How much does takeoff software cost?
Short version: anywhere from nothing to about $3,600 a year per estimator, and the number on the invoice is the least interesting part. Here are the real 2026 prices, the four ways vendors charge, the costs they leave off the quote, and a worked example for a three-person shop.
How much does takeoff software cost?
In 2026, takeoff software costs $0 for manual PDF tools, $299 to $999 one-time for lightweight desktop products such as Active Takeoff, about $1,595 to $1,749 per license per year for PlanSwift, $260 to $440 per user per year for Bluebeam Revu, $2,599 to $3,588 per user per year for cloud suites such as STACK, and $299 per user per month (about $3,588 per year) for AI tools such as Togal.ai. Pilars is $100 per trade per plan set with no seats.
Those are published or reported list prices as of September 2026. Vendors discount, bundle and change them, so treat this as the map rather than the invoice. What the map shows clearly is that "takeoff software" is really three markets with three different price levels: cheap manual tools, expensive manual suites, and AI tools that are priced either per seat or per job.
| Tool | Price (2026, public) | Pricing model | Does the takeoff for you? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free PDF viewers, spreadsheet counting | $0 | Free | No |
| Active Takeoff | $299 single user, $999 for 5, $1,799 for 10 | One-time license | No |
| Easy Takeoffs | About $399 per year | Per seat per year | No |
| Bluebeam Revu | $260 to $440 per user per year | Per seat per year | No, markup and measurement |
| Square Takeoff | About $800 per user per year | Per seat per year | Mostly manual |
| eTakeoff | About $999 | License | No |
| PlanSwift | About $1,749 per license per year (also seen as $1,595 plus $200 per year support) | Per seat per year | No |
| Kreo | Roughly $125+ per month per seat | Per seat per month | Assisted AI |
| Accubid Classic | From about $2,000 one-time; enterprise suites reported at $6,000 to $10,000+ per user per year | One-time or per seat | No, estimating with graphical takeoff via LiveCount |
| PataBid Quantify | $2,460 per license per year | Per seat per year | Estimating with built-in takeoff |
| STACK | $2,599 to $3,588 per user per year | Per seat per year, tiered | No |
| Togal.ai | $299 per user per month, billed annually ($3,588 per year) | Per user per month | Assisted AI |
| Bobyard, Beam AI | Custom, per project or credits | Per project | AI |
| Pilars | $100 per trade per plan set | Per trade, unlimited users and projects | Yes, fully automated |
Prices based on public documentation as of 2026 and approximate. All product names are trademarks of their owners; this is an independent comparison.
The four pricing models, and what each one does to your budget
One-time license
You pay once and own the version you bought. Active Takeoff at $299 and Accubid Classic at around $2,000 are the examples. It is the cheapest way to get a tool onto one Windows machine, and it is genuinely good value for a solo estimator with modest needs. The catch is that support and upgrades usually cost extra, the license is tied to a machine, and you are doing every takeoff by hand for as long as you own it.
Per seat, per year
The dominant model. PlanSwift, STACK, Bluebeam, Square Takeoff and PataBid all charge a fixed amount per named user per year, usually billed up front. Predictable, easy to approve, and it scales in exactly one direction: every estimator, reviewer or seasonal hire is another full license. Five people on STACK is $13,000 to $18,000 a year before anyone does a takeoff.
Per user, per month
The AI tools mostly went this way. Togal.ai is $299 per user per month billed annually, Kreo roughly $125 and up. Monthly framing makes the number look smaller, but "billed annually" means it behaves like the per-seat model above, and $299 a month is $3,588 a year, which puts Togal at the top of the STACK range for a single person.
Per trade or per project
You pay for the work, not the people. Bobyard and Beam AI price per project or in credits. Pilars prices per trade per plan set at $100, with unlimited users and unlimited projects. The cost tracks bid volume, so a quiet month is cheap and a busy month costs more, and the entire team works under the same price. Whether that beats per-seat depends entirely on how many sets you run, which is what the worked example below is for.
The costs that are not on the quote
- Training and ramp time. Manual desktop tools take weeks to become fast in. An estimator learning PlanSwift or OST is slower on live bids while they learn, and that is a real cost that never appears on a purchase order.
- Support and upgrade plans. The one-time and some per-seat products sell the software and the support separately. PlanSwift has been quoted as $1,595 plus $200 a year for support, which is how a "one price" becomes two.
- Seat creep. The seat count you buy in January is never the seat count you need in June. A reviewer who only opens the tool twice a month costs the same as a full-time estimator on every per-seat plan.
- Windows hardware. On-Screen Takeoff, PlanSwift, Active Takeoff, Accubid, McCormick and ConEst are Windows desktop programs. A Mac estimator needs Parallels plus a Windows license, or a second computer. Budget it.
- Annual lock-in. Most per-seat plans bill twelve months up front. If the tool turns out to be wrong for your trade, you find out in month two and pay through month twelve.
- The hours. The biggest cost of manual takeoff software is that it is manual. A commercial set takes 40 to 80 estimator hours by hand. Multiply that by your loaded hourly rate and your bid volume and the license fee starts to look like a rounding error.
