I’ve implemented NetDocuments at over 550 law firms since 2010, and one of the most common problems I see is wildly inflated data estimates during the sales process.
Recently, I saw a quote for a 15-user firm that listed 3.8 TB of data. That’s not a typo—3.8 terabytes for 15 people.
Let me be direct: that number is ridiculous.
Either someone made a mistake, or the firm is including data that shouldn’t be part of a DMS migration. Either way, it leads to overpaying for storage and setting unrealistic migration expectations.
Here’s what’s actually normal based on hundreds of real-world migrations.
Realistic Storage Estimates by Firm Size and Age
Realistic File Counts Estimates by Firm Size and Age
The Math Behind These Numbers
These estimates assume:
- 1,000–1,500 documents per user per year of active practice
- Average file size of 500–750 KB (typical for Word docs, PDFs, and emails saved as documents)
- Standard practice mix of transactional and litigation work
- Reasonable email filing habits (filing relevant emails, not entire inboxes)
That works out to roughly 4–6 documents per user per business day, which matches what I observe in well-run firms.
Why Estimates Get Inflated
When I see numbers like 3.8 TB for a small firm, it’s usually because someone is counting:
1. Entire email archives – PST files or full mailbox exports that don’t belong in a DMS
2. Backup copies – Old server backups, disaster recovery archives, or duplicate file sets
3. Personal drives – Desktop folders, downloads, and personal files that shouldn’t migrate
4. Media files – Video depositions, surveillance footage, or large design files that may need separate handling
5. Every version ever saved – Instead of final documents, every draft is counted as a separate file
A proper scoping conversation should separate what’s actually going into the DMS from what’s sitting on a server somewhere.
Practice Area Variations
The estimates above assume a standard mix of work. Your actual numbers may vary significantly based on what your firm does:
| Practice Area | Data Impact | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Litigation (Discovery-Heavy) | 2–5x higher | Large document productions, opposing party files, exhibit sets |
| Insurance Defense | 1.5–3x higher | Medical records, claims files, expert reports |
| IP/Patent | 1.5–2x higher | Technical drawings, prior art files, large exhibits |
| Immigration | Similar or slightly higher | High matter volume, lots of government forms |
| Estate Planning/Trusts | Similar or lower | Smaller file sizes, template-driven |
| Transactional/Corporate | Similar or lower | Deal documents, cleaner file structures |
| Real Estate | Similar | Title documents, surveys, closing binders |
The big wildcard: Discovery.
A single litigation matter with e-discovery can add hundreds of gigabytes—or even terabytes—of data. If your firm handles large discovery productions, that data often lives outside the DMS (in review platforms like Relativity) and shouldn’t be counted in your NetDocuments migration scope.
Putting the 3.8 TB Quote in Perspective
Let’s do the math on why 3.8 TB for a 15-user firm doesn’t add up:
- 3.8 TB = 3,800 GB
- At 600 KB average file size, that’s approximately 6.3 million files
- For 15 users, that’s 420,000 files per person
- Over 10 years, that’s 42,000 files per user per year
- Or 168 files per user per business day
No one is filing 168 documents a day. That’s a document every 3 minutes for 8 hours straight, every single workday, for a decade.
Looking at the chart above, 3.8 TB is what you’d expect from a 150-user firm that’s been in business for 20 years—not a 15-user shop.
Why This Matters
Getting your data estimate right affects:
Storage costs – NetDocuments pricing tiers are based on storage. Overpaying from day one adds up year after year.
Migration budget – More data means longer migrations and higher consulting fees. A 100 GB migration is a very different project from a multi-terabyte migration.
Timeline expectations – Inflated estimates lead to inflated timelines, delaying your go-live and extending the pain of running parallel systems.
Ongoing costs – Inflated storage means inflated annual renewals for the life of your contract.
What to Do If Your Quote Seems High
Ask these questions:
1. Where did this number come from? Was it measured from a specific source, or estimated? Who provided the number, and how did they calculate it?
2. What’s included? Email archives? Backups? Personal drives? Network shares that won’t actually migrate?
3. Can we get an actual file count? Storage size alone can be misleading. A million tiny files and a thousand large files can both equal 500 GB, but they represent very different document-management realities.
4. What’s the average file size assumption? If it’s over 1 MB, something’s off for a typical law firm. Standard legal documents average 500–750 KB.
5. Are we counting what we’re actually migrating? There’s often a big difference between “everything on the server” and “documents that belong in the DMS.”
How to Get Accurate Numbers
If you’re migrating from an existing DMS such as Worldox, iManage, or another system, your current platform should provide exact counts. Run the reports.
If you’re coming from network drives or a less structured environment, a quick scan with a free tool like TreeSize (Windows) or DirTrace can provide accurate file counts and storage totals in minutes.
If you’re working with a NetDocuments sales rep or implementation partner, ask them to help you scope properly. A good partner will want accurate numbers, too—it makes everyone’s life easier.
The Bottom Line
A 15-user firm with 3.8 TB of data would need to have filed over 400,000 documents per person. That doesn’t happen in the real world.
Know your numbers before you sign. And if a quote doesn’t pass the smell test, ask questions.