SmartDoc
Complex documents, repeatable workflows
Tables, diagrams, and varied formats that you need to extract from at scale.
- Complex tables and diagrams
- Multi-format handling
- Repeatable workflows
SmartDoc · Comparison
How SmartDoc compares.
SmartDoc combines the accuracy of specialised document AI with the flexibility of LLMs. Parse documents once, extract unlimited times — and every field traces back to its source location.
When to use which.
SmartDoc is not the right answer for every document task. Here is the honest breakdown of when each option fits.
Traditional OCR
High volume, fixed format
Best for predictable, template-able documents that arrive in the same shape every time.
- Fixed templates only
- Per-format configuration
- No semantic understanding
Multimodal LLMs
Ad-hoc questions, one-off analysis
Good when you need to ask conversational questions about a document on demand.
- One-off tasks only
- No structured output
- Context window limits
Manual review
Low volume, human judgment
Still the right call when subjective interpretation matters and the volume does not justify automation.
- Under 50 documents per month
- Subjective interpretation
- No automation needed
Comparison at a glance.
Side-by-side capability matrix across parsing, extraction, comparison, chat, languages, cost, and setup.
Parsing performance
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parsing accuracy | ✓ 99%+ | 85–95% | 90–95% | 96–98% (human) |
| Processing time | Seconds to minutes | Seconds | Seconds to minutes | 15 min – 1+ hour |
| Long documents (50+ pages) | ✓ Up to 150 pages | Page-by-page | Context window limits | Hours |
| Parse once, extract many times | ✓ Core efficiency | ✗ Reprocess each time | ✗ Reprocess each time | N/A |
| Batch processing | ✓ Strong | ✓ Strong | ~ Basic | Sequential |
| New document formats | ✓ No templates needed | Template config per format | Prompt engineering | Staff training |
Visual content handling
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple tables (with gridlines) | ✓ Strong | ✓ Moderate | ✓ Moderate | Slow |
| Complex tables (merged cells, no gridlines) | ✓ Strong | ~ Basic | ~ Basic | Very slow |
| Multi-column layouts | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ✓ Moderate | Manual |
| Simple charts (bar, line, pie) | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ✓ Strong | Manual |
| Complex charts (stacked bar, waterfall) | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ✓ Moderate | Manual |
| Flow diagrams, org charts | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ✓ Moderate | Manual |
| Technical drawings (CAD, floor plans) | ✓ Moderate | ✗ | ~ Basic | Specialist required |
| Handwritten text | ✓ Strong | ~ Basic | ✓ Moderate | Manual |
| Signatures & stamps | ✓ Detects presence | ✗ | ✓ Moderate | Manual |
| Barcodes & QR codes | ✓ Strong | ~ Basic | ✗ | Scanner |
| Poor quality scans | ✓ Moderate | ~ Basic | ✓ Moderate | Difficult |
Extraction capabilities
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Define schema in plain English | ✓ Prompt to schema | ✗ Templates required | ✓ Prompt engineering | N/A |
| Structured JSON output | ✓ Consistent format | ✓ Raw JSON | ~ Varies by session | Manual entry |
| Reusable extraction schemas | ✓ Strong | ✓ Templates | ✗ Re-prompt each time | N/A |
| Multiple extractions on same doc | ✓ No re-parse needed | ✗ Re-parse required | ✗ Re-process required | N/A |
| Visual grounding (highlight source) | ✓ Every field | ~ Partial | ✗ | ✗ |
| Confidence scores per field | ✓ Coming in v2 | ✓ Moderate | ✗ | N/A |
Document comparison
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automated compliance checking | ✓ Built-in workflow | ✗ | ~ Requires prompt setup | Hours of review |
| Structured gap analysis output | ✓ Pass / Fail / Unclear | ✗ | ~ Conversational format | Manual compilation |
| Reusable evaluation checklists | ✓ Institutionalised | ✗ | ✗ Re-prompt each time | Staff training required |
| Compare multiple docs at once | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ~ Context limits | Very slow |
Chat & Q&A
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ask questions about a document | ✓ Grounded answers | ✗ | ✓ Strong | N/A |
| Answers cite page / location | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ✗ | Manual lookup |
| Query across multiple documents | ✓ Strong | ✗ | ~ Context limits | Hours |
Multilingual support
| Language | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English | ✓ Strong | ✓ Strong | ✓ Strong | ✓ Strong |
| Chinese, Japanese, Korean | ✓ Strong | ✓ Moderate | ✓ Strong | Specialist required |
| Bahasa, Thai, Vietnamese | ✓ Moderate | ~ Basic | ✓ Moderate | Specialist required |
| Tamil, Arabic | ~ Basic | ~ Basic | ✓ Moderate | Specialist required |
Cost & pricing
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per-page | Per-page or API call | Token-based | Labour cost |
| Cost predictability | ✓ Fixed per page | ✓ Strong | ~ Varies by doc length | Varies |
| Re-extraction cost | ✓ Minimal — no re-parse | Full reprocessing cost | Full reprocessing cost | Full labour cost |
Setup & integration
| Feature | SmartDoc | OCR | LLMs | Manual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Setup complexity | Low — SaaS | High — template configuration | Low | None |
| API integration | Simple REST API | Complex | Simple REST API | N/A |
* Based on DocVQA benchmark performance. Actual results depend on document quality and complexity.
See SmartDoc on your documents. We will run a pilot on real files and show you the results with visual grounding.