Paperless-ngx is a free archive that runs on your own server and holds your paperwork, scanned or digital. Filently gives every new document in your Google Drive a clear name and puts it in the right folder.
Paperless-ngx exists so you can find every piece of paper again and keep it under your own roof: you scan your mail, Paperless-ngx recognizes the text, and you find any letter by searching for a word. It runs on your own server.
Google Drive, on the other hand, is the cabinet in your office: you work from it every day, share files and keep everything in one place. Paperless-ngx builds you a separate archive room next to it. Filently is the helper who keeps your cabinet tidy.
A thorough archive for letters, invoices and contracts: it recognizes the text in every scan, so you can find any word again. You set up the server yourself or rent one.
A good fit if you
A workspace that stays tidy: every new document gets a clear name and lands in the right folder. Nothing to install, no switching to a new system. For older documents, Deep Clean is launching soon.
A good fit if you
In short: Paperless-ngx is your own archive with thorough search, and you run it yourself. Filently is not an archive: it keeps your Google Drive tidy, with no server and no switching to a new system.
| Question | Paperless-ngx | Google Drive with Filently |
|---|---|---|
| What is it built for? | Archiving: keeping letters, invoices and contracts and finding them again | Working: using, sharing and neatly filing your files |
| Where do your documents live? | In the Paperless-ngx archive on your server | In your Google Drive, in your own folders |
| What do you need? | Limited. Your own server: a computer that runs around the clock, with Docker (a program for running server software) installed | Advantage. A Google account |
| Who handles updates and backups? | Limited. You | Advantage. Not you: there's nothing to update |
| How do you find a document? | Search in Paperless-ngx: every word in the scan, plus filters by sender, type and date | Search in Google Drive: clear file names and the right folders, and on some paid Google plans you can also ask Google's AI assistant Gemini in plain language |
| Where is your data processed? | Advantage. On your own server, if you run it yourself | Limited. Your files stay with Google. Filently processes them in Switzerland and the EU and doesn't store copies of your files on its servers. |
| What does it cost? | The software is free, plus a server (a computer at home, or a rented one from about $6.49 a month in the EU) and your time | Google Drive: 15 GB free, more storage from $1.99 a month. Filently: first 25 documents free, then from $4 a month, billed yearly. |
Paperless-ngx facts from its official documentation and GitHub repository, server price from the provider, Google prices from Google One (US), checked October 20, 2026.
Your documents already live in Google Drive? Filently gives every new document a clear name and puts it in the right folder.
First 25 documents free. No credit card required.
If what matters most is keeping your paperwork on your own server rather than with Google, Paperless-ngx is the right fit. Plan for a server and some time for updates and backups.
If you're considering Paperless-ngx on top of Google Drive to keep things tidier, Filently is the better fit. Your paperwork gets named and filed in the same Drive as everything else, with no second system and no server.
Every new document gets a clear name and lands in the right folder of your Google Drive. No server, no switching systems, and you keep your own folders.
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