- Do you need costing depth or simple job management?
- How the eight compare by approach
- Job management for trades
- Field service management for growing and commercial firms
- Does the mobile app work with no signal?
- What's each tool built for?
- My advice for trade business owners
- Run one real job from quote to invoice
- Frequently asked questions
The main decision is depth versus simplicity: do you need detailed project costing and quoting, or simple scheduling, quoting and invoicing done well? Settle that, then make sure the mobile app works where your crews work, including with no signal, before comparing anything else.
If you're leaving Simpro, you've probably found it either does more than you need or not quite what you need. Both are common. Software for trades and field service splits into two camps: deep platforms built around project costing, detailed quoting and larger teams, and simpler job management tools that cover scheduling, quoting and invoicing for smaller crews.
Below are eight alternatives, in no particular order, grouped by that split, with a separate group for an app built to work offline. There's a table, a section per group, a line on each tool and a simple trial to run before you move your jobs across.
Do you need costing depth or simple job management?
Vendors label the same job in different ways, which makes comparison harder than it should be. Some call themselves field service management, others say job management for trades. The label tells you who they had in mind, but not whether they'll suit you.
- Choose depth if you quote large or multi-stage jobs, track materials and labour against each one and run several crews or a commercial contract book.
- Choose simple if most jobs are quoted, booked, done and invoiced within days, and you'd rather your team spent time on the tools than in the office.
- Check the mobile app either way, because it's the part your crews use every day and the part most likely to let you down on site.
If you're not sure where you sit, look at your last ten jobs. If most of them needed a revised quote or tracking across several visits, you need depth. If not, simple is likely enough.
How the eight compare by approach
| Tool | Approach | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| AroFlo | Job management for trades | Quotes, invoicing and schedules for trades |
| BigChange | Field service | Job management for UK field service |
| Fergus | Job management for trades | Electricians, plumbers, builders, HVAC and roofers |
| Praxedo | Offline-first mobile | Crews who work without a signal |
| Service Fusion | Field service | All-in-one field service for service firms |
| ServiceM8 | Job management for trades | Job tracking with a built-in CRM |
| Tradify | Job management for trades | A job management app for tradespeople |
| Zuper | Field service | Automation from first call to payment |
Job management for trades
This group starts from the tradesperson rather than the back office. Tradify, Fergus and ServiceM8 all describe themselves as job management for trades rather than field service management. The first is an app aimed at tradespeople running their own firms, the second names its trades outright (electricians, plumbers, builders, HVAC and roofers), and the third pairs job tracking with a CRM for trade contractors and home service businesses.
AroFlo fits here too, with job management for trades covering quotes, invoicing and schedules. If you're torn between the trade apps, my head-to-head of two of the best-known trade apps goes into the detail.
Field service management for growing and commercial firms
These tools are built for businesses with more people, more vehicles and more process. Service Fusion offers all-in-one field service management software for service businesses. Zuper presents its field service software and app as an AI operating system for service firms, aiming to automate the work from the first call to the final payment. BigChange focuses on job management for UK field service.
For a wider view of this group, see my guide to the best field service management software.
Does the mobile app work with no signal?
Praxedo is the one to look at if your crews often work in basements, plant rooms, rural sites or anywhere else the signal drops. It's cloud field service management with scheduling, dispatch and work orders, and it stresses a mobile app that works offline.
Whichever tool you choose, ask what happens on the phone when there's no connection. Can an engineer still open the job, add photos, record time and get a signature? And when the signal comes back, does everything sync without someone in the office fixing it by hand?
What's each tool built for?
A to Z, one line each.
AroFlo
Best for: Trade businesses that want job management with quotes, invoicing and schedules handled in one place.
BigChange
Best for: UK field service businesses looking for job management software built with that market in mind.
Fergus
Best for: Electricians, plumbers, builders, HVAC firms and roofers who want job management software made for their trades.
Praxedo
Best for: Field teams who need cloud scheduling, dispatch and work orders, plus a mobile app that keeps working offline.
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Service Fusion
Best for: Service businesses wanting all-in-one field service management software rather than a set of separate tools.
ServiceM8
Best for: Trade contractors and home service businesses that want job tracking and a CRM together, with less paperwork.
Tradify
Best for: Tradespeople running their business from a job management app, which the vendor pitches as all-in-one.
Zuper
Best for: Growing service businesses that want field service software presented as an AI operating system, automating work from the first call to the final payment.
My advice for trade business owners
Don't pay for depth you won't use, and don't buy simplicity you'll outgrow within a year. Be honest about how complex your jobs are today and where the business will be in two years. Then put the mobile app through a real day on site, because the office can work around a clunky screen but a crew stuck in a basement can't. If you're also connecting the new tool to your accounts or stock systems, my guide on fitting field service software into your business processes is worth reading first.
Run one real job from quote to invoice
Pick two tools from your shortlist and run the same real job through both trials, start to finish. Don't use the demo data.
- Raise the quote as you would for a customer, including materials and labour.
- Turn it into a job, book it in and assign it to an engineer.
- Have the engineer open the job on their phone with mobile data and wifi switched off, add notes and photos, and mark it complete.
- Reconnect and check that everything synced back to the office.
- Raise the invoice and send it to yourself to see what your customer would receive.
Whichever tool gets you through that without a phone call to support is the one to look at more closely.
Do you make field service or job management software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
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Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between field service management and job management software?
Mostly the buyer the vendor had in mind. Field service management tends to be aimed at larger service firms with dispatch, work orders and more process. Job management for trades tends to be aimed at smaller crews who quote, book and invoice quickly.
Which job management app works offline?
Several apps cache some data, but one of the tools here stresses a mobile app that works offline. Whatever you shortlist, test it on a phone with mobile data and wifi switched off.
Do I need project costing in my job management software?
Only if your jobs regularly run over several visits, change scope or need materials and labour tracked against them. For short, one-visit jobs, simple quoting and invoicing is usually enough.
How long should I trial job management software?
Long enough to take one real job from quote to invoice in each tool on your shortlist, with an engineer using the mobile app on site.
Are these tools ranked?
No. They're listed in no particular order and grouped by approach, because the right one depends on how complex your jobs are and where your crews work.
