George CollierJobber is good software for small field service businesses. The businesses we talk to that want to leave it usually have one of two problems: the price climbs quickly as the team grows, or the work has stopped fitting Jobber's idea of a job. Here are the alternatives I'd look at, depending on which problem you have.
For a small team that wants to stop paying per user, ServiceM8 is the best swap, because it charges by job instead. Housecall Pro suits US home service businesses that want marketing tools built in, and Tradify suits small trades businesses.
With 10 or more engineers and multi-day installs, crews, maintenance contracts or certificates, custom scheduling software usually works out cheaper and fits better.
Why businesses leave Jobber
At the time of writing, Jobber's Grow plan is $149 a month for one user on an annual plan, rising to $399 for 15 users, and crew scheduling and custom reports are only on the Plus plan at $399 to $529 a month. Over 15 users it's a custom quote. Add-ons like the AI receptionist and marketing tools cost extra.
Price is rarely the whole story, though. The bigger issue for growing teams is that Jobber treats most work as a single visit with a standard job sheet. Multi-day installs, planned maintenance and certificates end up in spreadsheets next to it. I covered the signs in more detail in off-the-shelf job scheduling vs custom.
1. Custom scheduling software from Not Quite Unicorns
We build and run scheduling and dispatch software around how your business plans work. Jobs are planned by each engineer's skills, certificates, location and availability. Engineers get the day on their phone, offline, with job history and access notes, and fill in job sheets and certificates on site. A finished job becomes a draft invoice in Xero or QuickBooks.
- Best for
- 10+ engineers with work that doesn't fit a template
- Pricing
- A flat monthly price with no per-engineer fees
- Live in
- 30 days
- Not ideal for
- Small teams doing single visits
2. ServiceM8
ServiceM8 charges by the number of jobs you do each month, with unlimited users on every paid plan. For a team with lots of engineers and a steady number of jobs, that can be much cheaper than Jobber. It's simple to learn, and it has a library of add-ons for things like forms and certificates.
- Best for
- Small to mid-size trades teams that want to stop paying per user
- Pricing
- $29 a month for 50 jobs, $79 for 150, $149 for 500 and $349 for 1,500
- Live in
- Days
- Not ideal for
- Lots of small, low-value jobs, where the job limits add up
3. Housecall Pro
Housecall Pro is the closest like-for-like alternative to Jobber in the US, aimed at home services like HVAC, plumbing and cleaning. It leans further into marketing, with reviews, email campaigns and online booking. Like Jobber, the price goes up in steps with the number of users.
- Best for
- US home service businesses that want marketing built in
- Pricing
- Basic $59 a month for 1 user, Essentials $149 for 5 and Max $299 for 8, billed annually
- Live in
- Days
- Not ideal for
- Businesses outside the US, or commercial and project work
4. Tradify
Tradify is built for small trades businesses, especially in the UK, Australia and New Zealand. It covers quotes, scheduling, timesheets and invoices, and connects to Xero. It charges per user, so it works best for small teams.
- Best for
- Small trades businesses on Xero
- Pricing
- $47 to $61 a user a month
- Live in
- Days
- Not ideal for
- Larger teams, because every user adds to the bill
5. Simpro
Simpro is the heavier option, built for larger trade and engineering businesses that run projects, stock and planned maintenance as well as reactive jobs. It does much more than Jobber, and it takes longer to set up and learn. Pricing is quoted after a demo.
- Best for
- Larger trades businesses with projects, stock and maintenance contracts
- Pricing
- Quoted on request
- Live in
- Weeks to months
- Not ideal for
- Small teams who want something simple
| Compared on | Custom | ServiceM8 | Housecall Pro | Tradify | Simpro |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Flat monthly | By jobs per month | By user tier | Per user | Quoted |
| Users | Unlimited | Unlimited on paid plans | 1 to 8, then per user | Per user | Quoted |
| Set-up | We do it | Days | Days | Days | Weeks to months |
| Changes | We release weekly | Vendor roadmap | Vendor roadmap | Vendor roadmap | Vendor roadmap |
| Best for | 10+ engineers | Small teams, many users | US home services | Small UK and AU trades | Larger trades businesses |
How to choose
If you're leaving Jobber because of price and the work still fits, pick the tool whose pricing matches your shape: ServiceM8 if you have many engineers, Tradify or Housecall Pro if you have few. If you're leaving because your planner spends the week in spreadsheets and on the phone, another off-the-shelf tool will have the same gaps, and that's when custom scheduling software earns its keep.
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