Best EU AI Act Compliance Software for SMEs (2026)

Short answer: for most small and mid-sized companies, start with a free classification (the European Commission's checker, or ActScope's free classifier), then pick a self-serve tool built for SMEs: ActScope, SetAIComply or Complipath, depending on your size and how much you want generated for you. Enterprise AI governance platforms such as Credo AI or Modulos are built for larger organisations with governance teams, and are rarely the right first purchase for an SME.

A disclaimer before anything else: I build ActScope, so I'm not neutral. I've tried to be specific about who each tool suits, including when ActScope is the wrong choice. Prices below are what each vendor or a public software directory listed when this guide was last verified, 2 November 2026. Prices change, so check the vendor's own page before you buy.

How I compared them

An SME needs software to do five things:

1. Classify each AI system (prohibited, high-risk, Article 50 transparency, or minimal) and work out whether you are the provider or the deployer.
2. Close what is already due: Article 50 disclosures, the Article 5 prohibited-practices check and Article 4 AI literacy.
3. Produce the documents a high-risk system needs, from the risk management plan to the Annex IV technical documentation.
4. Track obligations and evidence against the legal deadlines, as amended by the Digital Omnibus.
5. Cost what an SME can pay, ideally with a published price and a way to start without talking to sales.

The quick comparison

The free official tools: start here

European Commission AI Act Compliance Checker. The Commission's AI Act Service Desk offers a free checker that walks you through your role (provider, deployer, distributor) and the obligations that follow. It is maintained by the people who enforce the law, which makes it the best neutral starting point. It is guidance, not a legal position, and it doesn't produce documents or track anything.

Future of Life Institute AI Act Compliance Checker. An earlier free, unofficial questionnaire alongside FLI's AI Act Explorer. Useful for learning, but check that it reflects the Digital Omnibus dates.

When the free tools are enough: if every system you have is minimal risk, a documented classification plus AI literacy for your staff may be all you need.

SME-focused software

ActScope

Who it's for: companies under about 250 people with 3 to 15 AI systems and no compliance team, typically a founder, a CTO and perhaps a part-time legal adviser.

What it does: a free classifier (about 12 questions, no sign-up) that determines the risk tier and your role. Then a dated action plan, and documents drafted from your system details across 15 types: from the Article 50 Transparency Notice and AI Literacy Programme up to the Risk Management Plan, Annex IV Technical Documentation, Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment, Quality Management System, EU Declaration of Conformity and EU Database Registration. It includes a copy-ready Article 50 disclosure kit, document sign-off, evidence on each obligation, team seats and a public trust page.

Price: free classifier; Starter €39/month (up to 5 systems, the transparency and AI literacy documents); Pro €99 per seat/month (unlimited systems, every document type). 14-day free trial.

Watch out for: ActScope covers the EU AI Act only. If you also need GDPR, NIS2 or DORA in the same tool, look at a multi-regime product. Documents are first drafts for you or your lawyer to review, not legal opinions.

SetAIComply

Who it's for: SMEs that develop, deploy, embed or resell AI, according to its directory listings.

What it does: applicability scoping, Annex III risk classification with role mapping (provider, deployer, importer, distributor), Annex IV technical documentation, DPIAs and FRIAs, and a copilot grounded in the text of the Act. Its listings describe 14 obligation domains including bias testing and vendor management, with higher tiers adding automated evidence collection, shadow-AI detection and ISO 42001 and NIST AI RMF mapping. Listings mention an AI literacy course and hosting in Amsterdam.

Price: published tiers of Free, Starter €39/month, Growth €129/month, Scale €349/month and Enterprise €9,588/year, usage-capped by document generations and copilot messages.

Watch out for: usage caps on the lower tiers; compare how many documents you can generate per month against how many systems you have. At the time of writing its directory listings showed no customer reviews yet.

Complipath

Who it's for: companies of about 20 to 100 employees that use or build AI.

What it does: classifies each AI system with a rules engine rather than a language model, so the same answers always give the same result, with the exact article cited. AI drafts only from your own documents, and a person confirms. It also tracks changes to AI vendors' usage policies.

Price: a free plan (1 AI system, 1 user) and paid plans from about $499/month, per a public directory checked in October 2026.

Watch out for: the price step from free to paid is large for a small company with only a few systems.

Legalithm

Who it's for: teams that want to self-assess first.

What it does: free self-assessment tools, with hosted compliance work offered per product.

Price: hosted plans from about €1,500 per product per year; at the time of writing billing was not yet live. Data is listed as stored in Frankfurt.

Watch out for: per-product pricing adds up if you have many AI systems.

EuroComply

Who it's for: SMEs that face several EU regimes at once.

What it does: a compliance scanner and workspace covering the AI Act alongside GDPR, NIS2, the Cyber Resilience Act and other EU frameworks, hosted in Frankfurt.

Price: a free plan; I could not confirm paid-tier prices.

Watch out for: breadth across regimes can mean less depth on AI Act documentation. Check which AI Act documents it actually produces.

Enterprise platforms (probably not your first purchase)

Modulos. An AI governance platform described as the first to obtain ISO 42001 product conformity certification. No public price; the first number you see comes from sales. A strong fit for larger organisations that need certified governance.

Credo AI. An enterprise AI governance platform for organisations with dedicated governance teams. No public price.

Security compliance platforms (Vanta, Drata and similar). Excellent for SOC 2 and ISO 27001, and some now add AI frameworks. If you already pay for one, check what AI Act coverage it includes before buying a second tool. They don't usually generate the AI Act's high-risk documentation for you.

How to choose

• One or two minimal-risk systems: use the Commission's free checker or ActScope's free classifier, record the result, and train your staff (Article 4). You may not need paid software.
• Chatbots or AI-generated content (Article 50), no high-risk systems: a low-cost SME plan is enough. ActScope Starter or SetAIComply Starter both start at €39/month.
• One or more high-risk systems (Annex III), under ~50 people: you need full documentation. Compare ActScope Pro and SetAIComply's higher tiers on how many documents you can generate and whether they cover the documents you need.
• 20 to 100 people who prefer deterministic, rules-based classification: look at Complipath.
• AI Act plus GDPR, NIS2 or DORA in one place: look at EuroComply.
• Large organisation, certification required, dedicated governance team: Modulos or Credo AI.

Whatever you choose, have a lawyer review the documents for any high-risk system before you rely on them.

Sources

• European Commission, AI Act Service Desk: EU AI Act Compliance Checker
• Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, full text on EUR-Lex
• Vendor sites and public software directories (Capterra, GetApp, Toolradar, AlternativeTo) for features and prices, checked November 2026. If anything here is out of date, email info@actscope.eu and I'll correct it.