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Vakilat and Manupatra compared

Last updated 27 October 2026

Manupatra alternative: Vakilat checks Supreme Court citations and quotations word for word from ₹799 a month. Five free research runs without a card.

In short

Manupatra is a comprehensive Indian legal database covering 25 High Courts with archives stretching back to the nineteenth century, appellate tribunals, more than 3,500 central Acts, and an established citator. Its AI Search links summaries to paragraphs, and its portal cross-references the IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act to the new criminal statutes. For multi-jurisdictional breadth, Manupatra covers substantially more forums than Vakilat does today.

Where Vakilat focuses is on the reliability of the answer before counsel cites it in court. Both platforms link to judgment paragraphs, but Vakilat matches every quotation in an answer word for word against the stored Supreme Court ruling before displaying the text. If an asserted proposition lacks direct support in the judicial text, Vakilat isolates the statement in a dedicated callout box detailing the specific reason. Manupatra lists a Citation Verifier for format checking in its product documentation, but does not describe an automated word-for-word quotation matching engine against the judgment body.

For criminal practitioners navigating new legislation, the platforms take different approaches. Manupatra provides corresponding section lookup tables between the old codes and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA). Vakilat adds automated temporal transition calculations: by evaluating the date of the alleged offence, FIR registration, and trial stage, Vakilat determines whether the old or new codes govern your matter and surfaces relevant Supreme Court interpretations. Vakilat also delivers research answers across 22 scheduled Indian languages, keeping judicial quotes in the Court’s authoritative English.

The financial structures highlight different operational models. Manupatra requires annual upfront commitments ranging from ₹14,250 to ₹55,460 before GST, with AI Search sold separately through credit packages costing ₹15,000 for 12,000 credits. For a solo litigator, a core subscription plus AI credits typically amounts to ₹34,515 per year. For a three-lawyer chamber, annual costs often exceed ₹85,000 to ₹1,10,000. Vakilat offers transparent monthly billing starting at ₹799 a seat plus GST (₹11,314 a year), bundles all AI research capabilities without separate credit meters, refunds unused runs upon cancellation, and provides five free research runs with zero card requirement.

Choose Manupatra for a full library across 25 High Courts, historical archives, and central Acts. Choose Vakilat for checked Supreme Court answers with word-for-word quotation matching on a transparent monthly plan.

Side by side

Facts about Manupatra are taken from its own website on 27 October 2026. “Not described on its website” means we looked and found nothing; it may still exist.

  1. Courts covered

    VakilatSupported

    Supreme Court of India, 47,578 judgments decided from 1950, year by year on the coverage page. High Courts and tribunals are not covered yet. Source

    ManupatraSupported

    Supreme Court from 1950, 25 High Courts with start years, tribunals and commissions, and more than 3,500 central Acts. Source

  2. Answers to legal questions

    VakilatSupported

    Ask in plain words. The answer states the law and cites Supreme Court judgments, quoting the Court's own words.

    ManupatraPartial

    AI Search returns the 10 most relevant results with summaries and an AI analysis, for subscribers. Source

  3. Where a citation points

    VakilatSupported

    Each authority opens at the paragraph it relies on, beside the answer, with a link to the Court's copy. Source

    ManupatraSupported

    AI Search summaries link to the relevant paragraph of the source, and the court's paragraph numbers are kept. Source

  4. Checking citations and quotations

    VakilatSupported

    Before you see the answer, ordinary code finds every citation in the stored judgment and matches every quotation word for word. A second AI model reviews support. A statement that fails is removed or set apart with its reason. Source

    ManupatraPartial

    A Citation Verifier for citation formats is listed in its 2026 product deck, without a price. A check of quotations: not described. Source

  5. Later judgments

    VakilatSupported

    Each judgment lists the later judgments in Vakilat that cite it. It does not label how they treated it.

