Feature comparison · facts checked 2026-09-28
promptShield vs CaseGuard Studio for document redaction
Both are offline desktop tools, so data residency isn't what separates them. The difference is reversibility: CaseGuard permanently blacks data out; promptShield replaces it with stable codes you can run through an AI and decode back. A sourced feature comparison, dated and cited.
The difference in one sentence
CaseGuard permanently destroys the sensitive content, which is true, irreversible redaction. promptShield replaces it with stable, consistent codes: you run the redacted document through any AI, then decode its answer back to the real values.
Both products keep your files on your own machine. CaseGuard is on-premise and promptShield is offline-first, so neither uploads your documents. Data residency is a tie. The real divide is what redaction leaves behind: CaseGuard leaves a permanent blackout with nothing to send to an AI; promptShield leaves a reversible code, built for the anonymize → AI → decode loop, where the same entity always gets the same code so the AI can follow the conversation without seeing a single real value.
Where the two genuinely diverge
Reversible codes vs permanent destruction
CaseGuard performs true redaction: the underlying text, metadata and hidden layers are removed and cannot be recovered. That's the right design for releasing a final record. promptShield replaces sensitive data with a structured, reversible code (e.g. [P0ABCD]). The meaning survives, the real value doesn't leave, and you can restore it later. Two different goals: CaseGuard hands off a sealed document; promptShield hands off a working copy you can decode.
Built for the AI loop as well as for release
Because the redacted value is gone in CaseGuard, there's nothing to hand to ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini and no way to bring an answer back. promptShield is built for exactly that: anonymize the document into stable codes, send it to any AI, then import the AI's response and decode every code back to its original value. An auto-generated instruction page tells the AI to preserve codes verbatim.
The same name always gets the same code
"Pierre Dubois" becomes [P0ABCD] everywhere (in the contract, the invoice and the attached email), so the AI understands those references point to the same person across the document and across files in the same folder. A blackout makes every occurrence an anonymous box the AI can't connect.
Detection focus: text PII in 7 languages, deep not wide
CaseGuard's breadth is its strength: 750+ file types and video, audio and image redaction with speaker detection, far beyond documents. promptShield is narrower on purpose: it does text-based personal data in documents, across 7 languages with country-specific checksums (IBAN, SSN, TFN…). If you need to redact body-cam footage or call recordings, CaseGuard is the tool. If you need a reversible AI workflow over documents, promptShield is.
Feature comparison
| Feature | promptShield | CaseGuard |
|---|---|---|
Anonymize → AI → decode loop CaseGuard: permanent blackout, nothing to send to an AI | ||
Reversible codes (restore the original later) CaseGuard: true, irreversible redaction by design | ||
Consistent, stable codes (same entity → same code) | ||
Code consistency across multiple files | ||
AI instruction page (preserve codes verbatim) | ||
Decode an AI's response back to real values | ||
Automatic personal-data detection in documents CaseGuard: 30+ PII/PHI categories | ||
Entity detection (names, orgs, locations) | ||
Multilingual text detection (7 languages, mixed) CaseGuard: language coverage for document PII not publicly specified | ◐ | |
Country-specific checksums (IBAN, SSN, TFN…) CaseGuard: pattern detection, checksum validation not documented | ◐ | |
Permanent, irreversible blackout promptShield: optional per region · CaseGuard: the only mode | ||
Per-region choice: encode or permanently remove CaseGuard only does permanent removal | ||
Metadata / hidden-layer removal | ||
100% offline / on-premise processing CaseGuard: one offline key per license; transcription and translation need internet | ||
Video / audio / image redaction CaseGuard: core strength, 750+ file types | ||
Transcription & speaker detection | ||
Document pages you can process promptShield: no page allowance in the desktop app · CaseGuard: 48,000 AI page credits a year on Doc Suite, more can be bought | ◐ | |
Free version in the browser promptShield: the web app handles PDFs and keeps them on your device | ||
Free trial Both: 7 days · CaseGuard watermarks trial output |
✓ = included · ◐ = partial / via configuration · ✗ = not present. CaseGuard facts checked 2026-09-28 (see Sources).
When to choose CaseGuard
CaseGuard is the right tool when:
- You need to redact video, audio or images (body-cam footage, call recordings, surveillance), not just documents. This is CaseGuard's core strength and promptShield doesn't do it.
- You're producing final, sealed records for release (FOIA, disclosure, court filings) where permanent, irreversible destruction is exactly what you want.
- You need transcription, speaker detection or translation across many media formats in one on-premise platform.
These tools solve different problems. CaseGuard is a broad multi-format redaction suite for producing sealed records; promptShield is a focused document tool for the reversible anonymize → AI → decode loop. A team that releases redacted video and also wants to run contracts through an AI could reasonably use both.
