When it comes to documenting your processes, training your team, and keeping your company running smoothly, two names often come up: Trainual and Scribe. While they tackle similar problems, they do it in very different ways. One is a screen recording tool while the other is a complete training and operations system.

So which one makes more sense for your company? Let’s take a closer look.

TL;DR: One is a tool, the other is a system.

Scribe is a tool. Trainual is a system.

Scribe helps you capture computer-based processes quickly. Press start, complete a task, and it generates a step-by-step guide — screenshots included. It’s a fast and easy way to capture digital workflows, but it’s limited to screen-based actions. That makes it tough to use for teams doing hands-on or offline work, or in industries where the work doesn't happen on a computer.

While it’s great for generating documentation on the fly, Scribe offers limited tools to organize or distribute that information effectively across a team. Content is not easily searchable beyond its title, and you can’t track views or engagement — which makes follow-through harder to manage. You also won’t find tools for documenting team roles, responsibilities, or operational policies.

Trainual includes a similar process capture tool (via the Trainual Capture Chrome extension), but it’s just one part of a much larger platform designed to support fast-growing teams. Built with all-size companies in mind, Trainual provides a complete system for training, operations, and scaling — offering tools to organize company knowledge, onboard team members, assign responsibilities, and track learning progress without the complexity or pricing of enterprise-only systems. That’s the sweet spot Trainual thrives in: helping businesses achieve structure and scalability with ease.

Trainual vs Scribe: How they stack up

📄 Business documentation

While both tools are useful for process documentation, they cater to different needs. Scribe is focused on capturing on-screen workflows, making it a great option for small businesses looking to quickly document digital tasks. However, Scribe can’t capture hands-on or offline processes — so if work happens off-screen, those steps won't be covered.

Trainual offers a more robust solution, enabling you to create detailed, organized documentation with images, videos, checklists, and embedded content — helping businesses standardize processes and streamline operations across teams.

Pro tip: You can easily embed Scribe guides into Trainual! This gives you the best of both worlds — visual walkthroughs powered by tools like Scribe, presented within Trainual’s structured training and documentation platform.

🚀 Training and onboarding

Scribe is great for capturing quick how-tos on the fly, but it’s not designed for building end-to-end learning journeys.

Trainual is purpose-built to deliver scalable training experiences. With custom training paths, you can guide employees through learning content in the right order, by role, team, or department. It goes beyond one-off guides to support structured, repeatable onboarding at scale. Need a broader content library? Trainual gives you access to 380+ ready-to-assign HR and employee development courses — covering everything from soft skills and cybersecurity to DEI and harassment prevention.‍

"Our employees and agents are constantly searching and favoriting content [in Trainual] that they come back to quite a bit. I know I use it every day." - Vice President of Realty Group LLC

📊 Tracking and reporting

Scribe is handy for capturing and sharing quick guides, but it doesn’t offer built-in tools for tracking learning or performance. There’s no way to monitor completions or hold team members accountable.

Trainual gives you full visibility into progress with detailed reporting on completions, quiz scores, and e-signatures. You can filter analytics by role, team, or location, set due dates, and automate reminders — keeping accountability high and training on track.

"I've had no trouble accessing the articles and taking quizzes. I love the tracking feature that keeps tabs on your progress." - Manager in Hospital and Healthcare

🔒 Access and permissions

Scribe is more about speed and simplicity — great for quickly creating and sharing guides, but not built for managing structured access or team-wide content oversight.

Trainual allows you to set permissions, delegate ownership, and control who has access to what content, ensuring everything stays organized and secure.  Use version history, content approvals, and role-based visibility to keep knowledge current and aligned across your entire org.

🤖 AI automation

Scribe is primarily built around manual process capture, emphasizing quick documentation over AI-powered or automated content generation.‍

Trainual's AI features help you generate outlines, guides, and quizzes quickly, saving you time and improving your content’s consistency. It can also suggest content structure, auto-fill step descriptions, and assist in creating customized quizzes based on your training materials, making content creation smoother and more efficient.

"My team saves hours every day that used to be spent on one-on-one training, and Trainual gives us the gift of time back on our plates." - Manager, ProTec Building Services

💸 More for less? Yes, please.

Even with premium features included, Trainual provides a broader set of tools at a competitive price point. It’s designed to support more than just process capture, offering a full system for organizing, training, and scaling team knowledge. You can compare Trainual's pricing with Scribe's here.

What makes more sense for your business?

👉 Choose Trainual if...

• You need a complete system for training and organizing team knowledge.
• You want structured, role-based training and scalable onboarding.
• You need to track progress and ensure accountability.
• You need to document hands-on, offline, or real-world processes — not just what's on a screen.

👉 Choose Scribe if...

• You need a quick tool to capture processes and create simple guides.
• You’re solely focused on documenting online workflows and sharing how-tos.
• You don’t need advanced training or reporting features.

Trainual? It’s the full package.

Scribe works if you need a basic tool for quick process capture on your device. It’s good for auto-generating step-by-step guides and documenting workflows on the fly. But that doesn't solve for comprehensive training, long-term team management, and keeping everyone on the same page as your company grows.

Trainual is intuitive and user-friendly, even for teams new to training tools. With consistently high G2 scores for ease of use, customer support, and implementation, Trainual ensures a smooth experience. And with award-winning support, Trainual U, and easy onboarding, help is always just a click away.

Trainual does more than document processes — it adds structure, tracking, and long-term organization. You're not just creating content quickly — you're ensuring that it's rolled out effectively with clear accountability and long-term retention.

If you're looking for a tool that not only trains your team but also keeps everything organized and scalable for the future, Trainual is built for exactly that. And since both tools capture processes while you work, Trainual is the perfect starting point for capturing content — with more power and fewer costs.

👉 Curious to see how it all works? Get a quick demo and get a feel for how Trainual can simplify, streamline, and seriously upgrade the way your business runs.