If you’ve ever played email ping-pong with a client over a contract, you know the pain of messy edits, unclear approvals, and that dreaded “which version is this?” moment. Let’s fix that.
Zoho Contracts is Zoho’s answer to contract chaos—built to help you manage the full contract lifecycle, not just get a digital signature and call it a day.
And before you ask: Yes, Zoho Sign is different. Sign is for sending out documents to be signed. Contracts is for everything before and after that step, with Sign embedded right into it.
Watch to Learn the Difference Between Zoho Contracts and Zoho Sign
What is Zoho Contracts?
Zoho Contracts is a full-blown contract management system that helps your team:
- Create contract templates
- Customize clauses per deal
- Collaborate internally
- Negotiate externally
- Digitally sign and send
- Track renewals and contract obligations over time
If you work with contracts that change regularly, get negotiated, or need to be tracked for renewal or compliance—this is the app for you.
What Makes It Different?
Let’s break it down.
Clause Libraries and Templates
Build reusable contract templates with plug-and-play clause blocks. You can even create versions of a clause (e.g., Tier 1 vs Tier 2 support terms) that you toggle depending on the deal.
📝 Draft in Zoho Writer
Collaborate right inside Zoho Writer with your internal team. Route drafts for internal approval before they’re ever seen by the customer.
External Negotiation Made Easy
Once you’re ready to loop in the customer:
- Send a secure, password-protected link
- They can add comments, suggest redlines, and even negotiate directly in the doc
- Once both sides agree, proceed straight to signature—powered by Zoho Sign
And yes, that negotiation loop can happen as many times as needed.
Track Renewals and Recurring Agreements
One of the best features? You can track the lifecycle of a contract. That includes:
- Expiration and renewal timelines
- Who owns the next step
- Whether payment, review, or renegotiation is due
It’s perfect for retainers, annual support contracts, or long-term vendor agreements.
Zoho Contracts vs Zoho Sign: What’s the Difference?
| Feature | Zoho Sign | Zoho Contracts |
| Create Templates | ✅ | ✅ |
| Send for Signature | ✅ | ✅ |
| Track Lifecycles/Renewals | ❌ | ✅ |
| Negotiate and Redline Online | ❌ | ✅ |
| Internal Approval Workflows | ❌ | ✅ |
| Clause Library Management | ❌ | ✅ |
TL;DR: Use Sign when your docs are simple. Use Contracts when your deals are not.
Who Should Use Zoho Contracts?
- Professional services firms with retainer or renewal-based agreements
- Agencies or consultants who negotiate different terms by client
- SaaS or support teams who manage SLAs or contracts that change
- Legal or admin teams who need version control and audit tracking
If your contracts are repetitive, require collaboration, or are part of a long-term relationship, this tool will save your team so much time and hassle.
When You Don’t Need It
Sometimes you just need to send a PDF and get a signature. If you:
- Send mostly one-off contracts that don’t change much
- Don’t need to track lifecycle stages or renewals
- Aren’t regularly negotiating or redlining terms
Then you’re probably fine sticking with Zoho Sign.
Final Thought
Zoho Contracts is one of those tools that feels like overkill until you try it—and then you wonder how you ever managed without it.
If you're not sure whether it's worth setting up, I’m happy to take a look at your contract process and help you figure out the best path. Sometimes that means Contracts, sometimes it's just optimizing what you already have.
Either way, TechnoMap's got your back.
