PlanSwift pricing: two tiers, one decision.
PlanSwift went from one licence price to two named tiers, and the difference between them is how much of the takeoff the software attempts for you. Here are the current prices, the yearly math for a small estimating department, and where the $1,749 and $1,595 figures you still see online came from.
How much does PlanSwift cost in 2026?
PlanSwift pricing in 2026 is $2,000 per year for one seat of PlanSwift Essential and $3,000 per year for one seat of PlanSwift Core, per ConstructConnect's pricing page. Essential includes Auto Count, Auto Scale and Auto Bookmark; Core adds Auto Takeoff, the full Takeoff BOOST AI toolset. There is a 14-day free trial with no card, and PlanSwift runs on 64-bit Windows only.
If you last priced PlanSwift a couple of years ago, both numbers are higher than you remember and the product is not quite the same one. The AI tools arrived in 2026, and the base tier now includes automatic counting and scale detection that used to be manual work.
| PlanSwift at a glance | |
|---|---|
| What it is | Desktop point-and-click takeoff and estimating with trade assemblies, now with Takeoff BOOST AI tools |
| Who reads the drawings | The estimator. Essential automates counting and scale; Core adds an automated first-pass takeoff to check. |
| Platform | 64-bit Windows only. On a Mac it needs Boot Camp or a Windows virtual machine. |
| Pricing model | Per seat, annual subscription |
| Public price | Essential $2,000 per year; Core $3,000 per year |
| Free trial | 14 days, no card required |
| Best for | Residential and light-commercial estimators on Windows who build assemblies and price in Excel |
Pricing reviewed 13 November 2026, based on public documentation as of Nov 2026. PlanSwift, ConstructConnect, Bluebeam, STACK and eTakeoff are trademarks of their owners; this is an independent comparison published by Pilars.
PlanSwift Essential vs Core
| PlanSwift Essential | PlanSwift Core | |
|---|---|---|
| Price, one seat | $2,000 per year | $3,000 per year |
| Manual takeoff, assemblies, Excel integration | Yes | Yes |
| Auto Count, Auto Scale, Auto Bookmark | Yes | Yes |
| Auto Takeoff (full Takeoff BOOST) | No | Yes |
| Training | 2 hours of one-on-one training listed | Check the pricing page for the current allowance |
| Extra seats | Discounted, amount not published; volume pricing at 10 or more licences | |
The extra $1,000 a year buys one thing: the software attempts the linear and area takeoff itself, and you correct it. Whether that is worth it depends on your drawings. On clean vector floor plans a first pass saves real tracing time. On scanned sets, or on trades where the quantity lives in a schedule rather than a line on the plan, Auto Count in Essential may be all you use. The trial is the cheap way to find out.
PlanSwift cost per user: one, three and five estimators
ConstructConnect publishes the single-seat price and says additional seats are discounted without saying by how much. The figures for three and five seats below are therefore ceilings at list price; your quote should come in lower.
| Team | Essential | Core |
|---|---|---|
| 1 estimator | $2,000 | $3,000 |
| 3 estimators | 3 × $2,000 = $6,000 before multi-seat discount | 3 × $3,000 = $9,000 before multi-seat discount |
| 5 estimators | 5 × $2,000 = $10,000 before multi-seat discount | 5 × $3,000 = $15,000 before multi-seat discount |
A mixed department is often the right answer: Core for the one or two people doing first-pass takeoff on large sets, Essential for everyone else. Three Essential plus two Core is 3 × $2,000 + 2 × $3,000 = $12,000 at list. Ask whether tiers can be mixed on one account before you plan around it.
Costs that are not on the pricing page
- Windows hardware. PlanSwift's own system requirements say it cannot be installed directly on a Mac. A MacBook estimator needs Boot Camp, which Apple Silicon does not offer, or a Windows virtual machine and a Windows licence. See PlanSwift for Mac.
- Ramp-up time. Reviewers on Capterra and Software Advice regularly mention a learning curve, and some mention licensing glitches and support gaps. PlanSwift still holds 4.3 out of 5 on about 396 Capterra reviews, so most users get through it.
- The takeoff hours. Even with BOOST, an estimator drives every sheet. On a commercial set that labour is far larger than the licence.
Why other sites say $1,749, $1,595 or $55 a month
PlanSwift has been sold several ways, and directories keep old prices alive. Third-party listings report $1,749 per year, a $1,595 one-time licence and about $55 per user per month. None of these is on the vendor page today, which shows $2,000 and $3,000 per year.
The one-time figure deserves a specific warning. Some competitor blogs say perpetual PlanSwift licences were withdrawn in 2025. ConstructConnect has not confirmed that on any page we could read, so we will not state it as fact, but the pricing page lists annual subscriptions only. If you are counting on buying PlanSwift once and owning it, confirm with a sales rep that the option exists before you build a budget on it.
