Comparison

ElsterSecure vs ProForma PORTAL 2

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

ElsterSecure

This app simplifies logging into your tax account by using your smartphone for authentication. Once set up, you won't need certificate files or usernames for access. It's designed for secure and convenient tax-related logins.

Highlights
  • Smartphone-based authentication
  • Eliminates need for certificate files
  • Simplifies tax account logins
  • QR code scanning for setup
  • Secure user account management
Features
Read full description

ElsterSecure ist die neue Authentisierungs-App von ELSTER. Einmal eingerichtet, benötigen Sie für Ihren Login nur noch Ihr Smartphone. Eine Zertifikatsdatei oder einen Nutzernamen benötigen Sie nach erstmaliger Einrichtung nicht mehr. So richten Sie ElsterSecure ein: 1. Loggen Sie sich wie bisher gewohnt in MeinElster ein. 2. Gehen Sie zu "Mein Benutzerkonto" > "ElsterSecure": https://www.elster.de/eportal/meinKonto/elstersecure 3. Unter "Login-Option ElsterSecure hinzufügen" können Sie die App mit Ihrem MeinElster-Konto verknüpfen Wenn Sie noch kein MeinElster Konto besitzen, können Sie sich unter www.elster.de registrieren und ElsterSecure als Login-Option wählen. Derzeit ist eine Authentisierung mittels ElsterSecure nur für den Login in MeinElster möglich. Eine Übermittlung durch Drittanbieter von Steuersoftware wird noch nicht unterstützt, hierfür benötigen Sie weiterhin ein Zertifikat. ElsterSecure benötigt folgende Berechtigungen: - Zugriff auf die Kamera(s) des Geräts: Diese Berechtigung wird für das Scannen des QR-Codes benötigt. Datenschutzhinweis: https://www.elster.de/eportal/infoseite/elstersecure

About

ProForma PORTAL 2

Securely store and access all your important payment and personal documents digitally. This app offers maximum security with end-to-end encryption and data stored exclusively in certified German data centers. It provides a contactless and paperless way to manage your sensitive information 24/7.

Highlights
  • Digital document storage
  • End-to-end encryption
  • Certified German data centers
  • 2-factor authentication
  • Real-time push notifications
  • Paperless document management
Read full description

ProForma PORTAL is the digital container for all your personal and particularly sensitive (payment) documents. ProForma PORTAL frees you completely from any paper ballast. This way you always have your important (payment) documents with you. Maximum security and the complete safeguarding of all data protection requirements are a matter of course for us and are always guaranteed. All data transfers and storage take place exclusively in encrypted form. Your data is never stored on foreign servers. We only store in tested, certified data centres in Germany. ProForma PORTAL makes you DIGITAL - SECURE - CONTACTLESS, 24/7. ProForma PORTAL is regularly checked and recertified for data security by leading and independent institutions. This measure is called a PEN test. The aim of the penetration test is to identify vulnerabilities of programmes, networks and devices on a technical and organisational level and to document them in a detailed report. This report then serves as the basis for remedying any vulnerabilities. After remediation of any identified vulnerabilities, a targeted detailed follow-up audit is always carried out. In this way, we ensure that our security measures always correspond to the state of the art. ProForma PORTAL supports 2-factor authentication (2FA) so that only you personally have access to your data. You are informed about new documents in real time via push message. Important information: A ProForma PORTAL account is required to use the PORTAL app. If your employer has purchased a ProForma PORTAL server licence from CSW and makes the digital payroll accounting available to its employees, you will usually receive separate information about this. Among other things, this also contains details of your personal user data for the login as well as the individual portal address. The PORTAL app is therefore not a consumer product for the private sector, but the mobile application of the cloud service "ProForma PORTAL".

Screenshots

ElsterSecure4 screens
ProForma PORTAL 24 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: ElsterSecure at 84% against ProForma PORTAL 2's 10%. ElsterSecure also leads on ratings volume (128 vs 1). ProForma PORTAL 2's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 4 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ProForma PORTAL 2 holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ElsterSecure has 128 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 84% of ElsterSecure's written reviews are positive against 10% of ProForma PORTAL 2's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ElsterSecure ships an update every 4 months, ProForma PORTAL 2 every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
ElsterSecure versus ProForma PORTAL 2: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterElsterSecureProForma PORTAL 2
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (128 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews84.0% of reviews — better10.0% of reviews
Number of ratings128 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size49 MB67 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBayerisches Landesamt fuer SteuernCSW Peripheriesysteme GmbH

Customer experience

ElsterSecure

All ratings89 ratings
Positive92.1%
Neutral2.2%
Negative5.6%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive84.0%
Neutral8.0%
Negative8.0%

ProForma PORTAL 2

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews20 reviews
Positive10.0%
Neutral15.0%
Negative75.0%

In-app purchases

None

ElsterSecure

No in-app purchases

None

ProForma PORTAL 2

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ElsterSecure free?
ElsterSecure is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ProForma PORTAL 2 free?
ProForma PORTAL 2 is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, ElsterSecure or ProForma PORTAL 2?
ProForma PORTAL 2 is rated higher. ElsterSecure averages 4.7 out of 5 from 128 ratings, while ProForma PORTAL 2 averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do ElsterSecure or ProForma PORTAL 2 have ads?
Neither ElsterSecure nor ProForma PORTAL 2 shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ElsterSecure or ProForma PORTAL 2?
ElsterSecure ships an update every 4 months, and ProForma PORTAL 2 every 3 weeks. Most recently, ElsterSecure was updated on October 27, 2026 and ProForma PORTAL 2 on October 24, 2026.

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