A client can like a design and still leave you unsure what they approved. The note arrives in email, the screenshot arrives in chat, and the file they opened is one version behind the one on your screen.
Online proofing keeps that review on the image itself.
Online proofing is a review process in which a client opens a design image in the browser, leaves comments on the exact detail they mean, and either approves that version or asks for changes. Feedback stays with the file instead of being scattered across email, chat, and downloads. The record shows who commented, which version they saw, and whether that version was approved.
- 4 steps
- Upload, share, comment, decide
- No account
- Clients open a private link
- One version
- Approval names the file they saw
Who uses online proofing
The same job shows up in different studios: someone outside the team needs to react to a picture of the work, not to a long explanation of it.
Architects
Elevations, plans, and renders need a comment on the bay, the material, or the planting, not a vague note about the whole sheet.
Interior designers
A kitchen concept or a room render is easier to approve when the client can point at the cabinet, the light, or the floor.
Graphic designers
Logo options and layout stills get clearer feedback when the comment sits on the mark, the type, or the color.
Print shops
Customers can approve the artwork image before production. Size, bleed, and color checks still belong to the shop.
How a review runs
Four steps
Step 1
Upload the image
Add the drawing, render, or artwork as a PNG, JPEG, or WebP. Each later upload is a new version of that image.
Step 2
Share a private link
The client opens the link in a browser. They do not create an account or install an app.
Step 3
Collect comments on the image
The client pins a note to the detail they mean and submits that feedback as one round.
Step 4
Decide on that version
Upload a revision, or record that a named person approved that exact version. Extra work can be priced before you redraw it.
A review on a real drawing
An architecture studio uploads a courtyard elevation as a PNG. The client opens the private link on a phone. They pin two notes: “The hedge is too tall” on the planting, and “Can we see this at dusk?” on the sky.
The hedge is a change inside the rounds already agreed, so the studio uploads a new version. The dusk view was not in the fee. The studio sends a priced change request, with any shift in the timeline, and the client accepts it before anyone redraws the view.
When the revised elevation is approved, the record names the client, that version, and the time. A later upload does not inherit the approval. The yes stays with the file they actually saw.
Online proofing and sending files
Email and a shared folder can be enough for a single, obvious change between people who already trust each other. They get brittle once a project has versions, more than one reviewer, or work that was not in the original fee.
| Email and file sharing | Online proofing | |
|---|---|---|
| Finding the comment | Search a thread or a screenshot | The note sits on the detail |
| Which version | Filenames and “final-v3” | Each upload is its own version |
| What “approved” means | A reply that says it looks good | A record tied to one version, with a name and a time |
| Work outside the fee | Often agreed later, or not at all | A price the client accepts or declines before the redraw |
| What the client needs | Attachments, accounts, or a drive login | A private link in the browser |
What online proofing does not replace
Where this fits
Online proofing software is the product shape of this workflow: one image, comments on the picture, versions, and a decision. Studios that also need a client-facing place to open the work can look at the client portal, and teams tracking which file changed after the comments can look at revision tracking.If the comments themselves are the problem — “make it pop,” with no location — read how to collect useful feedback on an image. The short version: ask the client to point at the detail, and keep that note with the version they opened.
What is online proofing software?
It is a browser tool for reviewing design images. A client opens a private link, comments on a point in the image, and approves a specific version or asks for changes. In ApproveLoop that image is a PNG, JPEG, or WebP.
Do clients need an account?
No. They open the private link, leave comments, submit the round, and approve without signing up.
How is this different from emailing a file?
Email can carry the file and a general reaction. Online proofing keeps each comment on the detail, separates versions, and records which version was approved.
Does an approval replace a contract or a print check?
No. It records a decision about one image version. Contracts, invoices, legal disputes, and production checks such as bleed and color stay outside the product.