    ManupatraSupported

    Authority Check lists later citing cases and filters them by treatment, such as overruled. Source

  6. IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act to BNS, BNSS and BSA

    VakilatSupported

    Every IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act section linked to its BNS, BNSS or BSA counterpart, and the code that applies worked out by fixed rules from your dates and stage. Source

    ManupatraPartial

    Corresponding sections link the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act to the BNS, BNSS and BSA in both directions. Source

  7. Indian languages

    VakilatSupported

    The dashboard in 22 Indian languages and English. Answers come in the language you choose, with case names and quotations kept in the Court's words. Source

    ManupatraPartial

    Supreme Court judgments in vernacular languages, and Google Translate for documents. AI answers in Indian languages: not described. Source

  8. Your own documents

    VakilatSupported

    Attach up to five files to a question, up to 20 MB and 1,000 pages each. The answer cites them by file and page.

    ManupatraPartial

    ManuWorks.ai, its separate AI workspace, takes PDF, DOCX, TXT and HTML files. Source

  9. Price

    VakilatSupported

    Advocate ₹799, Professional ₹1,599, Chambers ₹2,999 a seat a month plus GST, billed monthly. Unused runs of a cancelled month are refunded. Source

    ManupatraPartial

    Annual plans from ₹14,250 to ₹55,460 a year before GST. AI credits are bought separately: 12,000 credits for ₹15,000 a year. Source

  10. Free use

    VakilatSupported

    Five research runs free, no card. Searching and reading judgments is free on every plan. Source

    ManupatraPartial

    A 24-hour trial of the database, on request. Source

  11. Inside AI assistants

    VakilatSupported

    A Vakilat connector for Claude searches and reads judgments and checks citations, with 30 free calls a day.

    ManupatraNot described

    A Chrome extension and mobile apps. A connector for AI assistants: not described on its website. Source

Where Manupatra goes further

  • It covers High Courts from the nineteenth century, tribunals and statutes. Source
  • Its citator filters later cases by how they treated a judgment. Source
  • It has Android and iOS apps and a Chrome extension. Source

Questions

Is Vakilat a practical alternative to Manupatra for Indian court litigation?

Vakilat serves as a specialized alternative to Manupatra for Supreme Court litigation by providing research answers with word-for-word quotation checks and pinpoint paragraphs. Manupatra provides broader coverage across 25 High Courts, tribunals, and historical colonial judgments, making it suitable for multi-forum tracking, whereas Vakilat focuses on checked Supreme Court authorities billed monthly.

Both link to paragraphs. What does Vakilat add?

Vakilat matches every quotation in an answer word for word against the judgment, and finds every citation in the stored judgment, before you see the answer. A statement that fails is removed or set apart with its reason. Manupatra lists tools for citation formatting, but its product documentation does not describe algorithmic word-for-word quotation matching against the judgment body.

How do the prices compare?

Manupatra sells annual plans from ₹14,250 before GST, with AI Search paid in credits on top (₹15,000 for 12,000 credits). Vakilat offers transparent monthly plans starting at ₹799 per seat for advocates with all AI research features included, five free trial runs, and pro-rata refunds for unused runs upon cancellation.

How do Vakilat and Manupatra handle criminal law transitions from IPC to BNS?

Vakilat calculates whether the IPC or BNS governs your case based on the specific dates of the alleged offence, FIR registration, and trial stage, linking every provision to Supreme Court precedents. Manupatra displays two-way corresponding section tables between old and new criminal acts, but leaves the temporal determination of applicable procedural law to the advocate.

Does Vakilat protect client confidentiality when analyzing case files compared to ManuWorks?

Vakilat protects confidential case files by analyzing up to five documents per question without retaining client data to train external AI models, aligning with advocate privilege under the Indian Evidence Act and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. Manupatra offers ManuWorks.ai as a separate workspace for document drafting and review, operating under standard enterprise subscription data terms.

Can advocates query Vakilat in regional languages during court arguments?

Yes, advocates can type legal questions in 22 Indian languages on Vakilat and receive structured answers in their chosen language, with judicial quotes kept in the Supreme Court's authoritative English. Manupatra offers vernacular translations of select judgments using Google Translate, but its AI Search does not provide legal answers composed directly in Indian languages.

Try it on your own question

Ask Vakilat a question from this week's matter. Five research runs are free, with no card. See also how the checks work and which years Vakilat holds.

Sources

Checked on 27 October 2026. Products change, so if anything here is out of date, write to hello@vakilat.io and we will correct it.