PlanSwift vs TRACEBUILD: desktop assemblies or browser takeoff
PlanSwift is a Windows takeoff and estimating program built around assemblies, from $2,000 per seat per year. TRACEBUILD Lite is a browser tool for markup, measurement and quantity takeoff, free during early access and $4.99 per user per month at launch. Pick PlanSwift for assembly-driven pricing; pick TRACEBUILD for low-cost takeoff on any computer.
Side by side
| What you need to know | TRACEBUILD | PlanSwift |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Lite free during early access, then $4.99 per user per month | Essential $2,000, Core $3,000, per seat per year (pricing) |
| Try before you buy | Free account, no credit card | 14-day free trial, no credit card |
| Where it runs | Browser: Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox | Windows Professional or Enterprise (requirements) |
| Mac | In the browser | Boot Camp or a virtual machine such as Parallels |
| Measuring | Area, length, perimeter, volume, wall area, count | Areas, lengths, volumes, counts |
| Assemblies and costing | Not in Lite; estimating is in Pro, coming soon | Yes: custom formulas, assemblies, material and labor costing |
| Automated takeoff | Detect Spaces proposes named rooms and Trace Walls proposes walls by class; you accept each before it counts | Core includes Takeoff BOOST Auto Takeoff, "the AI tool that builds a first-pass takeoff for areas, lengths, and counts"; Essential has Auto Count, Auto Scale and Auto Bookmark (pricing) |
| Files it opens | PDF (vector or scanned), PNG and JPEG images, DXF, and DWG from AutoCAD 2000 to 2018 | PDF, DWG, JPG, TIFF and other formats |
| Output | Excel and CSV; DXF export; DWG export in Preview | Excel, plus integrations such as QuickBooks |
| Where drawings are processed | On your device by default | On your Windows computer |
PlanSwift features are from its ConstructConnect product page, and its AI tools and plans from its pricing page. Checked September 2026; verify current details with ConstructConnect.
What PlanSwift still does better
Pricing at the moment of measuring. In PlanSwift an assembly can carry formulas and material and labor costs, so measuring a wall can produce the studs, board, screws and labor behind it. TRACEBUILD Lite stops at quantities; you price them in your own workbook. If your office has years of assemblies built up, that library is the reason to stay.
- Assemblies and formulas that turn one measurement into a priced list of materials and labor.
- Integrations with Excel and accounting and estimating software, including QuickBooks according to its product page.
- Overlay comparison to spot changes between plan versions.
- Maturity. A long-established tool with trained users, which means your new hire may already know it.
Where TRACEBUILD is different
- No Windows requirement. It runs in the browser, so estimators on Macs or locked-down laptops can take off without a virtual machine.
- Entry price. Free during early access and $4.99 per user per month at launch, against a per-seat annual license.
- Named rooms and wall classes, reviewed first. PlanSwift Core's Auto Takeoff also builds a first pass. What TRACEBUILD adds: Detect Spaces names each proposed room from the drawing's own labels, Trace Walls sorts proposed walls by class, and nothing is counted in the takeoff totals until you accept it. Our worked example shows a real sheet where one office outline had to be redrawn by hand.
- Excel keys that survive revisions. Every total row in the export carries a stable key, so a pricing sheet that looks up by key updates in place when a revised drawing is re-exported.
- Checkable wall accuracy. The published wall-detection benchmark ships with its test plans and scoring code.
If you are thinking of switching
Assemblies do not transfer, because TRACEBUILD Lite has none; plan to keep your pricing logic in a spreadsheet that reads the exported quantities. Item names are the equivalent of PlanSwift takeoff items: name them the same way and the Excel export groups them the same way. Run one live bid through both tools, compare the quantities line by line, and time it. If you mainly need areas, lengths and counts, the browser tool will likely be enough; if you price from assemblies all day, it will not be yet.
Common questions
Is there a free alternative to PlanSwift?
For quantity takeoff, yes. TRACEBUILD Lite is free during early access and does area, length, count and volume takeoff in the browser with Excel export, becoming $4.99 per user per month at launch. It does not replace PlanSwift's assemblies and costing; estimating is part of TRACEBUILD Pro, which is coming soon.