Clio vs MyCase for solo and small-firm lawyers

The honest summary

For most US solo lawyers, MyCase is the better starting point. It is cheaper, its client portal and intake are tighter out of the box, and its UI is less intimidating for non-technical users. Clio is the better choice when the firm is past five lawyers, needs deep accounting integration, or operates in multiple jurisdictions where Clio's marketplace fills gaps.

Where Clio wins

Marketplace and integrations. Clio integrates with more third-party tools than any other practice management product on the market. If the firm already runs on QuickBooks, Outlook, and a specific document management tool, Clio fits cleanly. The reporting suite is more powerful, which matters as the firm scales.

Court rules and calendaring. Clio Manage's court rules engine handles US federal and state deadlines well. For a litigation-heavy practice, this is a real differentiator.

Internationalisation. Clio is the only mainstream option that operates equivalently in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. For a firm with jurisdictional spread, it removes a class of pain.

Where MyCase wins

Onboarding and price. MyCase costs less and the client-facing pieces (intake forms, portal, e-signature, payment) work the day you turn the system on. For a solo who wants to be productive in the first week, this matters.

Native client communications. Built-in two-way text messaging and a more polished client portal. Clio has these too but they are more deliberate add-ons.

Who should pick which

• Solo lawyer in the US, mostly transactional, wants fast time to value: MyCase.
• Solo or two-lawyer firm in litigation with US federal and state deadlines: Clio.
• Three to ten lawyers, planning to grow, need integrations: Clio.
• UK or Australian solo: Clio (MyCase is US-focused).

Where Notion fits

Notion is not a like-for-like replacement for either. It is a different shape: a workspace you build to fit your practice, rather than a product designed for a generic practice. The trade-off is upfront build effort for ongoing flexibility, no per-user-per-month inflation, and ownership of your data. Read /compare/notion-vs-clio for the long version.

FAQ

Can I move from MyCase to Clio later?

Yes. Both export client and matter data. The migration is non-trivial because time entries and document links rarely come across cleanly, but it is done regularly.

Is the price difference material at one user?

At one user the gap is around forty US dollars per month. Over five years that is two thousand dollars and a noticeable line on a small firm's P&L. Not nothing.

Do either replace a separate accounting tool?

Both have trust accounting. Neither replaces a real accounting product (QuickBooks, Xero) for general ledger work. Most firms run both.