Enterprise DNA

MadCap Flare alternatives

MadCap Flare alternatives for NZ and Australian businesses

MadCap Flare: US$3,150 per author per year for Flare Desktop, Flare Online is quoted separately.

Get your version built Design your version
  • check_circleYour data in a database you own
  • check_circleOpen source, no lock-in
  • check_circleBuilt and run by Enterprise DNA

The options

What people compare MadCap Flare with

MadCap lists Flare Desktop at US$3,150 per author per year, while Flare Online plans are quoted separately. You may be looking for an alternative to keep costs predictable, own your records and fit your review rules.

Often compared

Paligo

Paligo has a published US$15,000 annual Business floor.

Often compared

Marina Master

Marina Master was considered, but its pricing is quoted and its export is unverified.

Yours to own

Technical Publications for Claude Code

The open-source technical publications system that is just a database and Claude Code. Built around your business, with your MadCap Flare data brought across.

See how it works

How to choose

How to choose a MadCap Flare alternative

  1. 1

    What is the bill tied to?

    Check whether you pay per author, per reviewer or through a quoted plan. MadCap lists Flare Desktop at US$3,150 per author per year, while Flare Online is quoted separately. Compare that with an option without per-seat plans, and include any hosting or assistant costs in your calculation.

  2. 2

    Do your records stay yours?

    Ask where your topics, source material and retained manual versions will live. With an owned version, your records can sit in a database you own. Check what comes across and what needs a separate plan, especially online comments and permissions.

  3. 3

    Does it fit your rules?

    List the fields, approval steps, review dates and layouts your team uses. Check whether the alternative can follow those rules, rather than asking your staff to change their process to fit the software. Your own version can be built around your fields and approval rules.

  4. 4

    What does switching involve?

    Plan to bring across the full Flare project, including topics, manual order and original source files. Some features and layouts may need conversion. Check representative manuals against the old output before switching, and plan separately for existing online comments and permissions.

The option that fits

A version built around your business

Enterprise DNA builds your own Technical Publications version around how your business works. Your records sit in a database you own, and you work with them in plain language. Enterprise DNA brings your MadCap Flare data across and runs the version for you, for one setup fee followed by a monthly retainer. If you prefer to run it yourself, there is also a free version.

  • check Your records in a database your business owns
  • check Your fields, review rules and manual layouts
  • check One setup fee, then a monthly retainer
Get your version built

Make it yours

Design your own MadCap Flare replacement

Everything starts from the open-source base. Then it gets your name, the parts you run, your rules and your data from MadCap Flare. Try it here, and we build the real one.

2. What it runs

3. Make it fit

4. Your colour

Your business · your MadCap Flare replacement Your version
YB Your business

auto_awesome

Answered from your own database

Build my version

We build it from the open-source base, bring your MadCap Flare data across and run it for you.

Questions

MadCap Flare alternatives, answered

How do MadCap Flare costs compare with an owned version? expand_more

MadCap lists Flare Desktop at US$3,150 per author per year. Flare Online plans are quoted separately. The free version has no software licence fee, though hosting and your chosen assistant can have their own costs. Enterprise DNA builds and runs your version for one setup fee, then a monthly retainer.

Can we move our existing manuals across? expand_more

Yes. The import brings across topics, manual order and original source files from your Flare project. Existing online comments and permissions need a separate plan. Before you switch, representative manuals are checked against the output you already use.

Will our review rules and layouts need to change? expand_more

Enterprise DNA can build your editing and review screens around your fields and approval rules, and reproduce the layouts and document formats your team needs. Flare features that need conversion are flagged, and a manual cannot pass release checks until unsupported content has been converted.

Can we keep a reliable record of each issued manual? expand_more

Yes. Each retained version keeps the exact topic revisions and finished manual copy, so later edits do not change it. A content change clears the previous approval, so the current revision needs a fresh review. Your reviewers still decide whether the instructions are correct.

Done comparing? Own the one that fits.

30 minutes with Sam. Bring what MadCap Flare costs you a year and how you run. We show you what your own version looks like, and if it is a fit, we build it and bring your data across.

Get your version built

Done paying for MadCap Flare?

Get your version built