LabArchives
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
LabArchives
- The corporate rate is roughly 75 per cent above the academic rate for the same product, so a university spinout crossing into commercial status faces a step change in cost at exactly the point its budget is tightest.
- Inventory and Scheduler are separate per-user line items, so a lab that assumed one price per person for a working system ends up paying two or three.
- It is now a Dotmatics product inside a large scientific software portfolio, which puts roadmap priority with enterprise pharmaceutical buyers rather than with the academic labs that made it popular.
- The interface is functional rather than pleasant, and adoption typically fails not on features but on researchers quietly continuing to keep notes elsewhere; you need a mandate, not a rollout email.
- Instrument integration is thin compared with dedicated laboratory information management systems, so automated capture from analytical equipment usually still means manual upload or custom scripting.
Microsoft OneDrive
- Free tier not available; minimum cost is $1.99/month for 100 GB storage
- Higher-tier plans required for advanced Copilot features
- Per-user pricing increases significantly with family plans
Pricing, plan by plan
LabArchives
Free- FreeFree
- Limited storage
- Core notebook and versioning
- Intended for evaluation and individual use
- Professional (Academic)$330/year
- Full ELN with witnessing and signing
- Academic rate per user per year
- Corporate rate is $575 per user per year
- ELN plus Inventory bundle$360/year
- Notebook plus sample and reagent inventory
- Academic rate; corporate rate is $675 per user per year
- Inventory standalone$99/year
- Sample tracking without the notebook
- Academic rate; corporate rate is $199 per user per year
Microsoft OneDrive
$1.99/month- Microsoft 365 Basic$1.99/month
- 100 GB cloud storage
- Outlook access
- OneDrive access
- Microsoft 365 Personal$9.99/month
- 1 TB cloud storage
- Desktop Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote)
- Copilot features
- Microsoft 365 Family$12.99/month
- Up to 6 TB cloud storage (1 TB per person)
- 1-6 users supported
- Same apps and features as Personal
- Microsoft 365 Premium$19.99/month
- Up to 6 TB cloud storage (1 TB per person)
- 1-6 users
- Extensive Copilot feature access
Which should you pick?
Choose LabArchives if
- You need versioned entries.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want witnessing and signing.
Choose Microsoft OneDrive if
Nothing in the data separates Microsoft OneDrive from LabArchives on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is LabArchives or Microsoft OneDrive better?
- Neither clearly leads. LabArchives starts at Free and Microsoft OneDrive at $1.99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, LabArchives or Microsoft OneDrive?
- LabArchives has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for LabArchives and $1.99/month for Microsoft OneDrive.
- Does LabArchives or Microsoft OneDrive run on more platforms?
- LabArchives runs on Web, iOS, Android. Microsoft OneDrive runs on Web.
- Can I use LabArchives for free?
- Yes. LabArchives has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Microsoft OneDrive starts at $1.99/month.
- What is LabArchives best used for?
- LabArchives is most often used for a university group that must keep research records after a phd student leaves, rather than losing them with a laptop, a core facility that needs instrument booking and a shared record of who ran what and when, a small biotech building patent-defensible evidence of invention with witnessed, timestamped entries, a teaching department running undergraduate laboratory courses where instructors need to see and grade notebook work. Of those, a university group that must keep research records after a phd student leaves, rather than losing them with a laptop and a core facility that needs instrument booking and a shared record of who ran what and when are not what Microsoft OneDrive is typically brought in for.
- What can LabArchives do that Microsoft OneDrive cannot?
- LabArchives covers Versioned entries, Witnessing and signing, Inventory, Scheduler.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
LabArchives: Does LabArchives satisfy patent evidence requirements?
Its versioning, timestamping and witnessed signatures are designed for that purpose, and it is widely accepted for it, but the legal weight depends on your institution's process being followed, not on the software alone.
Microsoft OneDrive: How much does Microsoft OneDrive cost?
OneDrive pricing starts at $1.99/month for Microsoft 365 Basic with 100 GB storage. Personal plan costs $9.99/month with 1 TB storage. Family plan at $12.99/month supports 1-6 people with up to 6 TB total storage. Premium tier at $19.99/month adds advanced Copilot and AI features.
SourceLabArchives: Who owns LabArchives?
Dotmatics. The product is branded LabArchives by Dotmatics and shares that company's corporate footprint.
Microsoft OneDrive: Is there a free version of Microsoft OneDrive?
Microsoft does not offer a free OneDrive plan through their paid subscription tiers. However, users with Microsoft accounts receive 5 GB of complimentary OneDrive storage at no cost when creating a Microsoft account.
SourceLabArchives: Is there really a free tier?
Yes, with limited storage. It is suitable for trialling or a single researcher, not for a group that needs retention guarantees.
Microsoft OneDrive: What security features are included in OneDrive plans?
All OneDrive plans include ransomware detection with files restore, password-protected and expiring-link file sharing settings, and anywhere editing with real-time collaboration. Premium and higher tiers offer exclusive agentic AI security features.
SourceLabArchives: Can we export everything if we leave?
Yes, notebooks export in bulk, but exported archives lose much of the interactive structure, so treat the export as an archive rather than as a migration path into another ELN.
Related pages
More on LabArchives
More on Microsoft OneDrive
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