CPA Practice Advisor - 20

REVIEW: CLIENT PORTAL SYSTEMS
SmartVault
www.smartvault.com
SmartVault offers branded client
portals, along with online document
storage and secure file sharing capability. Best suited for small to mid-sized
businesses and accounting firms.
SmartVault is particularly well suited
for firms using QuickBooks Desktop,
QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Lacerte
applications.
SmartVault offers two versions:
SmartVault for Business and SmartVault for Accountants, with all plans
offering unlimited guests, secure file

sharing, a branded client portal, online
document storage, complete product
support, and an Outlook Plugin. A
native mobile app is also available for
iOS devices, though Android, Windows,
and Blackberry mobile users will have
to use a third-party app to connect to
SmartVault.
The online document storage
feature works in conjunction with the
client portal to provide designated
users with 24/7 access to files. The
portal can be completely customized
to reflect firm branding, and clients
can link to the portal directly from the

firm's website. The SmartVault Dashboard offers easy access to most of the
portal features including the ability to
access any client, send files to clients,
and client engagements. Users can also
access both the internal documents
or public documents folders, and both
folder templates and email templates
can be accessed from the dashboard as
well. The client icon in the SmartVault
dashboard is where users can add a
new client, search for an existing client,
and send an invitation to a client to
sign up for portal access.
Accounting Pro plan, which

Thomson Reuters NetClient CS Portals
http://cs.thomsonreuters.com
NetClient CS Portals is part of CS Professional Suite from Thomson Reuters.
Designed to be used with other CS Professional Suite applications, NetClient
CS Portals is a good fit for accounting
firms of any size. NetClient CS Portals,
like all CS Professional Suite applications, can be installed on-premise or
delivered as SaaS or by using Virtual
Office CS.
NetClient CS Portals includes
a mobile app that works with both
Android and iOS devices, making

it easy for both staff and clients to
access and upload documents from
anywhere. Fully functional, the mobile
app provides access to documents such
as tax returns, allows users to upload
vital document, and provides access
to account detail and messages. The
mobile app also includes a time entry
option as well as access to payroll data
such as check stubs and W-2s.
NetClient CS Portals includes up to
1,000 base portals, making it easy to
create a custom portal for each client,
with the portals fully customizable to
reflect firm branding. When used with

Accounting CS Payroll, clients that are
provided with payroll services can use
the portal to enter payroll information, eliminating the need for manual
data entry methods. Portal access is
through the firm's website, with all
clients provided with an initial login
and password to access the portal.
Once they are in the portal, they can
change their password if desired.
NetClient CS Portals from Thomson
Reuters offers tremendous value to
accounting firms using other CS Professional Suite applications, allowing easy
sharing of documents with clients, and

CCH Axcess Portal
http://cchgroup.com
Designed for accounting professionals,
CCH Axcess Portal is a module in the
CCH Axcess cloud software solution
from Wolters Kluwer. CCH Axcess Portal can be used as a stand-alone portal,
or used in conjunction with other CCH
Axcess modules for a more integrated
practice management solution.
As a cloud-based application, CCH
Axcess Portal is accessible from a
desktop or workstation computer, as
well as a tablet or laptop. A mobileoptimized website is also available

20

OCTOBER 2019 ■

for iPhone, iPad, and Android devices.
The CCH Axcess Portal is completely
customizable, so firms can brand the
portal as desired.
CCH Axcess Portal users can
access the application from any web
browser. The portal supports a variety
of file types including PDFs, web pages,
spreadsheets, Microsoft Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and
data files from a variety of software
applications including QuickBooks.
Along with documents from other
CCH Axcess and CCH ProSystem fx
applications, users can upload docu-

www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

ments into the portal using the drag
and drop interface. The portal also
offers a document check-out option,
that allows authorized users to edit the
document while also preventing others
from modifying the document while
it's being edited. Users can also designate specific documents as Read Only
in order to prevent any unauthorized
changes to a document. In addition,
firms can assign folder-level security
options for additional security.
CCH Axcess Portal offers bi-directional capability, and offers excellent
document search options, with users

By Mary Girsch-Bock

5

2019
OVERALL
RATING

currently runs $40.00 per user, per
month and includes 500 GB of storage
and an unlimited number of guests.
An Enterprise Plan is also available for
very large firms with custom needs
or a large number of users. For those
interested, SmartVault offers a free
30-day trial for any of their plans.

Read the full review
for this product online at:
www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/
21107790

4.75

2019
OVERALL
RATING

easy portal accessibility from other
CS Professional Suite applications.
1,000 base portals are included in the
monthly fee, with those interested able
to request additional information and
a custom price quote directly from
Thomson Reuters.

Read the full review
for this product online at:
www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/
21107792

5

2019
OVERALL
RATING

able to search for documents by file
type, creator, keyword, or title.
CCH Axcess Portal prices vary, with
users able to request a custom price
for their firm directly from Wolters
Kluwer.

Read the full review
for this product online at:
www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/
21107775
http://www.smartvault.com http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/21107790 http://cs.thomsonreuters.com http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/21107792 http://www.cchgroup.com http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/21107775 http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
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