RedactID vs SafeRedact
a fair comparison
Both tools redact documents in a browser. One sends your text to a cloud AI; the other runs entirely on your device. That single difference drives most of when to pick which.
Last updated May 2026 · Based on publicly listed features and pricing
TL;DR — which one should you pick?
We'll be honest about when SafeRedact is the better choice.
Pick SafeRedact if you...
- Primarily redact Word docs, Excel files, or CSVs (not just PDFs/images)
- Want the strongest AI-powered name/address auto-detection and are fine with cloud processing
- Need enterprise features today — SSO, SCIM, signed BAA, mature procurement
- Are buying on behalf of a 50+ person org with a procurement process
Pick RedactID if you...
- Need a hard guarantee that your document text never leaves the device
- Mostly redact IDs, passports, pay stubs, bank statements, and PDFs
- Want a fair price — Pro is $7/mo or $59/yr, vs SafeRedact's $29/mo or $99/yr
- Work from a phone between meetings, between showings, or on the road
- Don't want to create an account just to redact one document
Side-by-side feature comparison
Where each tool wins, in plain language.
| Feature | RedactID | SafeRedact |
|---|---|---|
| Document text leaves your device | Never | Yes (for AI detection) |
| PII auto-detection | Structural patterns (SSN, cards, phones, emails) on-device | LLM-based, broader categories (names, addresses) |
| Supported formats | PNG, JPG, WebP, PDF (up to 100 pages) | PDF, images, DOCX, XLSX, CSV |
| Free tier | 1 redaction/day, forever | 1 document lifetime |
| Pro tier price (monthly) | $7/mo | $29/mo |
| Pro tier price (yearly) | $59/yr | $99/yr |
| Day pass | $5.99 unlimited 24h | $12/day |
| Account required | No (optional) | Yes |
| Mobile redaction | Yes (images on phone, PDF on desktop) | Desktop-leaning |
| Enterprise SSO, SCIM, BAA | Not yet (Business tier shipping) | Yes (enterprise tier) |
| Verify a redaction is actually redacted | Yes (free /verify tool) | Not exposed |
Sources: publicly listed pricing and features as of May 2026. We update this page when either tool ships a meaningful change.
The one difference that drives the decision
Almost every other feature on the comparison table is downstream of this.
SafeRedact: cloud AI
When you upload a document, SafeRedact sends the extracted text to its servers where an LLM identifies PII. The detected regions come back to your browser to mark up. The pixel-level redaction happens in your browser, but the text itself has already traveled.
RedactID: on-device only
The whole pipeline — OCR, PII pattern matching, redaction, export — runs in your browser via WebAssembly. Nothing about your document ever reaches our servers. We don't even see file names or page counts.
When the difference matters
- HIPAA / health records: any document containing PHI sent to a third-party processor changes your BAA surface area. On-device avoids the question entirely.
- Attorney-client privilege: a strict reading of confidentiality argues against any third party — even briefly — touching privileged text.
- GLBA (financial): mortgage and lending packets contain nonpublic personal information that triggers Safeguards Rule obligations on every processor.
- EU GDPR data minimization: processing data in a third country requires Standard Contractual Clauses; on-device processing eliminates the transfer.
- Most consumer use cases: renters sharing pay stubs, individuals sending ID copies to lenders, anyone who reads a privacy policy and would rather not have their document text in a server log somewhere.
If none of those apply to your use case, the SafeRedact route is fine and their AI auto-detection is genuinely a better experience for names and addresses. Pick what's right for your actual threat model, not for the brochure.
Pricing — head to head
Real prices from each tool's public pricing page.
RedactID
- Free1/day, forever
- Mini Pack$2.99 / 5 redactions
- Pro Pack$4.99 / 20 redactions
- Day Pass$5.99 / unlimited 24h
- Pro (monthly)$7/mo
- Pro (yearly)$59/yr
- Business$29/mo (waitlist)
SafeRedact
- Free1 document, lifetime
- Day Pass$12/day
- Monthly$29/mo
- Annual$99/yr
- EnterpriseCustom quote
Sources cited as of May 2026 from saferedact.com. Their enterprise pricing is not public; estimates range $5K+/year based on industry comparables.
Coming soon: RedactID Business
Team seats, branded watermark, and a CSV audit log. Join the waitlist for early access.
- 3+ team seats
- Branded watermark
- CSV audit log
No spam, no commitment — we'll only email you when Business is live.
Frequently asked questions
Does SafeRedact upload my documents to their servers?
SafeRedact runs PII detection using a cloud AI model, which means the text of your document is sent to their servers for analysis, even if the detection is presented as 'in-browser.' RedactID runs entirely on your device — the file never leaves your browser. If that distinction matters for your use case (regulated industries, sensitive client documents), it's the main reason to pick one over the other.
Which is cheaper, RedactID or SafeRedact?
RedactID is cheaper at every tier for individual users. Free is 1 redaction/day on RedactID (vs. 1 lifetime document on SafeRedact). Pro is $7/mo or $59/yr on RedactID vs. SafeRedact's $29/mo or $99/yr. SafeRedact's enterprise tier is custom-quoted and is meaningfully more expensive than RedactID's $29/mo Business plan, though SafeRedact includes enterprise SSO and procurement-friendly contracts that RedactID does not yet.
Does SafeRedact support more file formats than RedactID?
Yes — SafeRedact supports DOCX, XLSX, CSV, and other office formats in addition to PDF and images. RedactID currently supports images (PNG, JPG, WebP) and PDF (desktop, up to 100 pages on paid plans). If you primarily redact Word docs and spreadsheets, SafeRedact's format coverage is the right pick today. If you primarily redact IDs, pay stubs, bank statements, and PDFs, RedactID covers that surface area.
Can I migrate from SafeRedact to RedactID?
There's nothing to migrate — neither tool stores your documents, so switching is just a matter of opening RedactID instead of SafeRedact for your next redaction. If you have an active SafeRedact subscription you should cancel before trying RedactID to avoid double-paying.
Which one is better for legal or healthcare work?
If your compliance team's primary concern is 'no document text can ever leave the device,' RedactID's on-device architecture is the easier story to defend (HIPAA, attorney-client privilege, GLBA). If your compliance team's primary concern is procurement-grade enterprise features (SSO, SCIM, signed BAA, audit trail certification), SafeRedact's enterprise tier is more mature today. RedactID's Business tier is shipping audit logs and team seats but has not yet been certified for specific regulated workflows.
Does RedactID have AI-detected PII like SafeRedact does?
RedactID has client-side PII detection — Social Security numbers, credit cards, phone numbers, and emails are detected by structural patterns (Luhn checksum for cards, SSA range validity for SSNs, etc.) running entirely in your browser via Tesseract OCR. SafeRedact runs a more powerful LLM-based detection that catches names and addresses with higher accuracy — but does so by sending the document text to their servers for analysis. RedactID's detection is intentionally narrower in exchange for the on-device guarantee.
Try it free — no account required
One redaction free every day. Pro is $7/mo if you need more. Your file never leaves your device.