When to choose promptShield
- You want to use an AI (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini…) on confidential documents: anonymize, send, then decode the answer back to real values. CaseGuard's permanent blackout can't do this.
- You need reversible tokenization (replace a value with a code, then restore it later) rather than an irreversible blackout.
- You need the same entity to carry one stable, identical code across a whole document and across multiple files, so the AI can follow the conversation.
- Your work is text in documents across 7 languages, and you would rather not pay for video and audio redaction you will never use. The cost table below shows what that comes to for a small team.
What a team pays in a year
CaseGuard charges per user, per month. promptShield Pro has one base license and a smaller price for each extra person. Here is what that means for a team doing document redaction, with both products billed yearly.
| Team | CaseGuard Doc Suite | promptShield Pro | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 person | $3,348 | $564 | 5× cheaper |
| 2 people | $6,696 | $756 | 8× cheaper |
| 5 people | $16,740 | $1,332 | 12× cheaper |
| 10 people | $33,480 | $2,292 | 14× cheaper |
US dollars per year, list prices before tax and before any launch discount. CaseGuard Doc Suite at $279 per user per month on yearly billing, checked 2026-09-28. promptShield Pro is counted as one base license plus one extra license for each additional person, which is the most expensive way to read our pricing, and the difference is rounded down. See promptShield pricing
The CaseGuard price buys more than detection: a dedicated account manager, live group training, and support for 300+ file types, email archives included. It also caps document analysis at 48,000 AI page credits a year, and more can be bought. A team that also needs video or audio pays US$299 (Media Suite) or US$379 (Ultimate Suite) per user per month. promptShield does no media work and has no account manager. It is a self-serve document tool, and that is most of the reason it costs less.
See the anonymize → AI → decode loop
Load a document in your browser: anonymize it into stable codes, run it through an AI, then decode the answer back to real values. No install, no cloud upload.
Sources
- CaseGuard — Document redaction software
- CaseGuard — Pricing
- CaseGuard — Redaction pricing
- CaseGuard — FAQs
- CaseGuard — How it works
All CaseGuard pricing and features were verified on 2026-09-28. Vendor pricing changes. If you spot an inaccuracy, let us know and we'll correct it.
Frequently asked questions
Can promptShield redact video, audio or images?
It handles images inside documents, including scanned pages, which are processed with text recognition and redacted like any other page. Standalone video and audio are outside its scope: there is no transcription, no speaker detection and no frame-by-frame media redaction. If body-cam footage or call recordings are a real part of your workload, you need a media redaction suite, and this comparison should not talk you out of one.
If both tools are offline, why not just use one for everything?
Because both tools work offline, so that is shared ground. The split is what happens to the data: a redaction suite destroys the sensitive content so a record can be released, while promptShield substitutes it so the document can be sent to an AI and the answer brought back. A destroyed value cannot be handed to a model or restored afterwards, and a coded value is not a sealed record. Most teams that need both outcomes end up with both tools.
Can promptShield permanently remove values instead of encoding them?
Yes. Removal is a per-region choice, so you can strip some values outright while encoding others in the same document, and the removed ones are gone rather than recoverable. What it does not try to be is a purpose-built tool for producing sealed public-release records, with the metadata scrubbing and multi-format coverage that job involves. Use it for the documents you are reasoning about with AI, not as your disclosure pipeline.
Why does promptShield cost so much less than CaseGuard?
Because it does less. There is no video or audio redaction, no transcription, no dedicated account manager and no on-site training, and you buy it yourself online. Detection runs on your own computer, so there are no per-page credits to meter. If your work is documents you want to take through an AI, the narrower product is the one you need. If it includes body-cam footage or call recordings, the extra money buys something real.
Does CaseGuard limit how many pages you can process?
Its Doc Suite includes 48,000 AI credits a year at one credit per page, which works out to about 4,000 pages a month. Extra credits can be bought. The promptShield desktop app has no page allowance, because the work happens on your machine: a 500-page bundle costs the same as a one-page letter.
Caveats
- This is not a detection benchmark. CaseGuard is a closed product; we can't run its detector over our test documents the way we do for open-source tools. We compare approaches and features, not measured detection rates. For reproducible benchmarks, see /compare.
- Both can work offline. CaseGuard runs on-premise and works offline with one offline key per license, although its transcription and translation need an internet connection. promptShield processes documents on your own machine. For document redaction, data residency is close to a tie; reversibility, the AI loop and cost are where the two differ.
- CaseGuard does far more than documents. It redacts video, audio and images across 750+ file types with transcription and speaker detection. We compare only the document / personal-data redaction workflow, not its media capabilities, which promptShield doesn't have.
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