Capture vs Veeva Vault CDMS: a study decision, not a platform rollout
Veeva Vault CDMS makes most sense as part of a wider Veeva platform. Capture is for teams choosing a system for a study or a small portfolio: self-serve, free to build and test, with EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization in one place.
- Free sandbox, no sales call
- EDC, ePRO, eConsent, randomization
- Part 11-aligned controls
Free sandbox · No credit card · 21 CFR Part 11 aligned
Tests
5
Hands-on
4
To confirm
1
- Build one real form from your protocolSame test, both systems
- Time from contract to first site liveSame test, both systems
- Check ePRO, eConsent and randomization togetherSame test, both systems
- Export data with a data dictionarySame test, both systems
- Compare total cost for your study sizeAsk both vendors
Capture vs Veeva: the short version
- Veeva Vault CDMS, including Vault EDC, is part of Veeva's Vault Clinical Platform, alongside applications such as CTMS and eTMF that many large sponsors use.
- Vault CDMS suits sponsors that want clinical data management on the same platform as their other Veeva Vault applications.
- Smaller teams compare alternatives when they need a study live quickly, want ePRO, eConsent and randomization without assembling several applications, or need a commercial model sized to one study.
- Capture is self-serve: a free sandbox with every feature, AI drafting from the protocol, and payment only when you go live.
- Capture supports Phase 1 through Phase 3 with Part 11-aligned controls: field-level audit trail, re-authenticated e-signatures and role-based access.
0
sales calls needed to start building
1
audit trail across EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization
Free
sandbox with every feature, no time limit
EU + US
hosting in Frankfurt or N. Virginia
The comparison
A platform decision or a study decision?
Choosing Vault CDMS is often part of a wider platform decision. Sponsors that already run Veeva applications for trial management, documents or regulatory work value having clinical data on the same foundation, with shared users, processes and vendor relationships. For them, the platform argument can outweigh study-level considerations.
Many studies are not platform decisions. A biotech running its first trial, an academic group with a grant, or a CRO serving several small sponsors needs one study live quickly, with the modules it needs and a cost it can justify. Capture is designed for that study-level decision: build, test and go live without an enterprise rollout.
Using both
Some sponsors keep an enterprise platform for large programmes and use a self-serve platform for early-phase or investigator-led studies. Capture exports CSV and Excel with a data dictionary, so data can be combined downstream.
What to compare
What to test when comparing Capture and Veeva
| Criterion | Why it matters | Capture |
|---|---|---|
| Getting started | Time and effort before a study is live | Self-serve sign-up, free sandbox, AI-drafted study from the protocol |
| Study build | Who needs to be involved | Your study team in a visual builder; no specialist certification needed |
| Participant modules | ePRO and eConsent for patients | ePRO on participants' phones and eConsent with verified signatures, in the same study |
| Randomization and supply | Blinding and kits | Stratified randomization, blinded roles and kit dispensing built in |
| Exports | Downstream analysis and pooling | CSV and Excel with a data dictionary, raw and decoded |
| Commercial model | Fit for your study size | Free sandbox; no setup fee; pay only when you go live |
This table shows Capture's answers only. Ask Veeva for theirs, and confirm current capabilities and terms directly with them.
Speed to start
Build your study this week, before any contract
Upload the protocol and the AI Study Generator drafts the visits, windows and forms for your team to review. Refine them in the visual builder, test with sample data in the free sandbox, and export a blank eCRF PDF for ethics submission. You pay only when you go live with real participants.
- AI-drafted visits and forms from your protocol.
- Free sandbox with every feature, no credit card.
- No setup fee and no sales call to start.
One platform
EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization in one study
Sites enter data on locked, approved forms with edit checks that raise queries at entry. Participants complete questionnaires on their own phones and sign eConsent with verified signatures. Randomization and kit management run in the same study, and everything shares one field-level audit trail.
- One participant record across every module.
- No integrations to build or reconcile.
- Phase 1 through Phase 3.
Run the same test in Capture today
Upload a protocol to the free sandbox and compare the draft.
Fit
When Veeva fits, and when Capture does
Vault CDMS is often the better fit when your organisation has standardised on Veeva Vault, when the study will run inside a sponsor's established Vault processes, or when enterprise-wide reporting across many studies on one vendor platform is the priority.
Capture fits when the decision is about one study or a small portfolio: a team that wants to build itself, start this month, and have EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization in one place without a multi-application rollout.
Compliance controls
The controls inspectors look for, built in
Every change is written to an append-only, hash-chained audit trail with user, time, old and new value and reason. Electronic signatures require password re-authentication and carry a meaning statement. Roles separate sites, and identifying data is segregated from study data at the database layer.
- Field-level audit trail, never hard deleted.
- Re-authenticated e-signatures.
- Role-based access with site separation.
Weight changed 68.0 to 68.5 kg
Site coordinator · Reason: Transcription error
Query Q-0014 answered on Weight
Site coordinator · Reason: Source checked
Vital signs form locked
Data manager · Reason: Visit cleaned
Switching
Moving from Veeva to Capture
Start new studies in Capture while existing studies finish where they are. Export specifications or annotated CRFs, upload them, and review the forms the AI drafts. Standard forms come from the template library.
Plan how data from both systems will be combined for portfolio reporting: consistent variable naming, units and coding make pooling straightforward, and Capture's exports include a data dictionary for exactly this.
Evaluation
How to run a fair enterprise EDC evaluation
Use your own protocol
Ask each vendor to build one real visit, not a demo study.
Time the path to first site
Contract, build, testing and training, in weeks.
Count the systems
EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization: one or several?
Test an amendment
Who changes a form, and how long it takes.
Check the audit trail
Change a value and read the record.
Price your real study
Setup, licences, per-site fees and change orders.
All comparisons
Compare Capture with other platforms
Every comparison uses the same approach: what to test, where each option fits, and Capture's own answers. See all of them on the comparisons hub at /compare.
Is Capture a Veeva Vault CDMS alternative?
Yes, for teams that want a self-serve platform for individual studies, with EDC, ePRO, eConsent and randomization in one place.
Do we need Veeva expertise to build in Capture?
No. Study teams build in a visual builder with AI drafting from the protocol.
Can Capture be used alongside Veeva?
Yes. Some sponsors use an enterprise platform for large programmes and Capture for smaller studies, combining exports downstream.
Can I test Capture before deciding against Veeva?
Yes. The free sandbox includes every feature with sample data, no credit card and no time limit. You pay only when you go live.
How did you build this comparison?
From public positioning and the criteria teams tell us matter. We state only Capture's own capabilities as fact; confirm Veeva's current offering with them.
Keep exploring
Related pages
Veeva EDC alternatives
A broader alternatives guide.
Medidata Rave vs Veeva Vault EDC
The enterprise head-to-head.
Capture vs Medidata Rave
Enterprise EDC from Medidata, part of Dassault Systèmes.
Capture vs Oracle Clinical One
Oracle's unified clinical platform and InForm heritage.
Capture vs IQVIA EDC
EDC from IQVIA's technology portfolio.
Capture vs Merative Zelta
Formerly IBM Clinical Development.
See how fast your study can start
Free sandbox with every feature. No credit card, no sales call.