A client snaps a photo of a W-2 and sends it to your firm. It arrives named IMG_8314312.png. Someone on your team has to open it, see what it is and rename it. Then they do it again for the next client, all season long.
That is the biggest document management difference between Liscio and SmartVault. SmartVault leaves that job to your staff, because it does not rename client uploads. Liscio reads each upload and suggests the name, client and year. Your team confirms, and then Liscio files it.
SmartVault pricing starts at $1,560 a year. Liscio starts at $228.
All plan prices here are per user per month, billed annually. SmartVault pricing starts at $65 per user per month. But every plan has a user minimum, so the smallest firms pay for empty seats. Business Pro needs three users, so it costs at least $2,340 a year. Accounting Pro needs two, so it costs at least $1,560 a year. That makes $1,560 a year the lowest published price for a one-person firm on SmartVault.
Liscio’s $19 and $49 plans have no user minimum. So a one-person firm pays for one seat. The File Intelligence plan is $19 per user per month, billed annually. That comes to $228 a year. It reads, names and files your documents, and your team confirms first. Clients can send and receive files on it. But it does not include the portal, e-signatures, organizers or document request lists.
For a client portal, the Liscio Platform is $49 per user per month, billed annually. It adds messages, requests, files and signatures with each client. On SmartVault, Business Pro already includes a client portal and client document requests. Accounting Pro adds tax folder templates, SmartRouting and the SmartRequestAI add-on.
Here is what a firm of one to five people pays each year.
| Firm size (yearly, billed annually) | Liscio File Intelligence, $19, no minimum, no portal, e-signatures, organizers or request lists | SmartVault Business Pro, $65, 3-user minimum | Liscio Platform, $49, no minimum | SmartVault Accounting Pro, $65, 2-user minimum |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $228 | $2,340 | $588 | $1,560 |
| 2 people | $456 | $2,340 | $1,176 | $1,560 |
| 3 people | $684 | $2,340 | $1,764 | $2,340 |
| 5 people | $1,140 | $3,900 | $2,940 | $3,900 |
Yearly cost = monthly price × 12 × users, with each vendor’s user minimum applied. Every price is per user per month, billed annually. The File Intelligence plan does not include the portal, e-signatures, organizers or document request lists.
Sources: smartvault.com/pricing, seen November 3, 2026, and liscio.me/pricing.
SmartVault does not rename client uploads. Liscio reads them and suggests a name.
Follow that W-2 photo through each product. Both start with the same file, but different people do the work.
| The file | Liscio | SmartVault |
|---|---|---|
| Arrives as | IMG_8314312.png | IMG_8314312.png |
| Who reads it | Liscio. It identifies a W-2 and the employer who issued it. | Your staff, unless it answers a SmartRequestAI request. Then SmartVault classifies it. |
| Who names it | Liscio suggests the name, client and year. Your team confirms. Then Liscio files it. | Your staff renames it. SmartVault does not rename it. |
Because Liscio reads the file first, nobody has to open it to name it. Your team still confirms each one, and your firm can always change the name.
Liscio supports 274+ forms, and the W-2 is one of them. So are the 1099 series, K-1s and 1040s. Liscio reads phone photos, not only PDFs. If Liscio can’t tell what a file is, it flags the file instead.
SmartVault can sort some documents into client folders. On SmartVault’s Accounting plans, SmartRouting files printed and scanned returns by client and year. It also sorts them by document type. SmartVault’s SmartRequestAI add-on files the documents a client sends in answer to a request. But SmartVault does not rename the file a client sends. IMG_8314312.png stays IMG_8314312.png until your staff renames it.
Sources: smartvault.com/solutions/workflows/tax-prep, smartvault.com/product/smartrouting and smartvault.com/product/smartrequest-ai, seen November 3, 2026.
Accuracy you can verify yourself. Drop a messy client upload at liscio.me/#try, and see the name Liscio gives it.
Liscio and SmartVault both take printed returns. SmartVault also connects directly to Lacerte.
With Liscio, any software that can print or save a PDF sends it straight in. There is no upload and no download. The return arrives matched to the client by client ID. Then you choose what happens next: a Tax Organizer, Tax Delivery or signatures. Your team reviews before anything is filed or sent. You set this up once with your firm’s Microsoft 365 business account. Examples include UltraTax CS, CCH ProSystem fx, CCH Axcess, Lacerte, ProSeries, ProConnect and Drake.
SmartVault’s print driver comes with every plan. On Accounting Pro and up, SmartRouting then files printed returns into client folders. SmartVault connects directly to Lacerte, ProSeries and ProConnect. For UltraTax CS, Drake and CCH, it lists a “Configurable integration.”
Sources: smartvault.com/pricing and smartvault.com/product/integrations/intuit, seen November 3, 2026.
So getting a return in is close to even. The bigger difference is what happens once the return is in.
Tax automation covers two things: Tax Organizers and Tax Delivery
A Tax Organizer collects each client’s answers and documents before you prepare the return. Tax Delivery hands the finished return back for the client to review and sign. Liscio and SmartVault both offer an organizer. The two differ most on delivery.
