Proof Holdings vs Dropbox Sign
Dropbox Sign (formerly HelloSign) is the developer's way to embed document signing — clean API, lower price point. Proof Holdings is API-first about a different signature: proof that a person controls an asset, as an eIDAS-recognized electronic signature you can verify offline.
For embedded document signing, Dropbox Sign earns its keep. For signing acts rather than PDFs — authorizations, approvals, proofs of control — Proof is the API: per-proof pricing, offline verification, no seats.
One API · One key
One key does what a stack of vendors does
Every platform on this page puts signatures on documents. Proof is a single API where the proof itself is the signature — a signed, offline-verifiable ES256 token for each of these:
Flat price · Any asset
One flat price for every asset — phone, email, and domain today, with wallet and social coming soon. No per-seat, no per-MAU, no per-verification tiers — the meter that makes every rival's bill jump.
- Free every month
- 300 proofs
- Pay as you go
- €0.03 / proof
- At volume
- €0.0079 / proof
Feature Comparison
Swipe to compare →
| Feature | Proof Holdings | Dropbox Sign |
|---|---|---|
| Core job | Prove asset control → signed token | Sign documents (developer-friendly) |
| Signs documents / contracts today | Roadmap (Proof of Signature) | Yes |
| Signs WITH an asset (proof of control) | Yes | No |
| eIDAS SES | Yes | Yes |
| eIDAS AES | Technical hallmarks of AES | Yes |
| eIDAS QES | Roadmap (needs QTSP) | Limited (via partner) |
| Output | Portable ES256 token | Signed PDF + audit trail |
| Embeddable signing API | Verification API | Yes (HelloSign heritage) |
| Pricing | Per-proof (€0.0079) | Per-user/mo (~$15–$25) |
Pricing
Pricing model
Proof Holdings
Per-proof: €0.0079, 300 free/month
Dropbox Sign
Per-user/month: ~$15 Essentials, ~$25 Standard; 3 free requests/mo
Embedding document signing
Proof Holdings
Not what Proof does — use Dropbox Sign
Dropbox Sign
Clean, developer-friendly e-signature API
Portable proof of who acted
Proof Holdings
ES256 token, verifiable offline by anyone
Dropbox Sign
Signed PDF + audit trail (document-bound)
Signing with an asset (proof of control)
Proof Holdings
Yes — the core of what Proof does
Dropbox Sign
Not part of Dropbox Sign
Signing a document vs signing with an asset
Dropbox Sign — the product formerly known as HelloSign, now part of Dropbox — is a clean, developer-friendly way to add document signing to a product: a simple UI and an embeddable API for sending and signing agreements, at a lower price point than the enterprise incumbents. If you're embedding contract signing, it's a solid choice, with SES and AES support (QES is more limited).
Proof Holdings signs differently. It issues a cryptographic ES256 token when a person proves control of an asset — an electronic signature at the eIDAS SES level, but a signed proof of control rather than a signed document. Dropbox Sign signs the document; Proof signs with the asset. Different kinds of signature, and today, different jobs.
Where Proof fits — and the roadmap
Proof's signature is the primitive for authorization, delegation, and human approvals — a portable proof that a party controls an asset and acted, verifiable offline by anyone. That's adjacent to document signing, not a replacement.
Document signing — Dropbox Sign's core — is on Proof's roadmap as Proof of Signature: signing a document with a proof of control. Until then, the split is: to embed contract signing today, use Dropbox Sign; for portable proof-of-control signatures, use Proof.
When to use Dropbox Sign
- You need to embed document/contract signing in your product today
- You want a developer-friendly e-signature API at a lower price point
- You're already in the Dropbox ecosystem
- You need SES/AES document signatures with an audit trail
- Your workflow is fundamentally about documents
When to use Proof Holdings
- You want a portable proof that a party controls an asset, as an electronic signature
- You're signing an authorization, delegation, or approval — not a document
- You want a token verifiable offline by anyone, not a document-bound audit trail
- You want to sign with an asset (phone, email, domain)
- You'd rather pay per proof than per user per month
- You're interested in Proof of Signature (document signing) on the roadmap
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to try Proof Holdings?
300 free proofs per month. No credit card required.
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