Overview

LabArchives combines an electronic lab notebook with separate inventory and equipment-scheduling applications for research organizations. It is best suited to labs that want records and day-to-day resource management in the same suite. Its breadth is useful when those needs overlap, but teams buying only a notebook should weigh the higher-tier storage and feature limits against that extra scope.

Key features

The ELN for Research is designed to record, organize, search and share scientific data. More than 20 built-in widgets, custom-widget support and integrations with GraphPad Prism, SnapGene, REDCap, Jupyter and Protocols.io give teams several ways to fit records into existing research workflows. Inventory handles organizing, tracking and ordering laboratory supplies; Scheduler covers lab equipment and resource bookings.

ELN and inventory plans can link reagents to experiments and automatically debit inventory items, which is a practical advantage for labs that want records and stock tracking connected. Audit trails, electronic signatures and approval workflows support controlled documentation. Offline access and API access add flexibility, while PDF and read-only offline HTML in ZIP exports offer portable copies of records.

LabArchives states that it holds FedRAMP, SOC 2 and ISO 27001 certifications, supports HIPAA and GDPR requirements, and complies with 21 CFR Part 11, HIPAA and NIST 800-171. Browser access works on Windows, macOS and Linux. The ELN is optimized for mobile browsers and supports direct image, video and audio capture; the Android app wraps a browser-based session. Help Center resources, application support staff and regular training webinars provide support beyond the software itself.

Pricing

The free ELN plan costs 0.00 USD per free and includes two owned notebooks, 1GB per user, a 25MB file limit, and SnapGene and GraphPad Prism integrations. It is a useful way to start, but the notebook count and storage ceiling are meaningful constraints for growing or media-heavy research. Inventory Free costs 0.00 USD per free for 90 days and includes ELN for Research integration, custom inventory categories and custom storage locations; its 90-day term makes it a short evaluation rather than a lasting free inventory tier.

ELN for Education costs 25.00 USD per contact, billed per student per term, and includes course management tools. It fits teaching settings where course administration matters more than the per-user annual model used by research plans. Inventory Academic and Inventory Corporate each cost 99.00 USD per year and 199.00 USD per year per user, respectively; both include ELN integration, custom categories and storage locations, and parent/child item relationships.

Professional Academic is 330.00 USD per year per user, while Professional Corporate is 575.00 USD per year per user. Both provide unlimited owned notebooks, 100GB per user, a 250MB per-file limit and support for NIH Data Management Mandates & Sharing. The higher price for Corporate makes audience and budget an important distinction when comparing otherwise stated features. ELN + Inventory Academic costs 360.00 USD per year per user; the Corporate version costs 675.00 USD per year per user. Both add the Inventory application, unlimited inventory items, reagent links to experiments and automatic debiting, so they suit teams that need notebook and stock workflows together.

Enterprise ELN has custom pricing. It includes unlimited storage, files up to 16GB, advanced security and usage reports, SAML SSO, a developer API, an uptime guarantee and SLA, and a dedicated success manager. It is the fit for organizations that need those enterprise controls and service terms, rather than a per-user tier with capped storage. A free trial is available.

Platforms

LabArchives supports web, Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Linux and API access. Browser availability across the three major desktop operating systems broadens access for mixed-device teams, while Android access uses a browser-session wrapper rather than a native-style standalone ELN experience.

Who it's for

The suite suits academic, nonprofit and commercial research teams that need scientific records alongside inventory or equipment scheduling. LabArchives says it serves 750,000 scientists. Teaching teams can consider the education plan; labs seeking combined notebook and inventory workflows have explicit plans for that use. A team needing only a basic notebook, or one constrained by the free plan’s 1GB total storage and 25MB file cap, should compare alternatives before committing.

Pros and cons

Pros: Notebook, inventory and scheduling applications cover connected lab workflows rather than documentation alone.
Pros: Named integrations, custom widgets, API access and portable exports give teams options to connect and move research records.
Pros: Audit trails, signatures, approval workflows and stated compliance credentials address controlled research documentation needs.
Cons: The free plan’s two owned notebooks, 1GB per user and 25MB file limit can restrict substantial or media-rich work.
Cons: Professional storage rises to 100GB per user and 250MB per file, still well below Enterprise ELN’s unlimited storage and 16GB file ceiling.
Cons: Enterprise ELN uses custom pricing, so organizations seeking a published per-user cost cannot compare it directly with the annual plans.

Alternatives

Consider eLabFTW if self-hosting and open-source software under AGPLv3 matter more than a managed suite; its software is free, but hosting and administration are required. LabCollector ELN offers a free Startup Pack for three users and 1,000 data records, a better fit for a small team comfortable with those caps. Labfolder is an option when a quote-based plan tied to user count is preferable.

Benchling Notebook is worth comparing for academic researchers seeking a free plan that includes Notebook and Molecular Biology, or businesses wanting a tailored industry solution. LabKey ELN is another freemium alternative with self-hosted and API platforms. SciNote has a free plan for one user with a dedicated workspace, though it does not guarantee support. CDD Vault Electronic Lab Notebook is a paid option with a free trial. NETVIBES is another alternative.

For broader category comparisons, see Electronic Lab Notebook Software and Equipment Scheduling Software.

Verdict

Choose LabArchives if your research organization needs a connected notebook, inventory and scheduling suite, with controlled recordkeeping and an upgrade path to larger file limits and enterprise controls. The clearest reason to look elsewhere is a need for simpler notebook-only software or more storage than the Professional tier allows without moving to custom-priced Enterprise ELN.

	LabArchives	Sonderplan
Free plan	Yes	No
Free trial	Yes	No
Paid from	$8.25/mo	—
Open source	No	No
Platforms	Android, api, iOS, Linux, macOS, Web, Windows	Web
Free plan	Yes	No
Reservation workflow	—	Yes
Dispatch board	—	Yes
Mobile app	—	Yes
Custom asset fields	—	No

LabArchives vs Sonderplan

LabArchives

Sonderplan