Liscio’s Tax Organizer and SmartVault’s SmartRequestAI both build from last year’s data
SmartRequestAI is SmartVault’s version of a tax organizer. Liscio and SmartVault both build a questionnaire and document list from prior-year data. So the real differences are the price and the plan you need.
| Liscio Tax Organizer | SmartVault SmartRequestAI | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $5 each for 1 to 499 bought ahead, organizers and deliveries combined. $7 each without a bundle. Needs a Liscio Platform seat. | $15 per return. Sold in bundles of 50 for $750. |
| Plan you need | At least one Liscio Platform seat | An annual Accounting Pro or Accounting Unlimited plan |
| Built from | This season, the client’s prior-year Form 1040 | Prior-year data from ProConnect or Lacerte, last year’s answers, or a prior-year 1040 |
| Follow-up | Automatic email and text reminders. Clients can reply STOP to opt out of texts. | Automated reminders |
Sources: smartvault.com/pricing and smartvault.com/product/smartrequest-ai, seen November 3, 2026.
Here is what that means for a firm that sends 200 organizers. At its listed $15 per return, SmartRequestAI costs $3,000, or four bundles of 50. Bought ahead, 200 Liscio organizers cost $1,000. Without a bundle, those 200 cost $1,400. Add 200 Liscio deliveries and your bundle is 400 combined, still $5 each. That is $2,000 for every organizer and every delivery. Bundles need at least one Liscio Platform seat.
Price is not the only difference. Liscio also lets your firm shape the organizer. You can hide any item, add your own and mark items required. You can add follow-up questions that appear only after a Yes or No. Clients can then complete the organizer in the Liscio phone app.
Because Liscio reads the return itself, the organizer works with any tax software’s returns. The return must be a computer-generated PDF, not a scan. Test one of your returns to see for yourself.
Liscio walks each client through their finished return. SmartVault releases it for DocuSign e-signature.
SmartVault releases the finished return in its portal for e-signature through DocuSign. Liscio walks the client through the return step by step instead. So the client sees what they owe, or get back, before they sign.
| What the client gets | Liscio Tax Delivery | SmartVault |
|---|---|---|
| A summary of their refund or amount due | Yes | Not listed |
| A guided review. The client approves each return document. | Yes | Not listed |
| How to pay the tax | The payment voucher and a link to the online payment portal. Liscio does not collect the payment. | Not listed |
| Estimated-payment reminders | Automatic, two weeks before each quarterly due date. Your firm sets them per delivery. | Not listed |
| E-signature | Built in. $1 per eSignature, an add-on for now. | Through DocuSign. An add-on on Business Pro and Accounting Pro. Unlimited on Accounting Unlimited. |
| Identity check (KBA) for each signer | Optional, set by your firm. $2 per signer. | An add-on on Business Pro and Accounting Pro. Unlimited on Accounting Unlimited. One KBA per signer. |
| Price | Same bundle as organizers: $5 each for 1 to 499, $7 without a bundle. Needs a Liscio Platform seat. | No separate price listed |
| The return in the client portal | Yes | Yes |
“Not listed” means we found no SmartVault page that describes it. SmartVault does list “Optional payment gating before release.”
Sources: smartvault.com/pricing, smartvault.com/solutions/workflows/tax-prep and smartvault.com/product/integrations/docusign, seen November 3, 2026.
Tax Delivery saves your firm time. Firms save 15 or more minutes on every tax delivery. So 200 deliveries add up to 50 hours or more. Joint returns work too, because both spouses can sign. They can share one device or sign separately.
Today, Tax Delivery covers 1040 individual returns. Business returns (1065 and 1120) arrive in November 2026.
Choose SmartVault if you need a direct Intuit connection or ISO 27001
SmartVault is the better fit in two cases. The first is a direct connection to Lacerte, ProSeries, ProConnect or QuickBooks. SmartVault says it has been “Intuit’s recommended document management partner” for Lacerte, ProConnect and ProSeries. Liscio has no direct tax software connection, because it reads the return instead.
The second is a security review that requires ISO 27001 or SOC 2 Type 2. SmartVault lists SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001 and ISO 22301. Liscio is SOC 2 and CASA certified.
Sources: smartvault.com/product/integrations/intuit and smartvault.com/security-and-compliance, seen November 3, 2026.
Choose Liscio if your staff renames client files by hand
Liscio fits best when most of your documents come from clients, not tax software. Those are the phone photos and scan0001.pdf files your staff now renames by hand. It also fits a small firm. The $19 and $49 plans have no user minimum. And it fits a firm that wants each 1040 client walked through their finished return.
You can keep your files in SharePoint, OneDrive, Google Drive or Box through Liscio’s integrations. Or you can use Liscio’s own folders.
Liscio integrates with SmartVault, so you can keep both
Liscio integrates with SmartVault both ways, so you can push and pull documents between them. The sync works on the File Intelligence plan, $19 per user per month, billed annually. That plan does not include the portal, e-signatures, organizers or document request lists. So keep SmartVault, and add the Liscio Platform for your client portal.
You can test Liscio on your own files before you talk to us
Start with a messy client upload at liscio.me/#try. Then test one of your returns in the same place. If the results hold up, book a demo to see Liscio on your own files.
Comparing other options? See Liscio vs ShareFile and Onvio alternatives for accounting firms.