Governance, Risk & Compliance

10 Best AuditBoard Alternatives For GRC In 2026 [Reviewed]

Jon Darbyshire

Updated

Dec 11, 2025

10 mins

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10 Best AuditBoard Alternatives For GRC In 2026 [Reviewed]

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SmartSuite Solutions

SmartSuite provides work platform for standardizing workflows in the following areas:

Governance, Risk & Compliance
IT & Service Ops
Project / Portfolio Management
Business Operations

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Have you been searching for AuditBoard alternatives to manage your GRC workflows better?

Key takeaways

AuditBoard’s GRC solution helps compliance teams build resilience and improve their operational efficiency.

Note: AuditBoard now trades as Optro (auditboard.com redirects to optro.ai); this guide keeps the AuditBoard name most buyers still search for.

However, some customers of the platform are not satisfied with the expensive pricing model, customer support that is often unhelpful, and how tedious it can feel to use the platform.

In this article, I’ll go over the 10 best AuditBoard alternatives in 2026 that can help you manage policies, track compliance efforts, and ensure regulatory alignment.

Why are some compliance leaders looking to switch from AuditBoard?

Don’t get us wrong, AuditBoard is not a terrible product that needs to be switched from.

There are hundreds of satisfied companies that use its integrated workflows to transform their risk data into actionable insights.

However, some customers have been dissatisfied with the solution for several reasons:

#1: The platform is expensive

The #1 complaint that I was able to find about AuditBoard was how expensive the platform is.

Even enterprise-grade customers of the platform note that it is pricier than other alternatives on the market.

According to insights from Vendr, the median buyer pays $42,775/year for the platform and it can go up to $88,000/year, as per reports.

‘’Really nothing from my perspective, but maybe from my company's perspective, the cost! It is more expensive than other solutions, but guess you get what you pay for!’’ – G2 Review.

#2: Takes a long time to get questions answered by customer support

Secondly, I found a few users of the platform who were not satisfied with the level of attention that they’ve been provided by the tool’s customer support.

One user of the solution mentions that reaching out to the right person in AuditBoard’s customer service to get their question answered has been challenging for their team.

Takes a long time to get questions answered by customer support

‘’Sometimes reaching out to the right person in customer service to get our question answered is a little challenging, as the answers are more high-level and sometimes not to the point.’’ – G2 Review.

#3: Using the platform feels like a job

Last but not least, users of the tool find it tedious to use at times due to the level of administering the system, such as adding fields, data, populating steps, and all the required fields to be completed.

Using a GRC tool, or any project management software, should not feel like a job.

‘’The level of administering the system: adding fields, data, populating steps, all the required fields to be completed to enable dashboards and archiving. It's also tedious to sign off on steps, add documents, and populate issues and Management Action Plans. Sync and editing documents online sometimes get lost.’’ – G2 Review.

What are the best AuditBoard alternatives for GRC in 2026?

Here are the 10 best AuditBoard alternatives for governance, risk, and compliance that I shortlisted after reviewing 30+ tools:

#1: SmartSuite: Best for companies of all sizes looking to launch GRC workflows in days. Our platform lets you manage policies, audits, risks, and compliance in a unified, customizable platform.

#2: OneTrust: Best for companies looking to automate compliance workflows and gain visibility into risk associated with technology.

#3: LogicGate: Best for organizations looking for integrated GRC management with real-time risk insights.

#4: MetricStream: Best for organizations looking for a unified platform to manage governance, risk, and compliance workflows across international operations.

#5: Apptega: Best for organizations looking to manage cybersecurity compliance across multiple frameworks.

#6: SAP GRC: Best for companies looking for an integrated, automated governance, risk management, and cybersecurity across systems.

#7: SAI360: Best for enterprises looking for a customizable GRC platform with preconfigured modules and advanced analytics.

#8: ServiceNow: Best for teams looking for integrated risk management and compliance automation.

#9: ArcherIRM: Best for managing policies, controls, risks, assessments, and deficiencies from a unified platform.

#10: Pathlock: Best for financial institutions looking for compliance-centric identity governance.

#1: What makes SmartSuite the best AuditBoard alternative?

SmartSuite offers the best AuditBoard alternative for compliance teams with our modern, no-code project management software that simplifies complex regulatory requirements.

