Board Manager vs. BoardSite

BoardSite and Board Manager agree on something most board software gets wrong: board members should not need a password. Where they differ is what happens around the meeting. BoardSite invests in packs, voting, and evaluations, while Board Manager invests in terms, recruitment, and compliance.

Last verified . We link our sources at the bottom of this page.

At a glance

A tilde (~) means the capability exists but with real caveats. The note explains what they are.

CapabilityBoard ManagerBoardSite
Roster and terms
Member roster with contact detailsYesYes
Term start and end datesYesNo
Alerts before a term expiresYesNo
Officer positions with their own term datesYesNo
Meetings and committees
Agenda builder and board packsBoardSite links agenda line items to documents, votes, and speakers. Board Manager stores board documents but does not compile packs.PartialYes
Minutes captureBoardSite includes AI transcription that auto-populates minutes.NoYes
Online voting and surveysNoYes
Board evaluationsBoardSite offers 360° evaluations with benchmarking.NoYes
CommitteesCommittee management is excluded from BoardSite's free tier.YesYes
Meeting RSVPs and attendance per memberYesNo
Native iOS and Android appsNoYes
Compliance and onboarding
Conflict of interest annual signing campaignBoardSite publishes a downloadable conflict of interest policy template rather than a signing workflow.YesNo
Per-member onboarding checklistsBoardSite offers an orientation checklist as a downloadable document.YesNo
Document version control and cloud drive syncNoYes
Recruitment
Board candidate pipeline with stagesYesNo
Public recommendation formYesNo
Skills and diversity matrix in the productYesNo
Access and cost
Board members access without creating an accountBoth use passwordless magic links. BoardSite claims to be the only board portal that does this; that claim is not accurate.YesYes
Pricing published publiclyYesYes
Free plan (not a trial)BoardSite's free tier covers 5 users, 10 documents, and 1 vote per month. Board Manager's covers 25 members with no document cap.YesYes

The honest take

These are different tools for different situations. Here is when each one is the right answer.

Pick BoardSite if

  • You need board packs, online voting, and formal minutes
  • Native mobile apps matter to your board members
  • You want 360° board evaluations with benchmarking
  • Document version control and Google Drive or Dropbox sync are requirements
  • Your board is five people or fewer and their free tier covers you outright

Pick Board Manager if

  • Term expiry is the thing that actually catches you out
  • You are recruiting and want a pipeline and a skills matrix
  • You need annual conflict of interest signing tracked to completion
  • Your board is larger than five people and you still want a free plan
  • You want structured onboarding for new members, not a checklist PDF

What each one costs

Where a vendor does not publish pricing, we say so rather than guessing at a number.

Board Manager
$0 or $19 / month

Published pricing. No demo required, no card to start.

  • Starter: free forever, for boards up to 25 members and candidates
  • Engage: $19/month for unlimited members, compliance signing, and onboarding checklists
  • 500 emails/month on Starter, 2,500 on Engage
  • No setup fee, no annual commitment, no sales call
BoardSite
$0–$599+ / month

Flat pricing by user count rather than per seat. Rates shown are for annual billing.

  • Free: $0 forever, up to 5 users, 10 documents, 1 vote per month
  • Starter $79/mo up to 12 users; Professional $149/mo up to 25
  • Advanced $299/mo up to 50 users; Enterprise $599+ unlimited
  • Committee management and document versioning are excluded from the free tier
  • Note: Capterra lists BoardSite at $5/user/month with no free version, which contradicts the vendor's own pricing page

Moving from BoardSite

Most boards do this in an afternoon. Nothing is deleted on the other side, so you can keep it open while you check the data.

  1. 1Export your member list from BoardSite.
  2. 2Import it at /members/import: names, emails, and roles come across in one pass.
  3. 3Add term start and end dates as you go, since BoardSite won't have them to export.
  4. 4Rebuild your committee structure, which takes a few minutes for most boards.
  5. 5Send your conflict of interest document once to establish a signing baseline.

Common questions

Does BoardSite really have a free plan?

Yes, and it's a genuine $0 tier rather than a trial, but it caps at 5 users, 10 stored documents, and one online vote per month, and excludes committee management. Board Manager's free plan covers 25 members and candidates with no document cap.

Both of you use magic links. What's the difference?

Very little on the login itself, and we'd rather say that than invent a distinction. BoardSite markets itself as the only board portal with passwordless authentication; that isn't accurate, but their implementation is real and it works the same way ours does.

Does BoardSite track board terms?

Not as a published feature. There is no term start and end date tracking or expiry alerting documented on their site, which is the main functional gap if term management is your reason for looking.

Which has better meeting tools?

BoardSite, clearly. Agenda line items linked to documents and votes, AI-assisted minutes, online voting, and board evaluations are all things Board Manager does not do.

Is BoardSite an established product?

It's actively maintained, but it has almost no independent review history, with one review on Capterra and one on Software Advice at the time we checked. That isn't a criticism of the product, but it's a fair thing to know when you're evaluating vendors.

Do they offer e-signatures?

Unclear. BoardSite's own feature pages don't list electronic signatures, though Capterra's listing tags them with it. We'd suggest asking them directly rather than relying on either source.

Try it before you decide.

The free plan covers boards up to 25 people and is not a trial. Set up your roster, see whether it fits, and switch back if it doesn't.

Start free, no card needed

Sources

Claims about BoardSite on this page were verified against the following, last checked September 2, 2026. Pricing and features change, so if you spot something out of date, tell us and we'll fix it.