What is the best AI estimating software for home builders?
Short answer
For residential builders who want estimating and job management in one place, JobTread (AI Estimating, from $199/mo), Buildxact (Blu AI assistant and AI-powered takeoffs, from $169/mo), and Handoff (Instant AI Estimates, from $119/mo) are the closest fits in this directory. If you mainly need fast quantities from plans, Togal.AI, Kreo, STACK, and Quotr focus on AI takeoff, and RSMeans offers Flash AI Estimating for cost data. The comparison table lists AI features, release status, and starting prices taken from vendor pages.
| Tool | AI features (status) | From | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home Depot Blueprint Takeoffs | AI Blueprint Takeoffs (GA) | Quote | — |
| Togal.AI | AI takeoff detection (GA); Togal.CHAT (GA) | From $299/mo | — |
| Houzz Pro | AI Estimates & Proposals (GA); AI Takeoff (GA); AI Expense Scanning (GA); AI Client Updates (beta) | Quote | Yes |
| JobTread | AI Estimating (GA); AI Plan Import & Count (GA); AI Daily Log Summaries (GA) | From $199/mo | Yes |
| RSMeans Data Online | Flash AI Estimating (GA) | Quote | Yes |
| STACK | STACK AI sheet reading (GA); AI Takeoff (GA) | From $49/mo | Yes |
| PlanSwift | Auto Takeoff (GA); Auto Count (GA); Auto Scale & Auto Bookmark (GA) | Quote | Yes |
| On-Screen Takeoff (with Takeoff Boost AI) | Takeoff Boost (GA) | Quote | Yes |
| Lowe's Pro Material Lists | AI-driven Material Lists (GA) | Quote | — |
| Kreo | Auto Measure 3.0 (GA); Caddie (GA); Spot (GA) | From $100/mo | Yes |
| Buildxact | Blu AI Construction Assistant (GA); AI-powered takeoffs (GA) | From $169/mo | Yes |
| Handoff | Instant AI Estimates (GA); AI Teammate (GA) | From $119/mo | Yes |
| Kojo | AI-powered invoice processing (GA) | Quote | — |
| Parspec | AI quoting (GA); Submittal automation (GA) | Quote | — |
| Clear Estimates | AI Project Builder (GA); AI image/plan upload (GA) | From $59/mo | Yes |
| Higharc AI Estimating | AutoTranslate AI (GA); Model-based takeoffs (GA) | Quote | — |
| Zebel (with AI Bid Review) | AI Oversight (GA); AI Bid Review (GA) | Quote | — |
| Aximos | AI takeoff (GA); Ask Aximos AI (GA) | Quote | — |
| Easy Takeoffs | AI Auto Page Naming (GA); AI Auto Scale Detection (GA) | From $39/mo | Yes |
| Framework | AI agents (GA); Takeoff Agent (beta) | From $20/mo | Yes |
Ranked tools (20)
- 1.Home Depot Blueprint Takeoffs AI added Estimating & Takeoffs · Quote
Home Depot uses AI to turn single-family blueprints into a material list and quote.
AI Blueprint Takeoffs Available
- 2.
Togal.AI AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $299/moTogal AI auto-detects, measures and labels spaces on drawings, and you can chat with your plans.
AI takeoff detection AvailableTogal.CHAT Available
- 3.Houzz Pro AI added Sales & Customer Follow-up · Quote
Houzz AI drafts estimates, measures plans and turns notes and receipts into project records.
AI Estimates & Proposals AvailableAI Takeoff AvailableAI Expense Scanning AvailableAI Client Updates beta
- 4.
JobTread AI added Project Management & Scheduling · From $199/moJobTread has built-in AI for estimates, plan counts, daily-log summaries and forms.
AI Estimating AvailableAI Plan Import & Count AvailableAI Daily Log Summaries Available
- 5.
RSMeans Data Online AI added Building Materials Pricing & Quoting · QuoteFlash AI Estimating builds conceptual estimates on RSMeans cost data.