Worked example: a three-estimator sub bidding 6 jobs a month
Take a mechanical or electrical subcontractor with three estimators, bidding six jobs a month in one trade, which is 72 plan sets a year. Here is the software line for each model, using the public prices above.
| Option | Annual software cost | Who does the takeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Active Takeoff, 5-user pack | $999 once, then support | Your estimators, by hand, on Windows |
| PlanSwift, 3 licenses | About $5,250 | Your estimators, by hand, on Windows |
| STACK, 3 users | $7,800 to $10,800 | Your estimators, by hand, in a browser |
| Togal.ai, 3 users | About $10,760 | Your estimators, assisted, in a browser |
| Pilars, 72 sets, 1 trade | $7,200 | The software; your estimators review |
At this volume Pilars sits below three Togal seats and three STACK users and above three PlanSwift licenses, and the number moves with your bid count rather than your headcount. To be plain about the other direction: per-trade pricing overtakes three per-seat Togal licenses once you pass about nine sets a month in a single trade, so a shop bidding twelve jobs a month in one trade pays $14,400 a year and should do the maths below before deciding. A shop running four sets a month pays $4,800, less than three PlanSwift licenses and about half of three Togal seats.
What the software line does not show is the other column. On the manual options, 72 sets at 40 to 80 hours each is 2,880 to 5,760 estimator hours a year, which is somewhere between half and all of the working year of three people. That is the actual budget for takeoff, and it is why those three estimators can bid six jobs a month and not twelve. On the automated option the takeoff arrives in minutes and the estimator's time goes to review, scope and pricing. Put your own loaded hourly rate into the takeoff ROI calculator and compare the two totals rather than the two invoices. The difference is usually a multiple, not a percentage.
How to choose based on cost
Solo estimator, a few bids a month, Windows
Active Takeoff at $299 one-time or Bluebeam at $260 to $440 a year is hard to beat if you are happy doing the takeoff by hand and your sets are small.
Small team, steady bid volume
Compare a per-seat manual suite against a per-trade automated tool at your real monthly set count. Under about nine sets a month per trade, per-trade is cheaper on the invoice; above it, per-seat is cheaper on the invoice and per-trade is cheaper on hours.
Any team with Mac users
Rule out Windows-only desktop tools unless you want to fund a virtual machine per person. Browser-based tools cost what they say they cost.
Growing team, or seasonal help
Seat creep is the killer. A model with no seat fee, whether per project or per trade, lets you add reviewers and juniors without another purchase order.
For the deeper version of the per-seat argument, see per-trade vs per-seat takeoff pricing. For the full comparison table with more tools and notes on each, see takeoff software pricing compared.
What you can get for free
There is no permanently free tier of Pilars, and there is not a good permanently free AI takeoff tool anywhere at the moment; the free offers in this market are trials, credits or feature-limited manual viewers. Two things are free without a catch. The takeoff calculators on this site are free forever and cover the common quick sizing jobs. And the Pilars demo runs on your own plan set at no cost, which is the fastest way to find out what your takeoff would look like before you spend the $100. If you want a longer look at the free options across the market, free construction takeoff software covers them honestly.
Questions estimators actually ask
How much does takeoff software cost per year?
Roughly $260 to $440 per user for Bluebeam Revu, about $1,749 per license for PlanSwift, $2,599 to $3,588 per user for STACK, and about $3,588 per user for Togal.ai. Pilars has no annual seat fee and charges $100 per trade per plan set.
How much is takeoff software for a small contractor?
A solo Windows estimator can get Active Takeoff for $299 one-time or Bluebeam for $260 to $440 a year and do the takeoff by hand. An automated option like Pilars costs $100 per trade per plan set, so a contractor bidding four sets a month pays about $4,800 a year with no seats.
Is there free takeoff software?
You can count and measure in a free PDF viewer for $0, and most vendors offer trials or credits. There is no strong permanently free AI takeoff tool in 2026. Pilars offers a free demo on your own plans and free takeoff calculators, but the product itself is $100 per trade per plan set.
What is the cheapest takeoff software?
On the invoice, Active Takeoff at $299 one-time for a single Windows user. On total cost including estimator hours, an automated tool is usually cheaper because the 40 to 80 hours of manual tracing per commercial set is the largest expense.
How much does AI takeoff software cost?
Per-seat AI tools run about $125 and up per month for Kreo and $299 per user per month for Togal.ai. Bobyard and Beam AI quote per project or in credits. Pilars is $100 per trade per plan set with unlimited users.
Is per-trade pricing cheaper than per-seat?
It depends on volume. For a three-estimator team, per-trade at $100 is cheaper than three Togal seats below about nine plan sets a month in one trade, and more expensive above it. Per-trade adds no cost for extra users; per-seat adds a full license for each.
Does takeoff software cost extra on a Mac?
Windows-only desktop tools do, because you need Parallels plus a Windows license or a second PC. Browser-based tools such as Pilars, STACK, Kreo and Togal.ai cost the same on macOS.