Software Cost Per Job Calculator: Compare Two Plans

Field service software is usually sold by monthly price, but that number alone says little about what you will actually pay. Extra users, add-ons, setup fees and especially card processing fees can change the picture completely. This calculator puts two plans side by side and turns everything into cost per job and share of your revenue.

What goes into the total

• Subscription: the base monthly price, plus extra users beyond those included, plus any paid add-ons (online booking, marketing, GPS tracking, advanced reporting and so on).
• Card processing: if customers pay by card through the software, you pay a percentage of each payment, often plus a fixed fee per transaction. The calculator uses your average invoice and the share of invoices paid by card.
• Setup or onboarding: a one-time fee some vendors charge to import your data and train your team. It is added to the first-year total.

The monthly total is divided by your jobs per month to get the cost per job.

Why the cheapest plan is often not the cheapest

Say that, for a one-person business, Plan A costs $100 a month and charges 2.9% + $0.30 per card payment, and Plan B costs $200 a month with 2.7% + $0.15. With 60 jobs a month at $350 and 70% paid by card, that is about $14,700 a month in card payments. The 0.2-point difference in the card fee alone is worth about $29 a month, and the per-transaction fee another $6. Plan B is still more expensive in this example, but the gap is much smaller than the $100 difference in list price, and with more card volume it can flip.

These numbers are made up for the example. Always type the prices from the vendor’s own pricing page or quote, and check them again before you sign: software prices and plans change often.

Questions the calculator can’t answer for you

• Do you have to use their payment processing? Some apps let you connect your own processor; others require theirs.
• Is there a contract? Annual billing can be cheaper per month but harder to leave.
• Can you export your data? If you switch later, you want your customers, job history and invoices in a usable file.
• Does the accounting sync work for you? A broken QuickBooks sync costs hours every month, and that never shows up on the pricing page.

Once you know which plan costs less per job, compare what each one does for your trade in our guides.