Editor’s Note: Initiated in the winter of 2019 and conducted six times during the last three years with 518 individual responses, the semi-annual eDiscovery Pricing Survey provides a mechanism for legal, business, and information technology professionals in the eDiscovery ecosystem to share and understand current pricing trends on selected collection, processing, and review tasks.

As we emerge from a pandemic that has dramatically influenced the eDiscovery ecosystem, we are still seeking to understand the long-term impact of the pandemic on pricing economics. With the need for this understanding in mind, the aggregated results of six semi-annual eDiscovery Pricing Surveys may be helpful for discovery professionals as they consider current pricing sentiment through the lens of the past and with an eye toward the future.

The eDiscovery Pricing Survey

The eDiscovery Pricing Survey is designed to provide insight into industry pricing through the lens of 12 pricing questions answered by legal, business, and information technology professionals operating in the eDiscovery ecosystem. The questions are focused on general pricing for a specific selection of collection, processing, and review tasks. The survey is not designed to be all-inclusive but designed to provide a general overview of the pricing landscape.

Aggregate Results: Six Surveys

While individual respondent answers to the pricing survey are confidential, the anonymized aggregate results for all six previously administered semi-annual surveys are published below without commentary. These results highlight eDiscovery pricing on selected tasks as seen by survey respondents since the inception of the survey in the winter of 2019.

Survey Results Update: An Alternative Addition

The summer 2021 survey provided respondents with an additional response option to pricing questions. The new option allowed respondents to note the use of an alternative pricing model. This new option is reported for the first time in summer 2021 results, thus not reported or depicted in the results of the initial five semi-annual surveys.


Comparative Charts: A Look at Six Surveys

n=518 Respondents (Aggregate All Surveys)

Collection Pricing

1. What is the per hour cost for a collection by a forensic examiner?

1 – Collection Pricing – Per Hour Cost for a Collection by a Forensic Examiner – Aggregate Summer 2021


2. What is the per device cost for a collection by a forensic examiner?

2 – Collection Pricing – Per Device Cost for a Collection by a Forensic Examiner – Aggregate Summer 2021


3. What is the per hour cost for analysis and expert witness support by a forensic examiner?

3 – Collection Pricing – Per Hour Cost for Analysis and Expert Witness Support from a Forensic Examiner – Aggregate Summer 2021


 Processing Pricing

4. What is the per GB cost to process electronically stored information based on volume at ingestion?

4 – Processing Pricing – Per GB Cost to Process ESI Based on Volume at Ingestion – Aggregate Summer 2021


5. What is the per GB cost to process electronically stored information based on volume at completion of processing?

5 – Processing Pricing – Per GB Cost to Process ESI Based on Volume at Completion of Processing – Aggregate Summer 2021


6. What is the per GB per month cost to host electronically stored information without analytics?

6 – Processing Pricing – Per GB Cost Per Month to Host ESI without Analytics – Aggregate Summer 2021


7. What is the per GB per month cost to host electronically stored information with analytics?

7 – Processing Pricing – Per GB Cost Per Month to Host ESI with Analytics – Aggregate Summer 2021


8. What is the user license fee per month for access to hosted data?

8 – Processing Pricing – User License Fee Per Month for Access to Hosted Data – Aggregate Summer 2021


9. What is the per hour cost of project management support for eDiscovery?

9 – Processing Pricing – Per Hour Cost of Project Management Support for eDiscovery – Aggregate Summer 2021


Review Pricing

10.  What is the per GB cost to conduct predictive coding as part of technology-assisted review during the document review phase of eDiscovery?

10 – Review Pricing – Per GB Cost to Conduct Predictive Coding in a Technology-Assisted Review – Aggregate Summer 2021


11. What is the cost per hour for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery?

11 – Review Pricing – Per Hour Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents – Aggregate Summer 2021


12. What is the cost per document for document review attorneys to review documents during the review phase of eDiscovery?

12 – Review Pricing – Per Document Cost for Document Review Attorneys to Review Documents – Aggregate Summer 2021


Background Information

13. In which geographical region do you primarily conduct eDiscovery-related business?

13 – Survey Respondents by Geographic Region – Aggregate Summer 2021


14. Which of the following segments best describes your business in eDiscovery?

14 – Survey Respondents by Organizational Segment – Aggregate Summer 2021


15. What area best describes your primary function in the conduct of your organization’s eDiscovery business?

15 – Survey Respondents by Primary Function – Aggregate Summer 2021


An Aggregate Overview of Survey Responses (Six Surveys)

16 – Survey Respondents (Individual and Aggregate Overview) – Aggregate Summer 2021


Past eDiscovery Pricing Surveys

Additional Research

Source: ComplexDiscovery

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