Each review covers how the provider handles a UK transaction, what to check for UK GDPR, what it costs in pounds and where it falls short.
We track 14 virtual data room providers that UK sellers, investors and advisers use for due diligence. They range from enterprise platforms built for banker-led auctions to subscription rooms a finance director can open in an afternoon. Overall scores currently run from 7.5 to 9.5 out of 10.
This page brings the line-up together: a summary table with prices in pounds and certifications, the leaders on each scoring criterion, how the providers charge, and a short method for comparing them against your own deal. Open any review for the detail, including the UK-specific notes.
Ideal for uK sales, raises and diligence with predictable budgets
$149/mo (approx. £115/mo) 9.5
Ideal for contested auctions and multi-party corporate deals
Quote on request 9.2
Ideal for large adviser-led sales and private equity exits
Quote on request 9.0
Ideal for sellers preparing months ahead of a process
Quote on request 8.9
Ideal for law firms and mid-market advisers running repeat deals
Quote on request 8.8
Ideal for regulated firms and bank-led transactions
Quote on request 8.8
Ideal for commercial property sales and on-premise requirements
Quote on request 8.5
Ideal for multi-bidder processes needing tight permission control
Quote on request 8.5
Ideal for existing Box users sharing with a known counterparty
$15/user/mo (approx. £12/user/mo) 8.3
Ideal for serial acquirers tracking diligence across workstreams
Quote on request 8.3
Ideal for biotech licensing, partnering and IP diligence
Quote on request 8.0
Ideal for asset sales and smaller deals needing API access
$299/mo (approx. £230/mo) 7.9
Ideal for simple raises and single-buyer sales
$250/mo (approx. £193/mo) 7.8
Ideal for capital markets projects with existing DFIN ties
Quote on request 7.5Scores, entry prices converted to pounds, free trials and certifications as listed in October 2026. Hosting region varies by plan and contract, so we mark it "Ask" unless the provider confirms it for your room.
| Provider | Score /10 | Entry price (GBP) | Free trial | ISO 27001 | SOC 2 | UK/EU hosting | Head office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ellty | 9.5 | approx. £115 a month | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Ask | Australia |
| iDeals | 9.2 | Quote | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | United Kingdom |
| Datasite | 9.0 | Quote | No | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| Ansarada | 8.9 | Quote | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | Australia |
| Firmex | 8.8 | Quote | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | Canada |
| Intralinks | 8.8 | Quote | No | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| Drooms | 8.5 | Quote | No | Yes | Yes | Ask | Germany |
| SmartRoom | 8.5 | Quote | No | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| Box | 8.3 | approx. £12 per user a month | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| DealRoom | 8.3 | Quote | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| ShareVault | 8.0 | Quote | Yes | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
| CapLinked | 7.9 | approx. £230 a month | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Ask | United States |
| SecureDocs | 7.8 | approx. £193 a month | Yes | Not listed | Yes | Ask | United States |
| Venue by DFIN | 7.5 | Quote | No | Yes | Yes | Ask | United States |
Prices converted at about 0.77 pounds per US dollar and may exclude VAT. "Quote" means the provider prices each project. Confirm everything with the provider before you sign.
An overall score hides trade-offs. A platform that is strongest on security may be slower for outside parties to learn, and the best value room may not be the one with the deepest deal tools. These are the leaders on each of our five criteria.
Who leads on each scoring criterion
Of the 14 providers, 4 publish an entry price and 10 quote per project. The model matters as much as the headline figure, because it decides what happens to the bill when a deal runs late or the adviser list grows.
about £115 to £230 a month to start
A fixed fee for a room with set limits. Easy to budget for an SME sale or a seed round, and you stop paying when you close the room. Check the user and storage caps on the entry tier.
Ellty, CapLinked, SecureDocs
about £12 per user a month
A seat price, closer to business file sharing than a deal room. Cheap for two or three people, but the bill climbs once solicitors, accountants and corporate finance advisers all need logins.
Box
Priced per project or per year
The provider sizes the room to the deal: pages or gigabytes, bidders, months open and service level. Ask for the extension rate, the archive fee and whether VAT is included before you compare two quotes.
iDeals, Datasite, Ansarada, Firmex, Intralinks, Drooms, SmartRoom, DealRoom, ShareVault, Venue by DFIN
For budgets by deal type, use the data room cost calculator.
Six checks that separate a room that copes with a UK transaction from one that only looks good in a demo.
Note the deal type, the likely number of bidders or investors, how many months the room will stay open and roughly how many documents you hold. A two-party SEIS round and a mid-market auction need very different rooms.
Under UK GDPR you need to know the hosting region, the sub-processors and the transfer route if data leaves the UK. Ask for the data processing agreement before you sign, not after the room is full.
11 of the 14 providers list ISO 27001 and 14 list SOC 2. Ask for the certificate or report and check its scope covers the data room product and the hosting it runs on.
Most UK sales generate hundreds of enquiries. During a trial, raise a question as a buyer, route it to an expert, answer it and export the log. If that takes more than a few minutes, it will hurt mid-deal.
Multiply the monthly or per-user fee by a realistic timetable, then add a few months for slippage. Ask what an extension costs and what you pay to keep an archive after completion.
At completion you need the full index, the Q&A history and the audit trail in a form your solicitors can keep. Confirm the export format and whether an encrypted archive copy is included in the price.
Want a shortlist matched to your deal? Try the data room quiz or read how we score providers.
Each provider gets a score out of 10 on five criteria weighted for UK transactions: security & uk gdpr (30%), deal tools (25%), ease of use (20%), value for money (15%) and support (10%). The overall score is the weighted average. Scores are our editorial assessment and are not drawn from user reviews.
Ellty, CapLinked, SecureDocs, Box publish an entry price. The other 10 providers price by quote. Published prices are usually in US dollars, so we show an approximate sterling figure at 0.77 pounds per dollar.
iDeals lists the United Kingdom as its head office. The others are headquartered abroad. Head office is not the same as hosting: ask each provider where your documents will be stored and what transfer safeguards apply.
No law requires it. UK GDPR asks for appropriate technical and organisational measures, and an independent certificate is a practical way to show them. 11 providers in our line-up list both ISO 27001 and SOC 2.
9 of the 14 providers list a free trial: Ellty, iDeals, Ansarada, Firmex, Box, DealRoom, ShareVault, CapLinked, SecureDocs. Ellty's is a 14-day free trial. Use the trial to load a sample folder, invite a colleague as a guest and run a Q&A thread end to end.
It is possible but costly. You lose the index numbering bidders refer to, and the Q&A history and audit trail stay with the old provider unless you export them. Choose carefully before the room opens to outside parties.
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Recommendations combine our UK scores with published facts. Some links are affiliate links. How we rate