PlanSwift pricing vs Bluebeam, STACK and Pilars
| PlanSwift | Bluebeam Revu | STACK | Pilars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Who reads the drawings | Estimator, with AI count and first-pass tools | Estimator, with manual measurement tools | Estimator, with AI assist add-ons | Software reads the set and spec book; estimator reviews and edits |
| Platform | Windows desktop | Windows desktop plus web and mobile | Browser | Browser |
| Public price | $2,000 or $3,000 per seat per year | $260 to $590 per user per year | "As low as $299 per user / month"; free version | $300 per user per month ($3,600 per year); one trade per user, unlimited takeoffs |
| Estimating | Assemblies and Excel integration | None; Excel link in Complete | Built in, with proposals | None; takeoff summary and Excel export |
| Best for | Assembly-driven estimating on Windows | Drawing review with light takeoff, at the lowest seat price | Cloud takeoff and estimate in one seat, any OS | Getting a full first-pass takeoff produced for the estimator to review and edit |
Bluebeam is the cheapest seat here by a wide margin, and for a shop that mostly marks up drawings and measures occasionally it is the better buy; note that count and perimeter tools start at the $330 Core plan. PlanSwift earns its higher price when you use assemblies, where one click on a wall produces studs, plates, board and labour as priced lines.
PlanSwift vs Pilars, seat for seat
Pilars is $300 per user per month. Each user covers one trade of their choice, with unlimited takeoffs. PlanSwift figures are list price, before the multi-seat discount.
| Team | PlanSwift Essential, per year | PlanSwift Core, per year | Pilars, per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 user | $2,000 | $3,000 | $300 × 12 = $3,600 |
| 3 users | $6,000 | $9,000 | $900 × 12 = $10,800 |
| 5 users | $10,000 | $15,000 | $1,500 × 12 = $18,000 |
PlanSwift is the cheaper licence at every team size: $1,600 a seat under Pilars on Essential and $600 under on Core, and the multi-seat discount widens that. A PlanSwift seat is also not tied to a trade, where an estimator taking off two trades needs two Pilars users at $600 a month. Pilars can be billed monthly and runs in a browser on a Mac, which may matter to you, but if licence cost decides it, PlanSwift wins, and you should say so to anyone selling you a pricier tool, including us.
What the table leaves out is who does the work. Pilars reads the plan set and spec book in minutes and returns the quantities across 19 trades. Nothing is locked: open any detection, reclassify it, add or remove an item or adjust a quantity, and the totals update. On the one accuracy test we publish, a duplex receptacle count on a real power plan, Pilars scored 97.5%. PlanSwift was not in that test.
Is PlanSwift worth the price?
PlanSwift is best for a Windows-based estimator who bids steadily, has assemblies built or is willing to build them, and wants quantities flowing into an Excel workbook. At 40 or more sets a year the seat is cheap per bid, and the 2026 AI tools make the base tier better value than the old product was.
PlanSwift is not worth it for a Mac shop, a contractor who bids a handful of jobs a year, or anyone who only needs to measure a few areas, where Bluebeam does the job for a fraction of the cost.
Pilars is best for contractors who would rather review a finished takeoff than produce one, and who will pay more per seat for that: $300 per user per month against PlanSwift's $2,000 or $3,000 a year. Plenty of shops run both: PlanSwift for assemblies and the estimate, Pilars for the quantities. See Pilars vs PlanSwift, or try a set in the live demo.
Questions estimators actually ask
How much does PlanSwift cost per year?
PlanSwift costs $2,000 per year for one seat of PlanSwift Essential and $3,000 per year for one seat of PlanSwift Core, based on the ConstructConnect pricing page reviewed on 13 November 2026. Additional seats are discounted, but the discount is not published.
What is the difference between PlanSwift Essential and PlanSwift Core?
PlanSwift Essential includes manual takeoff plus Auto Count, Auto Scale and Auto Bookmark for $2,000 per year. PlanSwift Core costs $3,000 per year and adds Auto Takeoff, the full Takeoff BOOST AI first-pass takeoff.
Can I still buy PlanSwift as a one-time purchase?
PlanSwift's pricing page lists annual subscriptions only as of November 2026. Some third-party sites still show a $1,595 one-time licence and others say perpetual licences were withdrawn, so confirm with ConstructConnect sales before assuming a one-time option exists.
Does PlanSwift have a free trial?
PlanSwift offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required, according to its pricing page. PlanSwift runs on 64-bit Windows only, so you need a Windows machine to try it.
How much does PlanSwift cost for a team of three estimators?
Three PlanSwift Essential seats cost up to 3 × $2,000 = $6,000 per year, and three PlanSwift Core seats up to 3 × $3,000 = $9,000 per year, before the multi-seat discount ConstructConnect offers. The exact discount comes in a quote.
Is PlanSwift cheaper than Bluebeam for takeoff?
Bluebeam Revu is cheaper than PlanSwift: $260 to $590 per user per year against $2,000 or $3,000 per seat per year. PlanSwift adds assemblies, estimating and automatic counting that Bluebeam does not have, so the lower price only wins if you need measurement and markup rather than a takeoff workflow.
Is PlanSwift worth the price if I only bid one or two jobs a month?
PlanSwift at $2,000 per year works out to about $83 to $167 per bid at one or two bids a month, before any takeoff labour, and the 14-day free trial lets you check the fit first. Pilars costs more, $300 per user per month for one trade with unlimited takeoffs, so at that volume Pilars only makes sense if having the first-pass takeoff produced for review saves more estimator time than the price difference.