Best invoice app for UK builders in 2026: CIS and reverse charge

Any app can put your logo on an invoice. For a UK builder, the test is whether it gets the CIS deduction right, prints the reverse-charge wording when it applies, and fits the way you actually get paid: deposits, stage payments and extras.

Here's the short version. If you run building projects, EstiMate puts the quote, contract, variations, invoices and the CIS register in one app. If you want your VAT return filed to HMRC from the same app you invoice from, Powered Now does that and EstiMate doesn't. If your accountant lives in Xero or QuickBooks, keep it for the books. If you're a labour-only subbie on a tight budget, Zoho Invoice is free and does CIS deductions.

What to check before you pick

• CIS: does it calculate the deduction on the invoice, and does it file CIS returns or just give you figures?
• Reverse charge: does it add the required wording and leave VAT off the total?
• VAT return: does it file to HMRC, or prepare figures for someone who does?
• Stage payments: can you invoice a job in parts against the original price?
• Price basis: per business, per user or per invoice?

The nine at a glance

Prices checked October 2026, per month, from each vendor's pricing page linked below. Powered Now, YourTradebase, Xero, QuickBooks and FreeAgent list prices ex VAT; Invoice2go and Invoice Simple show US dollars and don't state a VAT basis; EstiMate's price is what you pay, with a VAT receipt. EstiMate's invoicing starts on the £15.99 plan; its free plan is for pricing jobs. "Not found" means we searched the vendor's site and help centre and found nothing; it isn't proof the feature is missing.

1. EstiMate: best for builders who run projects

EstiMate sends branded PDF invoices with a pay-online link through Stripe, paid into your own Stripe account, tracks what's invoiced, paid and owed, and chases overdue invoices automatically if you turn it on. CIS deductions are handled and kept in a CIS register, reverse-charge invoices carry the required wording, and payment milestones let you invoice a job in stages. Signed variations update the contract total and the invoices. See construction invoicing software.

The Accounts tab gives a P&L, VAT figures, aged debtors and year-end exports. It doesn't file VAT or CIS returns to HMRC, and its Xero and QuickBooks exports are files, not a live sync. Invoicing, CIS and the Accounts tab come with EstiMate at £15.99 a month per business, or Pro at £39.99; the free plan prices three jobs a month but doesn't include invoicing. Works on Android in the browser; the app is iPhone.

2. Powered Now: best for UK tax inside a trade app

Powered Now is the closest rival on UK tax, and it's ahead on filing. Turn on CIS, flag the customer or supplier and it estimates the deduction on sales invoices, with a CIS 300 report for contractors, though you still file on HMRC's portal (CIS setup). You pick a reverse-charge tax rate per line (reverse charge), and on Professional and Premium it submits MTD VAT returns direct to HMRC (Making Tax Digital). Plans are £28 (one user), £32 and £40 a month ex VAT, the last two listed per user (pricing); its help centre describes extra users differently, so ask if you're a team. Best for gas, heating and electrical firms that want forms, invoices and VAT in one place.

3. YourTradebase: best simple UK trade invoicing

YourTradebase calculates CIS at 0%, 20% or 30% from the labour total, with a default per customer (CIS help), and its reverse charge removes the VAT and adds the note (reverse charge help). It syncs to Xero including CIS deductions (Xero help); the QuickBooks sync doesn't carry CIS (QuickBooks and CIS). From £29 a month or £290 a year ex VAT, plus £15 a month per additional user (pricing). Best for small trade firms with a Xero accountant.

4. Xero: best if your accountant lives in it

From 1 September 2026, Xero is £18, £39, £55 or £70 a month ex VAT (price update). Ignite allows quotes and 20 invoices; Grow and above are unlimited (plans). CIS deductions are calculated automatically (CIS guide), and filing CIS returns is an add-on Xero lists at £5 a month, though its pages don't all agree (CIS returns). Reverse-charge rates and wording are built in (reverse charge), and MTD VAT returns are included from Ignite (VAT returns). More in our Xero for builders post.

5. QuickBooks: best for filing CIS returns from your books

QuickBooks handles CIS for contractors from Simple Start up, while the Sole Trader plan is for subcontractors only (pricing), and CIS returns are e-filed to HMRC "at no extra cost" (UK CIS). It has 20% and 5% reverse-charge codes that flow to the VAT return (reverse charge help), plus MTD VAT filing (MTD software). UK prices changed during 2026 and the figures we found conflict, so check the pricing page for today's number.

6. FreeAgent: best free option if you bank with NatWest Group

FreeAgent is free with a NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland or Ulster Bank business current account, or a Mettle account with at least one transaction a month (free with your bank). Otherwise it's £19, £27 or £33 a month ex VAT (pricing). It does CIS for subbies and contractors, but "it's not currently possible to file CIS300 returns using FreeAgent" (CIS300 help), so you file on HMRC's site. Reverse charge is built in, and it files MTD VAT returns.

7. Invoice2go: best phone app for reverse-charge work

Invoice2go has a per-item reverse-charge toggle that adds the mandatory tax note (reverse charge help) and MTD-compatible reports for UK customers, though we didn't find VAT filing (MTD reports). We couldn't find CIS deductions. Its pricing page shows US dollars, "starting at $5.99 per month", in the copy we could see, which was about six months old, so check the live page for the pound price (pricing). Best for mobile-first subbies who need the reverse charge but not CIS.

8. Zoho Invoice: best free app with CIS deductions

Zoho Invoice is "completely free to use, with no hidden charges or time limits", up to 500 invoices a year (pricing). Enter your UTR and NI number, pick a rate, and invoices get a "Covered by CIS?" box with the deduction worked out, though not on expenses (CIS help). We couldn't confirm a domestic reverse charge in Zoho Invoice itself, and Zoho points UK businesses that need MTD to Zoho Books. Our Zoho Invoice for builders post has the detail.

9. Invoice Simple: simplest, but not for CIS work

Invoice Simple is a well-liked phone app for freelancers, at US$6.99, $14.99 or $21.99 a month with invoice caps on the cheaper plans (pricing). We couldn't find CIS or reverse-charge features, and its help centre says the client signature is "for presentation purposes only" (help centre). Best for one-visit work outside the CIS.

One we left out

Tradify is a popular job app, but its own help centre says it "does not have any native Reverse VAT / CIS tax options" and you need Xero or Sage connected to raise a CIS invoice (Tradify help). Fine with Xero behind it, so it isn't on this list as an invoicing app on its own.

How to choose

1. Labour-only subbie invoicing one contractor a month: Zoho Invoice, or FreeAgent if you bank with NatWest Group.
2. Service trade wanting the VAT return filed from the same app: Powered Now.
3. Contractor filing monthly CIS returns from the books: QuickBooks, or Xero with the CIS add-on.
4. Builder running projects with contracts, stages and variations: EstiMate, keeping Xero or QuickBooks for the accountant if you like. Our CIS guide and reverse charge explainer cover the rules whichever app you choose.

What to do next

Write down your last three months: how many invoices, how many with CIS, how many reverse charge, and who files your VAT return. That list picks the app for you. If projects are most of your work, try EstiMate's free plan on your next job.

No card, no time limit: start free.