Powered Now vs EstiMate: which one suits a UK builder?

Here's the plain answer. If you want your job app to send VAT returns to HMRC, Powered Now lists that on its Professional and Premium plans, and EstiMate doesn't do it. EstiMate prepares your VAT and CIS figures and leaves the filing to Xero, QuickBooks, Sage or your accountant. If you price building work from drawings and want the quote to become a contract the client signs online, EstiMate is set up for that, and it charges per business rather than per user.

Page of an EstiMate sample quote listing steel beams, columns and masonry with a picture, description, quantity, unit price and total on each line, and the working shown for the brick quantities — Sample quote: materials

Both are aimed at UK trades. Powered Now says it offers UK-based support. EstiMate was built by Dave Groom, a working builder and founder of Tatton Projects in Cheshire, and the company, EstiMate App Limited, is in Manchester.

At a glance

	Powered Now	EstiMate
Who it's for	Job management for UK trades, with UK-based support	UK builders and trades; built by a working builder
Pricing	Business £28 a month for one user; Professional £32 and Premium £40 per user a month; plus VAT	Free £0; EstiMate £15.99, Pro £39.99, Commercial from £99 a month; per business, one office login; Corp £249 with five
Free trial/plan	14-day free trial, no card needed	Free plan: 3 jobs a month, no time limit, no card
Accounting	Xero and QuickBooks integration; VAT returns to HMRC with CIS on Professional and Premium	Xero, QuickBooks and Sage kept in step both ways; P&L, VAT and CIS figures (your package or accountant files)
Standout features	Trade certificates including EICR, on-site customer signatures, PN Receptionist call-answering add-on	AI take-off from drawings (Pro), quote to signed contract, TenderPilot, Crew site app

Powered Now's details are as listed on its website on 3 November 2026. EstiMate's are from its own pricing page.

Both do quotes and invoices, and both list automatic chasing. Both connect to Xero and QuickBooks. Both let you start without a card: Powered Now with a 14-day free trial, EstiMate with a free plan of 3 jobs a month and no time limit. Where they part ways is filing to HMRC, pricing from drawings, contracts and how they charge for a team.

The money, worked out

As listed on its website on 3 November 2026, Powered Now's Business plan is £28 a month for one user (£280 a year), and Professional and Premium are £32 and £40 per user a month (£320 and £400 a year). All plus VAT. Its PN Receptionist call-answering add-on is from £29 a month.

EstiMate is priced per business. EstiMate (£15.99), Pro (£39.99) and Commercial (from £99) each come with one office login. Site staff use the EstiMate Crew app: a £29.99 a month add-on on Pro, included on Commercial.

On your own

Powered Now Business: £28 a month plus VAT, or £280 a year plus VAT, for one user.
EstiMate: £15.99 a month for one office login with unlimited jobs, contracts and e-signatures, invoices with automatic chasing, and the accounts figures.
EstiMate Pro: £39.99 a month if you want AI take-off from drawings and the AI quote writer.

One in the office, two on site

Powered Now lists Business for one user, so a team of three would be on Professional or Premium.

Powered Now Professional: 3 × £32 = £96 a month plus VAT, for three users, with VAT returns to HMRC and CIS.
Powered Now Premium: 3 × £40 = £120 a month plus VAT, for three users, adding the AI receipt and cost document scanner.
EstiMate Pro with Crew: £39.99 + £29.99 = £69.98 a month, for one office login on Pro and the Crew app for the two on site.

Those don't buy the same thing. Powered Now's figure gives three users. EstiMate's gives one office login, and the two on site get Crew instead. Crew does GPS clock in and out, timesheets that fill themselves from the clock, mileage and travel time while on the clock, receipts, snags, drawings and messages with the office.

If you need two people working in the office, EstiMate's answer is Corp at £249 a month with five office logins, then £29.99 for each extra. Two users on Powered Now Professional would be 2 × £32 = £64 a month plus VAT, so Powered Now costs less for a two-person office.

Where Powered Now has the edge

VAT returns to HMRC. Professional and Premium list VAT returns to HMRC with CIS. EstiMate doesn't file anything to HMRC itself.
Trade certificates. It lists trade certificates including EICR, which matters if you're an electrician.
Call answering. It lists PN Receptionist, a call-answering add-on from £29 a month.
Day to day. It lists on-site customer signatures and drag-and-drop scheduling, and on Premium an AI scanner for receipts and cost documents.

Where EstiMate is the stronger pick

Take-off from drawings (Pro). Upload the drawings and the AI measures and prices the quantities, with the working shown. You check it before you use it.
Quote to contract. An accepted quote becomes a build contract the client signs online. On Pro, clients can accept and pay a deposit online too.
Sage as well. Powered Now lists Xero and QuickBooks. EstiMate keeps Xero, QuickBooks and Sage in step both ways, including wages, PAYE and CIS.
Running the build. Pro adds cost control, purchase orders, valuations and subcontracts, plus snagging, progress reports and a handover pack.
TenderPilot. It finds live UK public tenders and approved planning applications near you.

Which should you pick?

Pick Powered Now if you want VAT returns sent to HMRC from your job app, or you need trade certificates such as EICR.
Pick EstiMate if you price building work from drawings, want quotes to become signed contracts, and want your site staff on a site app under one business price.
On Sage? EstiMate lists it alongside Xero and QuickBooks; Powered Now lists Xero and QuickBooks.

Read the full EstiMate vs Powered Now comparison, or see EstiMate's prices. Try EstiMate free: 3 jobs a month, no card.