How much does construction takeoff software cost? (2026 prices)
In September 2026, published prices ran from free, through about $260 to $840 per user per year for low-cost and markup-first plans, to $1,200 to about $3,600 per seat per year for dedicated takeoff tools. Several products, including On-Screen Takeoff and Autodesk Forma Takeoff (formerly Autodesk Takeoff), are quote only. The tables below link every price to its source.
Price bands, with examples
Monthly figures for annual plans are the annual price divided by 12. We list the lowest plan whose features include takeoff or measurement tools.
| Band (per user) | Examples, checked September 24, 2026 | What you typically get |
|---|---|---|
| Free | TRACEBUILD Lite during early access; STACK's free version of Takeoff & Estimate (source) | Area, length and count takeoff with export; limits vary |
| Under $50 a month | TRACEBUILD Lite at launch, $4.99 a month; Bluebeam Basics to Max, $260 to $590 a year (source); zzTakeoff Pro, $49.99 a month or $549.89 a year (source) | Markup and measurement, some takeoff tools; features split by plan |
| $50 to $150 a month | Kreo Plus, $70 a month billed annually (source); ConstructConnect Takeoff Starter, $1,200 a year (source); Square Takeoff, $1,699 a year (source) | Dedicated cloud takeoff, often with templates and reports |
| Over $150 a month | PlanSwift, $2,000 or $3,000 a year (source); ConstructConnect Takeoff Professional, $2,200 a year; STACK, from $249 a month; Togal.AI Growth, $299 a month billed yearly (source) | Takeoff with assemblies or estimating, or automated AI takeoff |
| Quote only | On-Screen Takeoff; Autodesk Forma Takeoff, formerly Autodesk Takeoff, part of Autodesk Forma (formerly Autodesk Construction Cloud) (source); Beam AI, from $8K per trade per year (source); Togal.AI Business for 4 or more users | Enterprise and volume products, often with onboarding |
First-year cost for a 1-person and a 3-person shop
Multiply the per-seat price by the seats you need for twelve months. For one estimator, the first year runs from about $60 (TRACEBUILD Lite at its launch price) to about $3,600 (Togal.AI Growth) among the published prices below. For three, it runs from about $180 to about $10,800, before any multi-seat discount.
| Tool and plan | Arithmetic | 1 user, year one | 3 users, year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| TRACEBUILD Lite (at launch) | $4.99 × 12 | $59.88 | $179.64 |
| Bluebeam Core (counts included) | $330 a year | $330 | $990 |
| zzTakeoff Pro, annual | $549.89 a year | $549.89 | $1,649.67 |
| Kreo Plus | $70 × 12 | $840 | $2,520 |
| ConstructConnect Takeoff Starter | $1,200 a year, one paid seat only | $1,200 | Not available (Starter is 1 seat) |
| ConstructConnect Takeoff Professional | $2,200 first seat; $2,200 + 2 × $1,700 for three | $2,200 | $5,600 |
| Square Takeoff, annual | $1,699 a year | $1,699 | $5,097 |
| PlanSwift Essential | $2,000 a year | $2,000 | up to $6,000 |
| STACK Takeoff & Estimate | $249 × 12 | $2,988 | $8,964 |
| Togal.AI Growth | $299 × 12 | $3,588 | $10,764 |
ConstructConnect Takeoff Starter allows one paid seat, so a three-person shop on ConstructConnect needs Professional. PlanSwift advertises discounted pricing for additional seats without publishing it, and Square Takeoff asks multi-license buyers to call, so their three-user figures are ceilings. TRACEBUILD Lite is $0 while early access lasts. Taxes and onboarding are not included.
The costs that are not on the price tag
- Windows on a Mac. PlanSwift and On-Screen Takeoff are Windows software. On a Mac, add Windows 11 Pro ($199.99 at the Microsoft Store) and Parallels Desktop ($99.99 a year at list for Standard), about $300 in year one. Details on our Mac page.
- Features held back to higher plans. Bluebeam Basics measures length and area; counts start at Core and Quantity Link to Excel at Complete. Kreo's automated measuring is in Pro at $175 a month. zzTakeoff's $19.99 Collaborator plan has no takeoff tools.
- Limits. ConstructConnect Takeoff Starter allows one paid seat and 25 pages per project; Professional removes both limits at $2,200 a year for the first seat and $1,700 for each additional seat.
- Contracts. Several tools bill annually only. ConstructConnect's pricing page says it does not refund unused time.
- Training time. A tool that takes weeks to learn costs an estimator's hours. Count them, even if the vendor's onboarding is included.
- Estimating on top. A takeoff-only tool needs a spreadsheet or an estimating system to price the quantities. Our free takeoff template is one way to do that.
When a free tool is enough, and when it is not
A free or very low-cost tool is enough when your takeoff is areas, lengths and counts on PDF plans and you already price in a spreadsheet. Pay more when you need assemblies that price as you measure, a condition workflow for high-volume bidding, live collaboration on drawings, or automated takeoff that saves more hours than it costs.
A practical test: take one sheet you bid last month, run it through the free option and the tool you are considering, and compare the numbers and the time. Our free and low-cost comparison has a paragraph on each tool, including what to watch out for, and our worked takeoff example shows what a free browser tool produces on a real sheet.
Common questions
How much does takeoff software cost?
Published prices in September 2026 ran from free to about $3,600 per user per year for dedicated takeoff tools, with most established products between $1,200 and $3,000 per seat per year. Markup-first and low-cost cloud plans cost $260 to $840 a year. On-Screen Takeoff and Autodesk Forma Takeoff (formerly Autodesk Takeoff) are quote only.
What is the cheapest takeoff software?
Among the prices we checked, TRACEBUILD Lite is free during early access and will be $4.99 per user per month at launch, and STACK offers a free version of its takeoff product. The cheapest paid plan with counts included was Bluebeam Core at $330 per user per year, and zzTakeoff Pro was $549.89 a year.
What takeoff software suits a small business?
Start with the lowest-cost tool that measures what you bid. A one-person shop pricing in Excel can often work with a free or low-cost browser tool such as TRACEBUILD Lite. Firms with established assemblies or high bid volume may justify PlanSwift, On-Screen Takeoff or an AI product. Test on a real sheet first.