Buildertrend is a full construction management system for builders, remodelers and specialty contractors. In my experience it suits companies running many projects with someone in the office to run it. Remodelr is for the residential remodeler who prices the job himself and wants the estimate written before he's back in the truck.
Written by Josh Shelton, founder of Remodelr and a remodeler for 20 years. So yes, I'm biased — which is why every claim about Buildertrend below links to where it came from. Checked October 2026.
Swipe the table to see both columns →
| Remodelr | Buildertrend | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $97/mo solo · $297/mo up to 5 people · $497/mo up to 20. Yearly saves 2 months. | Not published. Custom quote after a sales call (the form asks your builder type and annual revenue); includes unlimited users; a limited-time 10% off for paying annually. [1] |
| Try it first | 14-day free trial, start online. | 30-minute demo with a rep; no self-serve trial listed. [1] |
| Contract | Month to month. Cancel from Billing. | Term set by your order form; auto-renews, renewals can rise with CPI up to 10% unless quoted otherwise, no refunds mid-term, cancel through your account manager. [4] |
| Getting set up | About ten minutes: company details, then your first estimate. | Weeks 1–2 setup with an onboarding manager, weeks 3–12 onboarding on a live job. [3] |
| How estimates get built | Talk the job through (or type it, or add photos); you get a priced, itemized estimate to correct. | Cost catalogs, templates, takeoff quantities and sub bids. [5] |
| AI | Writes the estimate, then keeps your corrections (Rate Capture) so the next one starts at your numbers. | AI for client updates, bill capture, plan page naming, selections product data and submittals. No AI estimating listed as of Oct 2026. [2] [10] |
| Selections & allowances | Client selection sheet in their browser; overage shows against each allowance and becomes a change order they sign. | Client approves and signs selections in the portal; overages flow to the job-costing budget. [6] |
| Team size | Solo, Team up to 5, Scale up to 20, each person with their own permissions and pricing hidden from the crew. | Unlimited users included in the quote. [1] |
| Job costing | Receipts (scan the photo), crew hours and sub invoices against the estimate, with what's left and projected profit. | Estimates feed a job-costing budget compared with actual costs. [5] |
| Scheduling | Build plan by working day, schedule with calendar feed, daily log, crew checklists, punch list. | Gantt, dependencies, critical path, baselines, sub notifications. [7] |
| Accounting | QuickBooks Online: estimates and invoices push across. | QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, Intuit Enterprise Suite, and Xero. [8] [12] |
| Client payments | Card or bank transfer from the invoice link, via Stripe. Fee can be passed on where your state allows. | ACH, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay from a payment link; card fees can be passed to the client. [9] |
| Phone | Native iPhone app; everything else in the browser, Android included. | iOS and Android apps. [11] |
Remodelr's column is what's on remodelr.app today. Buildertrend's is from its own pages and announcements, linked; prices are not published, so none are given here.
Buildertrend asks for your builder type and annual revenue, then quotes you. [1] That's normal for software sold to bigger companies. For a remodeler deciding on a Sunday night, it means a demo and a conversation before you know whether it fits the budget.
Remodelr's prices are on the pricing page, and the trial starts with an email address.
Buildertrend estimates are built from cost catalogs, templates and takeoffs you set up. [5] That's powerful once it's built, and it's work up front.
Remodelr starts from the walkthrough: you describe the job out loud and correct the numbers it gets wrong. Every correction is kept, so your rates build up from jobs you're already quoting instead of from a catalog you have to fill in first.
Buildertrend's own onboarding plan runs to week 12, and its terms renew automatically with no mid-term refunds. [3] [4]
Remodelr is month to month. Your estimates, invoices and the rates Rate Capture built are yours to export whether you stay or not.
Real Gantt scheduling with dependencies, Xero and QuickBooks Desktop, Android apps, and unlimited users included in the price. [1] [7] [8] [11] [12] If your company runs on those, Buildertrend is the better fit, and I'd rather tell you that here than lose you in week two.
There's no automatic import. Most people start with their next job in Remodelr and finish current jobs where they are. Start an estimate for a past client and their details carry over from your contacts once they're in.
Each job gets one client page: progress, updates you post, payments and paperwork. Clients open it from a link — no app, no login. Proposals, change orders, selection sheets and invoices are all signable or payable from their phone.
Buildertrend doesn't publish prices, so I can't compare to the dollar. [1] Remodelr is $97 a month for one person, $297 for up to five and $497 for up to twenty, month to month.
Yes — each person who signs in uses a seat on Team or Scale. You choose what each one sees, and pricing can be hidden from the crew. Clients and subs never need a seat.
Run one you've already priced, and hold the estimate up against yours. Fourteen days free.
14 days free, then $97 a month. Cancel before it ends and you're not charged.
Checked October 2026. Prices and features change; if something here is out of date, email josh@sheltonsolutionsva.com and it gets fixed.