Best software for general contractors

The kit covers seven tasks a general contractor or remodeler repeats on every project, each with one top pick and two alternatives. Several tools overlap on purpose: a contractor with one crew can run most of it from one field service app, while a firm with subcontractors and long projects gains from project-style scheduling.

The closest decision in this kit is Housecall Pro vs Jobber, since both cover scheduling, quotes and client records. Our catalog does not yet include an invoicing-specific or website pick for contractors; those tasks are covered by the field service apps above and are left out of the table rather than stretched.

Contractors use a small stack rather than one product: a scheduling tool, an estimating tool, accounting, payroll and a phone answering service. Housecall Pro describes scheduling that helps a general contractor stay organized and deliver a better client experience, estimating tools that keep pricing transparent from the first proposal to the final scope, and online booking that captures work outside business hours.

Buildertrend sits at the heavier end. Our catalog describes it as built around construction and remodeling projects, with scheduling, budgeting, change orders and a customer portal that keeps clients informed without constant phone calls. It suits jobs that run for weeks; it is more overhead than a single-day service call needs.

For most small contractors the best estimating software is the one already inside the scheduling tool, because the estimate then turns into a scheduled job without re-entry. Housecall Pro bundles estimates into its field service app alongside scheduling. Choose PandaDoc when your proposals are long documents that need templates, e-signature and online payment collection.

QuickBooks Online also lists estimates with photos, contracts and a deposit amount that the customer can pay online right away, which helps when you want estimating and accounting in one place.

QuickBooks Online is not sold as a separate contractor edition, but Intuit publishes a contractor feature set inside it. It lists job costing that tracks time and expenses per project with profit and job cost reports, plus a request that lets a subcontractor add a W-9 and tax ID directly, which then maps contractor payments to the right boxes on 1099 forms.

Plan tiers differ in how detailed job costing gets, so compare plans in the pricing table on the QuickBooks Online page before choosing. QuickBooks Online vs Xero covers the alternative.

A CRM for contractors is the record of every lead and client: who asked for what, which quote was sent, what was built and what is still unpaid. Jobber's features page lists a client manager with detailed customer profiles and communication history, quotes with e-signature, and a client hub where customers use a self-service portal.

A contractor selling larger jobs through several touchpoints can instead use Close, which lists built-in calling, email and text messaging, pipeline management and automated follow-ups. Close is a sales CRM, so it does not schedule crews. For the basics of the category, read what is CRM software.

Contractors lose bids when nobody picks up, and an owner on a ladder cannot. Smith.ai lists AI receptionists and live human agents, lead qualification and intake, appointment booking and call transfer, and it names home services and construction among the industries it serves. See Aircall vs Smith.ai if you need a business phone system rather than an answering service.

The cheapest route is a free tier plus one paid tool, not a free all-in-one. Our catalog lists a free tier for small teams on Connecteam and a free plan on ServiceM8 for very low job volumes. Neither is a full replacement for proposals and job costing, and every paid tool's current price is in its pricing table.

Cheap stops being cheap when the tool is missing something you then buy twice. Jobber lists a Core plan limited to a single user, so it fits a solo contractor but not a crew. Compare the pricing tables of the two or three tools you shortlist rather than comparing headline plans.

We do not publish a ranked top ten, because our catalog does not hold ten estimating tools and we will not pad a list. These are the ones we list that cover estimates or quotes: Housecall Pro, Jobber, PandaDoc, QuickBooks Online and FieldPulse, which lists estimating with job costing.

A dedicated takeoff or bid-leveling product is not in our catalog, so we cannot compare one. See estimates and quotes software for the full task page.

Yes: a lightweight job app covers a solo contractor, and you add accounting when invoices pile up. ServiceM8 is described in our catalog as a simple, uncluttered mobile app with a free plan for very low job volumes, and Jobber has a single-user Core plan. Square Invoices is the lighter choice if you only need to bill and get paid online.

Add QuickBooks Online or FreshBooks when you need job costs or 1099 paperwork for the people you pay. See invoicing and payment software for the comparison.

A solo contractor or a two-person crew should run one field service app such as Housecall Pro or Jobber, add QuickBooks Online and answer calls personally or with Smith.ai. That setup avoids paying for project features the work does not use.

A firm of three to ten people with subcontractors and projects that last weeks reaches the point where Buildertrend earns its overhead: schedules, budgets and change orders live in one place and the client sees progress in the portal. Add Gusto when payroll stops being a monthly chore and Connecteam when crew hours across sites go unrecorded.

A firm with several salespeople and a pipeline of larger bids gains from a sales CRM such as Close and from a dedicated proposal tool. At every size, resist stacking a second tool for something the first already does, because double entry is the real cost.

Software does not set your margin, but it shows whether a project made money. Make sure the estimate, the job costs in accounting and the final invoice use the same line items. For cost and markup rules of thumb on adjacent trades, see our guides on how to price handyman jobs and how to price painting jobs.

• Buying a project platform for short jobs. If most work is one visit, project scheduling and change-order tools add overhead you will not use. Start with a field service app.
• Keeping estimates outside the books. An estimate typed into a document and retyped into accounting is where job-cost errors begin. Choose tools that sync or share line items.
• Forgetting subcontractor paperwork. Collect each subcontractor's tax details before the first payment, as QuickBooks Online's request flow is designed to do, so year-end 1099 work is not a scramble.
• Letting bid calls go to voicemail. A homeowner asking for a quote calls the next contractor on the list. Decide who answers before spending on ads.
• Running payroll by hand. Mixed hourly crews and salaried managers make manual payroll error-prone; a payroll service files the taxes for you.