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Sunday, May 18th
Thoughts to Paper is a site designed to help you prepare and submit patent applications at a reasonable cost. Unlike competitors that either charge extremely high fees or offer DIY kits that might not provide enough help if you've never done a patent application before, Thoughts to Paper aims to strike a balance. This service keeps its attention strictly on patents, making it a solid choice for those who want expert support without breaking the bank.
Costs $199 to $799 for a provisional patent
Thoughts to Paper offers four different patent applications for you to choose from: a provisional patent, a utility patent, a design patent, and a PCT international patent. The provisional patent has three tiers of services to choose from, including Basic which is $199 and includes a 12-month provisional patent and an email consultation to help you fill out your documents; Essentials, which costs $499 and includes your 12-month patent, professional drafting and writing, and a phone and email consultation; and the Professional plan which includes all of the features of Essentials plus professional drafting for drawings for $799 total.
Costs $990 to $4,300 for non-provisional patents
For the non-provisional patent applications at Thoughts to Paper, the prices differ based on what you're buying. Here's how the costs shake out:
Flat fee for patent search
On top of the patent applications, Thoughts to Paper offers extras like a patent search or trademark registration. The patent search is a reasonable flat fee of $295, which includes full copies of similar inventions found, written reports on similarities and differences, and a patentability analysis, so you have a better chance of getting your patent approved.
See previous patents
One of the features we love is that you can see the list of patent applications that have already been filed and secured through Thoughts to Paper. In two months alone, Thoughts to Paper secured over 30 different patents for different individuals. You can see patents going back as far as when the company first opened, and the list includes the patent information, date of patent, and the patent number. So, if you're wondering if Thoughts to Paper is reliable, there's hard proof right on the website.
Lack of communication is a new problem
Thoughts to Paper has an outstanding reputation with the Better Business Bureau, where it holds a top-tier "A+” rating and accreditation. However, on third-party review sites, Thoughts to Paper's reputation has fallen in recent years. It used to hold a 4.8-star average on third-party review sites, but now Thoughts to Paper's rating on Trustpilot is just 3.2 stars out of 5. This is due to increasing negative reviews regarding slow service, being ignored by the customer service team, and a general lack of communication across the board. The most recent reviews we could find were from 2024, showing that there might be fewer people using Thoughts to Paper for patent applications than in previous years. While it may still be worth a look, this service needs to work harder on its communication to be more competitive.
Recent concerns lead to a mid-tier rating
Thoughts to Paper used to be one of our top picks, but with the steadily decreasing ratings on third-party review sites and issues with communication, it now ranks as a mid-tier service overall. While the prices are good, make sure that you feel comfortable with the level of communication from Thoughts to Paper (maybe by reaching out to customer service before paying) as you consider its patent application services.
Have you created something new and exciting? A novel invention or a new process for a company? The next step after creating your groundbreaking invention is to protect it from being stolen by someone else.
The best way to do that? Get a patent for it. In the United States, completing a patent application successfully means that the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) legally stops anyone who isn't the inventor (you) from making, using, or selling the product unless you have authorized it.
Typically, a patent will last for 20 years after you've filed your application. There are three different patents depending on what kind of invention you're trying to protect. Utility patents cover inventions related to machines, manufactured objects, physical items, and/or improvements to these things. Design patents are for the ornamental or physical design of an item, and plant patents are for any distinct or new variety of growing plant including mutants, hybrids, or seedlings.
There are two ways to get a patent too: provisional and non-provisional. A provisional patent application lets you get the ball rolling to protect your invention in the short term. It's less formal, but it does expire after one year, and you must complete a non-provisional patent application in the interim. The non-provisional form will require more substantial details from you and an examination from a patent examiner at the USPTO. However, your patent does remain protected during the review period.
So, once you've got something to patent, how do you complete the process? For most people, patent applications can require a lot of research, details about your invention, filing procedures, and waiting. The process of submitting your patent application can be very tedious, especially the research portion. To successfully secure a patent, your invention will need to be novel (it needs to be something new or not too close to another invention that's already got a patent). But researching every other patent out there can take time (and money).
This is where patent application services come in. In most places, your paperwork will be completed by experts, so you don't have to worry about boring research and details. While a few services offer a low-cost DIY approach, the best patent application providers will give you the documents, complete the patent research for you, and provide guidance on best practices for filling out your patent application the right way the first time. Choosing a patent application service takes the guesswork out of the process and offers secure document sharing, helpful updates, and sometimes guarantees of application success.
If you're ready to get your new invention protected, there are plenty of patent application services to assist you in safeguarding your ideas. To that end, we've put together a few factors to help you choose the best service:
To help you become the next Thomas Edison, Top Consumer Reviews has researched and ranked today's most popular patent application services online today. This way, you can focus on adding new inventions to your list instead of worrying about protecting your intellectual property!
Select any 2 Patent Application Services to compare them head to head