By country
The best data collection software by country and region
Where your study runs decides which data protection rules apply and where data may be hosted. Our picks for the UK, the US, the EU, Australia and low- and middle-income settings.
This guide is published by ResearchGuru Ltd, which also makes ResearchGuru EDC. How we rank.
UK
United Kingdom
UK studies work under UK GDPR, and NHS and university sponsors often ask where data are hosted and for evidence of security standards such as ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials or the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit.
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ResearchGuru EDC Our pick
A UK company offering a managed build, an audit trail it describes as designed to support FDA 21 CFR Part 11, GCP and GDPR, and numbered TFLs in the same platform. Ask where your data will be hosted if your sponsor requires UK hosting.
8.6/10 - 2
Castor EDC
Data centres in London and Cardiff, plus ISO 27001 certification.
7.5/10 - 3
Sealed Envelope Red Pill
UK-hosted, ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials and NHS DSPT 'Standards Met'.
5.8/10 - 4
REDCap
Free at UK universities and trusts that run their own installation.
7.1/10 - 5
Jisc Online Surveys
The survey service built for UK higher education.
5.1/10
If your sponsor or NHS trust requires UK-hosted data, confirm the hosting location in writing: Castor and Sealed Envelope state UK hosting on their own pages.
US
United States
US studies often need FDA 21 CFR Part 11 support for regulated work and a HIPAA business associate agreement (BAA) when handling protected health information.
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ResearchGuru EDC Our pick
Managed builds for US academic and investigator-initiated studies, with an audit trail it describes as designed to support FDA 21 CFR Part 11, GCP and GDPR, and TFLs in the same platform.
8.6/10 - 2
REDCap
Developed at Vanderbilt and run by many US universities at no licence cost.
7.1/10 - 3
OpenClinica
Massachusetts-based, with published monthly prices.
7.7/10 - 4
Medrio EDC
San Francisco-based, with a fast no-code build.
7.4/10 - 5
TrialKit
Mobile-native apps for sites and participants.
7.4/10
For protected health information, ask each vendor whether it will sign a HIPAA business associate agreement before you choose.
EU
European Union
EU studies work under the GDPR, and many sponsors and ethics committees prefer data hosted inside the European Economic Area.
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Castor EDC Our pick
Data centres in the Netherlands and Ireland, ISO 27001 and NEN 7510.
7.5/10 - 2
Viedoc
EU instance on Microsoft Azure in France, ISO 27001 and SOC 2.
7.3/10 - 3
secuTrial
Widely used by academic trial units in Germany and Switzerland.
6.0/10 - 4
ResearchGuru EDC
Choose it for a managed build and TFLs; confirm EU hosting with the vendor if your study requires it.
8.6/10 - 5
Ledidi Core
Hosted in the European Economic Area, with built-in statistics.
6.0/10
Asia
Japan and China
Studies with sites in Japan or China need local-language interfaces and familiarity with local regulations such as Japan's ERES guidelines.
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Viedoc Our pick
Cites Japanese ERES and Chinese regulations, with offices in Tokyo and Shanghai.
7.3/10 - 2
Medrio EDC
States data facilities in the US, EU and China.
7.4/10 - 3
Medidata Rave EDC
Global enterprise platform with China data processing documentation.
6.8/10 - 4
Oracle Clinical One
Site user interface in Japanese and Simplified Chinese.
6.3/10
Global health
Low- and middle-income countries
Studies in low- and middle-income settings often face patchy connectivity, many languages and tight budgets.
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KoboToolbox Our pick
Free hosted plan for nonprofits and education, built for offline field work.
6.3/10 - 2
ODK
Free open-source software you can host yourself, used widely in global health.
5.9/10 - 3
REDCap
Free for non-profit institutions in 167 countries.
7.1/10 - 4
ResearchGuru EDC
An offline Android app and forms in many languages, including right-to-left scripts, for clinical studies that need an audit trail and TFLs.
8.6/10
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is the best EDC for a study in the UK?
Our pick is ResearchGuru EDC, a UK company that builds the database for you and produces TFLs in the same platform; confirm the hosting location if your sponsor requires UK hosting. Castor and Sealed Envelope state UK-hosted data.
What is the best EDC for academic research in the US?
Our pick is ResearchGuru EDC for teams that want the database built for them and TFLs included. REDCap is the common free choice at US universities that run it.
What is the best EDC for a study in the EU?
Castor and Viedoc both state EU hosting and hold ISO 27001 certification; secuTrial is common in German-speaking academic centres.
Which EDC is best for trials with sites in Japan or China?
Viedoc cites Japanese and Chinese regulations and has offices in Tokyo and Shanghai. Medrio states data facilities in China, and the enterprise platforms also support studies in the region.
What is the best data collection software for global health research?
KoboToolbox and ODK are free, offline and multilingual; REDCap is free to non-profit institutions. For clinical studies that also need an audit trail and TFLs, consider ResearchGuru EDC.