Flash AI Estimating Available
- 6.
STACK AI added Estimating & Takeoffs · From $49/moSTACK AI reads and names plan sheets, flags revisions and assists takeoff and estimates.
STACK AI sheet reading AvailableAI Takeoff Available
- 7.
PlanSwift AI added Estimating & Takeoffs · QuotePlanSwift Takeoff BOOST uses AI for auto takeoff, counting, scaling and bookmarking.
Auto Takeoff AvailableAuto Count AvailableAuto Scale & Auto Bookmark Available
- 8.
On-Screen Takeoff (with Takeoff Boost AI) AI added Estimating & Takeoffs · QuoteOn-Screen Takeoff's Takeoff Boost uses AI to delegate time-consuming takeoff work.
Takeoff Boost Available
- 9.Lowe's Pro Material Lists AI added Building Materials Pricing & Quoting · Quote
AI digitizes handwritten, photo and spreadsheet lists and matches them to Lowe's SKUs for quote-ready orders.
AI-driven Material Lists Available
- 10.
Kreo AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $100/moKreo AI auto-measures drawings and its Caddie agent and Spot voice agent run takeoff tasks.
Auto Measure 3.0 AvailableCaddie AvailableSpot Available
- 11.
Buildxact AI added Estimating & Takeoffs · From $169/moBuildxact's Blu AI assistant and AI takeoffs speed up residential estimating.
Blu AI Construction Assistant AvailableAI-powered takeoffs Available
- 12.
Handoff AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $119/moHandoff's AI Teammate writes estimates, proposals and runs project admin for residential builders.
Instant AI Estimates AvailableAI Teammate Available
- 13.
Kojo AI added Building Materials Pricing & Quoting · QuoteKojo uses AI to process supplier invoices without manual entry.
AI-powered invoice processing Available
- 14.
Parspec AI-powered Building Materials Pricing & Quoting · QuoteParspec is an AI-native quoting and submittal platform for distributors and reps.
AI quoting AvailableSubmittal automation Available
- 15.Clear Estimates AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $59/mo
AI Project Builder assembles a preliminary estimate from a job description using the vendor's local cost data.
AI Project Builder AvailableAI image/plan upload Available
- 16.Higharc AI Estimating AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · Quote
AutoTranslate AI turns 2D plan images into a 3D model the estimator checks; takeoffs are calculated from the model.
AutoTranslate AI AvailableModel-based takeoffs Available
- 17.
Zebel (with AI Bid Review) AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · QuoteZebel AI reviews estimates against your cost history to flag scope gaps and anomalies.
AI Oversight AvailableAI Bid Review Available
- 18.
Aximos AI-powered Building Materials Pricing & Quoting · QuoteAximos AI drafts lumber takeoffs from plans with every quantity traced to the sheet.
AI takeoff AvailableAsk Aximos AI Available
- 19.
Easy Takeoffs AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $39/moEasy Takeoffs AI names sheets and detects scale on upload.
AI Auto Page Naming AvailableAI Auto Scale Detection Available
- 20.
Framework AI-powered Estimating & Takeoffs · From $20/moFramework AI agents answer from drawings and a Takeoff Agent measures vector PDFs.
AI agents AvailableTakeoff Agent beta
Ranked by market recognition (how we pick). Only tools with a released or beta AI feature documented on the vendor's site are listed.
FAQ
Is AI estimating accurate enough to bid from?+
Vendors present these tools as aids. Several, including APAS and Bobyard, describe human review of AI output. Check quantities before you send a bid.
Which AI estimating tools publish prices?+
Starting prices shown here come from vendor pricing pages, for example STACK from $49/mo, Quotr from $79.90/mo, Kreo from $100/mo, and Togal.AI from $299/mo. "Quote" means the vendor publishes no price.
What is the difference between AI takeoff and AI estimating?+
Takeoff measures and counts quantities from drawings. Estimating turns those quantities into priced bids. Some tools here do both, such as Handoff, Buildxact, and JobTread.