How to create a client portal — without code.
Five steps from “documents everywhere” to a branded portal your clients actually use. Ten minutes, start to finish.
What a client portal has to do
Strip away the buzzwords and a client portal has four jobs:collect (documents and form answers),organise (everything tied to the right client and request), chase (reminders that run without you), and close (review and approval). If a tool does those four things under your brand, it qualifies. If it also needs your clients to create accounts and learn an interface — it will quietly fail, because clients won't use it.
Build vs. buy, honestly
- Custom build: £10k+, months, and you own the security burden forever.
- All-in-one suites: powerful, but weeks of setup and client-side passwords.
- Dedicated portal software: live today, focused on the four jobs above — like ClientLoop's client document portal.
The five steps.
- 1
Pick where it lives
Skip custom development unless you have very unusual needs — dedicated portal software gets you live today. Sign up, name your workspace, done.
- 2
Put your brand on it
Logo, brand colour, sender name — and from Essentials your own domain. Clients should see your firm first, not your vendor.
- 3
Build your first request
Start with the pack you ask every new client for: ID, proof of address, engagement letter. On Essentials and above, save it as a Pack so next time it is one click.
- 4
Invite a real client
Send the request. Your client gets a branded email with one secure magic link — no account creation, no password. They upload; you see progress live.
- 5
Let the portal do the chasing
Turn on automatic reminders (Essentials and above), connect Slack — or Zapier, on Pro — if you like, and review submissions from one dashboard. Approve or request changes.
Questions people ask.
What is a client portal?
A client portal is a secure, private website where your clients exchange documents, complete forms and track requests — instead of scattering everything across email threads and attachments.
How much does it cost to create a client portal?
Custom development typically starts at £10,000+ and months of work. Dedicated client portal software ranges from free to £500+/month. ClientLoop plans start at £35/month, each with a 14-day free trial, and Pro is £69/month flat for unlimited clients.
Do my clients need to create accounts?
Not with modern portals. ClientLoop uses secure magic links — clients click a link in their email and they are in. No passwords to create, forget or reset.
Can I put a client portal on my own domain?
Yes — a custom domain puts the portal at your own address (e.g. portal.yourfirm.com), under your name and logo. In ClientLoop a custom domain comes with the Essentials plan and above.
Is a client portal secure enough for sensitive documents?
A good portal is far safer than email: encrypted storage, access control, malware scanning of uploads, activity logs and GDPR-compliant deletion. Email attachments have none of that.
Related reading
Create yours now.
14-day free trial on any plan. Branded in five minutes.