Originally built for Banks and Credit Unions, our GRC software lets you streamline and automate policy creation, approval, and control assessments, all in one place.

SmartSuite risk dashboard with KPI tiles and charts above a grouped table of risk assessments by status

SmartSuite helps compliance teams move faster, manage policies smarter, and adapt easily, without having to take the platform as a full-time job to get it up and running the way you want it.

💡 We have recently partnered with the Cyber Risk Institute to deliver a CRI profile for U.S. Banks' compliance needs.

Let’s go over the functionality that make SmartSuite the best choice for compliance teams looking for an AuditBoard alternative: 👇

All-In-One Risk Management & Compliance Solution

I believe compliance should be simple, automated, and accessible to all financial institutions, regardless of their size.

Our no-code, easy-to-use platform empowers compliance managers and CISOs to automate all GRC processes with ease.

Woman in a circle surrounded by GRC app icons: policies, threats, risks, assessments, compliance, incidents and vendors

SmartSuite helps compliance leaders achieve and maintain compliance without the expense and complexity of adapting legacy GRC solutions like AuditBoard to accommodate new compliance requirements.

Here are the use cases that you’ll get with SmartSuite:

Create reports and dynamic dashboards: Monitor executive views into your organization's overall risk profile with charting and metrics widgets.

Risk Dashboard with KPI tiles, loss expectancy bars, risks by impact donut, world clock, audit countdown and analyst bars

Collaborate and respond to risks in real-time: Instantly engage key stakeholders in a real-time discussion of potential threats or vulnerabilities.

Our tool will also let you get immediate updates when critical information is available.

Risk assessment record with an Open Comments panel showing a short exchange between two team members

Automate policy creation, real-time approval, and control assessments: Streamline risk management by building an integrated program on a single platform.
Keep risk and compliance data secure: Define your teams and manage access to information across all GRC practice areas.

All Risk Assessments table with a Solution Permissions dialog for choosing which teams get full access

Integrate with your existing systems: Our GRC software lets you integrate with existing systems and data to consolidate and centralize your data.

SmartSuite connected through Zapier to many apps, including Slack, Gmail, Jira and Zoom, labeled 1000+ apps

Automate for accuracy and efficiency: You can remove inefficiencies and the chance for human error by automating repeatable workflows.

SmartSuite's no-code automation builder provides you with a visual interface that makes it easy to respond to events and take action.

That means your team can customize your GRC workflows without technical resources.

Automation: when Final Risk Level is High or Medium High in SmartSuite, send a Gmail email to the analyst

Monitor, measure and score: Your organization can create risk calculations and metrics to evaluate every aspect of risk.

Formula field definition: Risk Score equals threat level plus criticality plus gap score, times confidence, beside a man

Policy management: Establish a strong foundation with streamlined and flexible policy management.

You’ll be able to assign ownership, manage revisions, and ensure your policies consistently align with key business initiatives and regulatory requirements.

Policies card gallery above an All Policy Statements by Topic table showing published and under review statuses

PSTOS Compliance Tracker: Designed for regulatory compliance and built on SmartSuite.

This solution focuses on data security as the core of compliance frameworks with services such as compliance readiness, virtual CISO, and IT security implementation.

Learn more about it from this webinar that we did on the topic:

Prioritize & Mitigate Risks

SmartSuite lets your team create a centralized Risk Register to help you effectively identify potential risks to your organization.

You will be able to properly assess threats and establish risk mitigation strategies inside SmartSuite.

You can ensure that the appropriate controls are in place and measure their effectiveness by evaluating risk indicators and displaying results in SmartSuite’s rollup reports and dashboards.

💡 Pro Tip: Teams that use our platform use automation to move tasks through defined workflow stages that comply with their policies and procedures.

We understand how crucial threat management is and the need to respond quickly to incidents.

SmartSuite lets you centralize incident response and threat mitigation by linking incidents to assets and organizational data to offer context during your investigations.

You can also set up automations with our no-code automation builder to escalate critical events to make sure that your team is aware of active risks to your organization.

All Incidents by Status board over an All Response Procedures table, used to track security incidents

Ready-To-Use GRC Templates

Our team has prepared a few GRC templates for compliance teams looking to get started right away, instead of building everything from scratch.

