Envoy and Sign In App are two of the best-known names in visitor management, and for many businesses they are the right choice. People look for alternatives for ordinary reasons: the price per location, the hardware a plan expects, or a question about where visitor records are kept. This guide sets out what the two do well, which brands are related, and what else a small office or clinic can consider.
We make one of the alternatives, Digital Front Desk. Every fact about another company below is taken from that company's own website, dated November 2026, and we say where the others are stronger than us.
Why people look for an alternative
- Price per location. As of November 2026, Envoy's Premium plan is US$362 per location a month, billed annually, and Sign In App starts at £415 per site a year. For a business with several entrances or sites, per-location pricing multiplies.
- Currency. A Canadian business paying in US dollars or pounds takes on exchange-rate changes at every renewal.
- Hardware. Both companies' pages describe an iPad at the door. An office with an Android tablet, or no budget for a new iPad, may want a browser-based screen.
- Where data is kept. Envoy has announced EU data centres for Visitors; neither company's pricing page names a Canadian region. For some Canadian organisations that is a question to settle before signing.
- More than a small office needs. Badge printers, ID scanning and access-control links are real strengths, but a clinic with one front desk may pay for them without using them.
What Envoy and Sign In App do well
Before switching, be sure you are not giving up something you need. As of November 2026:
- Envoy lists a free Basic plan (100 entries a month, up to 50 employees), printed name badges on Premium and Enterprise, ID scanning on Enterprise, QR-code sign-in on Premium, and an integrations catalogue of over 100 workplace tools, including Microsoft Teams, Okta (listed under Directory and SSO), and access-control systems.
- Sign In App lists a 15-day trial with no card, a hardware bundle with an iPad, an enclosure and an optional badge printer, and ID scanning on its Enhanced and Pro plans, with an Executive plan by quote for larger organisations.
If your building needs doors that open on sign-in, directory sync, or printed badges for every visitor, those features are hard to replace, and staying may be the right call.
Who owns what: brands that share a parent
Some "alternatives" are the same company under another name. In January 2026, Sign In Solutions announced that it had acquired The Receptionist, and named Sign In App, SwipedOn and Traction Guest among its brands in the same release. As of November 2026, The Receptionist's own site describes it as now part of the Sign In App family. In November 2026, SwipedOn's old pricing address forwarded to Sign In App's pricing page.
None of that makes those products worse. It does mean that if you are leaving Sign In App over its price, contract or data region, check whether the product you move to has the same owner, and ask whether the same terms apply.
Alternatives to compare, as of November 2026
| Product | Starting price | Kiosk device | Badges and ID | Data hosting | Trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Receptionist (as of November 2026 its site says it is now part of the Sign In App family) | $630 per site a year (Core); currency not named | iPad | Badge printing from Core; ID scanning on Enhanced and Pro | Not stated on its pricing page | 15 days |
| Greetly | $99 a month, billed yearly (Essential); currency not named | Not named on its pricing page | Badge printing and ID verification on Pro | Not stated on its pricing page | Not stated; offers a demo |
| Digital Front Desk | $69 CAD a month, up to 20 staff | An iPad or any tablet with a web browser | No badge printing; no ID verification | Stored in Canada; texts, calls and some AI processed in the United States | A demo check-in screen with no sign-up |
| A paper sign-in sheet | The cost of printing | A clipboard | None | Your drawer | Today |
The paper row is there on purpose. For an office with a few expected visitors a week and someone always at the desk, a well-designed sheet such as our free visitor sign-in sheet may be all you need. For all five products side by side, including Envoy and Sign In App, see the best visitor management software for small offices and clinics.
Digital Front Desk as an alternative
Digital Front Desk is built for a single office, clinic or a few buildings. The check-in screen is a web page, so it runs on the tablet you already have. Visitors answer one question at a time; the person they came to see is told by text or email; the last screen shows a badge number but no name. Plans are in Canadian dollars and set by the number of staff, not per entrance, from $69 a month.
Records are stored in Canada. Text messages, calls and some AI processing happen in the United States, as our privacy policy and subprocessor list say. Photographs and ID are off unless you switch them on.
What we do not do: print badges, verify identity documents, open doors, sync a staff directory, or alert hosts in Slack or Microsoft Teams. For other systems we offer signed webhooks and a Zapier API key, described on our developer page. If you rely on any of the missing features today, keep the product that has them.
How to switch without losing records
- Export your visitor log from the current product before the contract ends, and decide how long you must keep it.
- Run both for a week at one entrance, so staff learn the new alerts before the old ones stop.
- Check notifications reach people on their own phones, not only at reception.
- Delete what you no longer need from the old system, and ask the vendor to confirm the deletion.
Budgeting the move? Our guide to what a visitor management system costs lists the parts of the bill, and the visitor management page shows our plans.
Questions about Envoy and Sign In App alternatives
Is there a free alternative to Envoy?
Envoy itself lists a free Basic plan with limits, as of November 2026. Beyond that, a paper sign-in sheet costs almost nothing; most paid alternatives offer a trial or a demo rather than a permanent free plan.
Are SwipedOn and Sign In App the same company?
They share a parent. Sign In Solutions named both among its brands in January 2026, along with The Receptionist and Traction Guest; as of November 2026 The Receptionist's site describes it as now part of the Sign In App family, and SwipedOn's pricing address forwarded to Sign In App's in November 2026.
Which alternative keeps visitor data in Canada?
Ask each vendor where records are stored and processed, and check the privacy policy. Digital Front Desk stores records in Canada and processes texts, calls and some AI in the United States, as its privacy policy states.
Do alternatives to Envoy print visitor badges?
Some do: The Receptionist and Greetly both list badge printing on at least one plan as of November 2026. Digital Front Desk does not print badges; it shows a badge number on the screen.
Can I use an Android tablet instead of an iPad?
That depends on the product; several here describe themselves as iPad-based. Digital Front Desk runs in a web browser, so any tablet with a browser can be the check-in screen.
Try it at your own door
You can try our check-in screen with no sign-up, and compare it with a trial of whatever you use today. Plans are on the visitor management page.
Sources, read November 2026: Envoy pricing, Envoy integrations, Envoy EU data residency, Sign In App pricing, Sign In Solutions announcement, The Receptionist pricing, The Receptionist home page, Greetly pricing.
Envoy, Sign In App, SwipedOn, The Receptionist, Traction Guest and Greetly are names of their owners; no vendor reviewed or endorsed this article. Their facts are as published on their own websites in November 2026 and may have changed; check each vendor's current page before you decide.
