The best AI takeoff software for electrical contractors, 2026.
Counting a symbol is the easy part of an electrical takeoff. Reading the GF next to it, matching the fixture tag to the luminaire schedule and getting a believable conduit length is where AI electrical takeoff software earns its money or wastes your afternoon. Nine tools, what each one really does, and what it costs where the vendor will say.
What is the best AI takeoff software for electrical contractors?
The best AI takeoff software for electrical contractors in 2026 depends on how much of the reading you want the software to do. Pilars reads the whole plan set and spec book and returns editable device, fixture and run quantities for $300 per user per month, with unlimited takeoffs. Drawer AI and Countfire are the electrical specialists, and Trimble added AI takeoff to Accubid Anywhere in June 2026; none of the three publishes a price. Togal.ai costs $299 per user per month billed annually, and Beam AI's done-for-you service starts at $25,000 per year.
Most pages ranking for this topic are written by a vendor. So is this one: Pilars publishes this page and is included in it. We stuck to what each vendor documents publicly and said where a rival is the better buy.
How we judged them. Who does the reading (you or the software), fit for electrical work specifically, platform, whether pricing is public, and review signals where a real sample exists.
Pricing reviewed 13 November 2026, based on public documentation. All product names are trademarks of their owners; this is an independent comparison.
AI electrical takeoff software compared
| Product | Best for | Type | Platform | Public price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilars | Electrical subs who want the set and specs read for them and an editable first pass | Fully automated AI takeoff, editable results | Browser | $300 per user per month; one trade per user, unlimited takeoffs |
| Drawer AI | Electrical contractors who want routing and home runs as well as counts | AI electrical takeoff, plus a concierge service | Web | Not public; you get a quote |
| Countfire | Electrical and M&E estimators counting symbols across a whole project | Automated symbol counting plus estimate | Cloud, PC or Mac | Not public; you get a quote |
| Trimble Accubid Anywhere | Shops already estimating in Accubid | Electrical estimating with AI takeoff added June 2026 | Cloud | Not public; you get a quote |
| Togal.ai | GCs and interior trades; electrical is one of several listed trades | AI-assisted takeoff | Browser | $299 per user per month, billed yearly |
| Beam AI (Attentive.ai) | Contractors who want electrical takeoff done for them | Done-for-you takeoff service | Web | From $25K per year (done-for-you) |
| Bobyard | Shops willing to pilot a newer electrical model with confidence scores | AI-assisted takeoff plus estimating | Web | Not public; you get a quote |
| STACK | Teams wanting cloud takeoff and estimate with AI symbol counting | Manual cloud takeoff plus estimating, AI assist | Browser | "As low as $299 per user/month"; free version |
| McCormick | Contractors who want takeoff and electrical estimating in one workflow | Electrical estimating with built-in takeoff and auto-count | Cloud, per vendor | Not public; you get a quote |
What an electrical takeoff actually asks of the software
An electrical estimator takes off far more than dots on a plan:
- Devices with their modifiers. A duplex, a GFCI duplex and a weatherproof GFCI share one base symbol and three different prices. The two letters beside the symbol are the takeoff.
- Fixtures by type. The lighting plan shows a tag; the luminaire schedule and the spec say what it is. A count that does not tie back to the schedule is half a count.
- Gear. Panels, transformers and disconnects come from the one-line and panel schedules, not from the floor plan.
- Branch conduit and wire, home runs and feeders. Plan length is only the start; drops, risers and routing choices are judgment.
- Low-voltage and fire alarm, often on separate sheets with their own legends.
The common failures follow from that list. Symbol search finds the receptacle and ignores the text next to it. Junction boxes and switches in the same line weight get folded into the count. Dense clusters get merged. And tools that work one sheet at a time never see the schedule. How to check for these is in counting electrical devices without double-counting.
The one published test we can point to
We ran a single real power plan through thirteen systems with the same prompt: count duplex receptacles, including GFCI and weatherproof variants, and read the modifier text. Pilars scored 97.5%. Togal scored 84%, Bobyard 81%, STACK 72% and Attentive.ai 65%. That is one sheet, one device type and our own test, so treat it as a data point, not a general accuracy ranking. Drawer AI, Countfire, Accubid and McCormick were not part of it. The method is on the duplex receptacle benchmark page.
The nine tools
1. Pilars
Upload the set and Pilars reads every sheet and the spec book together, resolves the fixture and equipment schedules, counts devices and fixtures, traces runs and flags NEC issues, with each quantity sourced to its sheet. It is automated but not locked: open any detection, reclassify it, add or remove a device, adjust a quantity, and the totals update. The first pass takes minutes and needs no clicking. Electrical is one of 19 trades; a user covers one trade for $300 per month with unlimited takeoffs. Pilars produces quantities and an Excel export, not a priced estimate, so it sits in front of Accubid, McCormick or your spreadsheet. Best for: electrical subs who would rather review than count, whether that is a few sets a month or a few dozen.