Our general risk management template includes a:

Risk register, where you can break down the risks, the risk owner, the annual loss expectancy, risk event category, risk type, volatility, and status.

Screenshot: SmartSuite Risk Management Risk Register grid of risks grouped by assessment type with loss expectancy

Issue assessments, where you’ll be able to see a comprehensive breakdown of each risk.

Screenshot: SmartSuite Risk Management solution showing the All Issue Assessments grid grouped by status

Action plans, where you can describe the actions (best practices) to mitigate the risks.

Screenshot: SmartSuite Risk Management Action Plans by Owner grid showing action plans and implementation status

A separate tab for control standards, your findings, exception requests, risk assessment by type, and risk assessment issues.

Screenshot: SmartSuite Risk Management Exception Requests grid grouped by status with risk ratings

You can customize our risk management template here.

Alternatively, check out and customize our 14 other risk management templates for various use cases, such as contract management, policy management, and incident management.

Governance, Risk and Compliance solution templates page with cards for contract, policy and incident management

How is SmartSuite different from AuditBoard?

Unlike AuditBoard, SmartSuite offers a platform with:

A modern solution with an intuitive interface that does not confuse your team or require training.
An affordable and transparent pricing model with a 14-day free trial to help you get started.
Automated workflows that can help your team build multi-step automations to trigger actions at the right time.
Dedicated customer support and account management that will help your team with setting up the automations inside the platform.

💡 Case Study: Find out how MediaLab transformed operations, minimized risk, and saved $40,000+ per year by cutting software costs.

Pricing

Unlike AuditBoard, smartSuite offers a 14-day free trial of its Professional plan, with no credit card required and no automatic charge when the trial ends.

There are three per-seat plans plus a per-solution Signature plan, all available through the 14-day free trial:

Team: Starts at $15 per seat/month billed annually ($20 billed monthly, minimum 3 billable users), including Gantt charts, timeline views, 25,000 automation runs and API calls per month, and native time tracking.
Professional: Starts at $32 per seat/month billed annually ($36 billed monthly, minimum 5 billable users) and adds two-factor authentication, Gmail & Outlook integrations, and unlimited editors.
Enterprise: Custom pricing (no seat minimum), including audit logs, data loss prevention, and 500,000 automation runs and API calls per month.
Signature: A customized plan tailored to your organization’s needs and team size with no predefined limits.

Pros & Cons

✅ A 14-day free trial of the Professional plan, with no credit card required.

✅ 15 pre-built GRC templates for various use cases.

✅ Dynamic dashboards and reporting that are easy to build and navigate, unlike some alternatives that require you to hire consultants to do it.

✅ All-in-one document and file management.

✅ You’ll be able to automate risk scoring, compliance tracking, audits, and vendor reviews.

✅ A modern solution with an intuitive user interface.

❌ Fewer native integrations when compared to other tools in this list.

#2: Who is OneTrust best for?

Best for: Companies looking to automate compliance workflows and gain visibility into risk associated with technology.

Similar to: ServiceNow, LogicGate.

OneTrust home page with the headline Simplify compliance and effectively manage risks and a risk dashboard preview

OneTrust’s compliance solution helps you simplify compliance and optimize the entire risk and compliance lifecycle with evidence collection, and reporting.

The platform is a viable alternative to AuditBoard for teams looking for pre-built frameworks, extensive integrations, and dynamic dashboards.

Features

Risk Workflow diagram with stages Open, Treatment Stage, Risk Review and Monitoring, plus a risk-updated trigger rule

55+ ready-to-use frameworks, prescriptive content, and evidence requirements that can help you streamline compliance.
Connect compliance teams and departments via automated workflows and 200+ integrations.
Map systems, data, and risks in one unified view: You can prioritize action with dynamic scoring and strategic impact insights.
Automatically generate required controls and evidence tasks.

Standout Feature: Proprietary Shared Evidence Framework

Circular chart titled Framework Compliance with ISO, showing CCPA, GDPR, SOC 2, NIST CSF and ISO 27001 percentages

OneTrust lets you collect evidence once and comply across 55+ frameworks with its shared evidence framework, which I found useful for eliminating duplicate data requests.