2. Drawer AI
Drawer AI is built only for electrical, and it goes past counting: symbol and tag detection, circuit grouping, branch routing and home runs, sheet stitching and keynote detection plus a done-for-you Takeoff Concierge. It offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Pricing is not public, and several Enterprise features are marked as planned rather than shipped. Best for: electrical contractors who want a specialist tool with routing, and the better pick over Pilars if electrical is all you will ever take off and you want its circuit tools.
3. Countfire
Countfire counts symbols across every drawing in a project at once and has its own Estimate product. It runs in the cloud on PC or Mac. Third-party listings report about 240 Capterra reviews with high ratings, a far larger sample than most AI tools here; reviewers note results depend on drawing quality. It is UK-centred. Best for: electrical and M&E estimators, particularly in the UK, whose bottleneck is counting. See Countfire vs Accubid.
4. Trimble Accubid Anywhere (AI takeoff)
On 30 June 2026 Trimble announced AI takeoff across its MEP estimating products: automatic scale and sheet naming, count-based takeoff that recognises and labels symbols, length-based takeoff and an AI assistant in Accubid Anywhere. The appeal is that the counts land inside the estimating database most large electrical contractors already use. Pricing is not public. Best for: mid-size and large contractors already on Accubid; turn it on before you buy anything else.
5. Togal.ai
Togal.ai is excellent at measuring and labelling spaces on architectural plans, and it lists electrical among its trades with image and symbol search. It is architectural-first, and at $299 per user per month billed annually it is priced for daily use. Best for: GCs and design-build firms that need areas first and electrical counts second.
6. Beam AI (Attentive.ai)
Beam AI's done-for-you tier covers all trades, electrical included: send the plans and a QA-checked takeoff returns in 24 to 72 hours, from $25,000 per year. Its self-serve licence covers HVAC, plumbing and steel only, so there is no do-it-yourself electrical option. Best for: contractors with enough volume to outsource takeoff and enough lead time to wait for it.
7. Bobyard
Bobyard added electrical to a product that started in landscaping. The AI makes a first pass with confidence scores, with estimating and a cost database alongside. Pricing is not public and the electrical track record is short. Best for: teams that want takeoff and estimate in one newer platform and will run a pilot first.
8. STACK
STACK is manual cloud takeoff and estimating with AI assist. Its Symbol Counting AI is documented as available on electrical plan sheets. Best for: shops that want a general cloud takeoff seat with some counting help.
9. McCormick
McCormick's Design Estimating Pro has auto-count and a patented Auto Home Run feature inside a full electrical estimating system. The vendor does not describe AI takeoff on its site. Best for: contractors who want one vendor from count to bid. See Accubid vs McCormick.
How to choose for your shop
- You already estimate in Accubid or McCormick. Use their built-in takeoff first. Add Pilars in front when counting is still eating your week or the set is too big to click through before bid day.
- You price in a spreadsheet and counting is the bottleneck. One Pilars user on the electrical trade is $300 a month with unlimited takeoffs, billed monthly if you prefer, so the cost is the same whether you bid two sets or twenty. If you bid a set every month or two, a manual tool such as STACK's free version costs less.
- You want circuiting and routing tools. Get a quote from Drawer AI.
- You want nobody in-house doing takeoff. Beam AI's service or Drawer AI's concierge, if the turnaround suits your bid calendar.
Whatever you shortlist, test it on a set you have already bid; Pilars has a live demo for that. For the pricing side, see the best electrical estimating software.
Questions estimators actually ask
What is the best AI takeoff tool for a five-person electrical contractor that bids commercial tenant improvement work?
For a five-person electrical contractor bidding commercial TI work, Pilars is a strong fit because it reads the plan set and spec book and returns editable electrical quantities in minutes. Pilars costs $300 per user per month with unlimited takeoffs, so the shop pays only for the estimators who run takeoffs. If the shop already estimates in Accubid Anywhere, Trimble's AI takeoff added in June 2026 is worth switching on first. Drawer AI is the specialist option but does not publish pricing.
How much does AI electrical takeoff software cost?
Pilars costs $300 per user per month, covering one trade with unlimited takeoffs. Togal.ai costs $299 per user per month billed annually, STACK advertises plans as low as $299 per user per month, and Beam AI's done-for-you service starts at $25,000 per year. Drawer AI, Countfire, Bobyard, McCormick and Trimble Accubid do not publish pricing, so you get a quote.
How accurate is AI takeoff on electrical drawings?
Accuracy depends on the tool, the symbol set and the drawing quality, and few vendors publish tests. In one published benchmark on a single real power plan, Pilars counted duplex receptacles at 97.5% against 84% for Togal and 65% for Attentive.ai. Always check AI counts against the panel and fixture schedules before bidding.
Is Drawer AI or Countfire better for electrical takeoff?
Drawer AI is the broader electrical takeoff tool, with tag detection, circuit grouping and branch routing as well as counts. Countfire is focused on fast symbol counting across a whole project and has a much larger review base. Neither Drawer AI nor Countfire publishes pricing.
Can I change the counts after an automated electrical takeoff in Pilars?
Yes. Pilars runs the first pass automatically, and the estimator can then open any detection to reclassify it, add or remove a device, or adjust a quantity, with totals updating as you go. The estimator keeps the final say.