PlanSwift Construction Estimating & Takeoff Software

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PlanSwift is an on-screen digitizing and takeoff system that is suitable for both commercial and residential GCs and subcontractors in a number of industries, such as electrical, heavy/highway, plumbing, and custom and production home builders. The solution's functionality can be applied to most businesses that utilize digital blueprints.

PlanSwift provides a way for users to calculate digitized values, including labor and material costs, by clicking various points on the screen. The Single Click feature allows users to measure linear and square footage with one mouse click. The program also includes 64-bit Microsoft Excel integration and a browsing feature that lets users create and find new jobs in any location on the network or desktop, improving collaboration between team members. Takeoff features of the system include drag-and-drop assemblies on items, the ability to add hyperlinks, and automatic prompts that give users hints on what to do next during the process.

9 Reviews of PlanSwift Construction Estimating & Takeoff Software

Average User Ratings

Overall

Ease-of-use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

4.3 / 5 stars

Ratings Snapshot

5 stars

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1 stars

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(13)

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Excellent Value for the Money - Full take off AND estimating capabilities

Date Posted: September 2017

Juan

Commercial Concrete Systems, LLC

Review source:
Software Advice

4.5/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: We are a medium size concrete and masonry subcontractor. We have used another estimating software for about 17 years, but no on screen take off abilities and very little flexibility in creating your own assemblies or unit prices. It is more of a general GC type of software. It was time for a change. I am very happy with Planswift. No software is perfect, but definitely Planswift makes easy taking off and estimating a job. If you plan on using it just for take off purposes, you can start as soon

Pros: Take off portion is super user friendly. You learn how to use it in a couple of hours. Price is very reasonable. Huge savings in prints to bid jobs. Database can be shared among all users. You can create as many assemblies and unit price templates as you want. You have access to formulas to calculate material quantities based on the take off. Customer support is excellent and unlimited for simple take off questions. Training is excellent My sales person, Conner Livingston, still assists

Cons: To use the pricing portion you have to create your own assemblies. They are not pre-built. Lacks security features to prevent deleting custom made reports. You have to back them up. Lacks security features to prevent others to modify your database and custom made reports. You have to back them up. Only two people at Planswift have knowledge about building reports and is not part of the regular customer support. Either you buy a Training package or pay by the hour so they can help you build th

PlanSwift claims to be the number 1 takeoff software. It's true!

Date Posted: October 2018

Lynn

Evergreen Technology

Review source:
Capterra

5/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: I've been using this software for over 6 years now (back at version 8.0). I have customized the export to excel and created a fully automatic system where I use PlanSwift for the super fast take off features, then export it into my customized excel worksheet which makes everything instantly calculated the way I want it with instant and automatic reports (material order / P.O., field labor budget for the workers in the field, accounting report, financial evaluation of the bid... etc. ALL others w

Pros: Easy to learn. Dead on accurate. Super easy to navigate. Also... you can learn how to customize PlanSwift to give you the Export into Excel anyway you would like. No limitations. No other software has this feature. PRICE: Seems high but remember... this is a ONE TIME PURCHASE (no annual fees). Saves a TON of money compared to others who charge an up front fee PLUS their annual fee .

Cons: I can't find anything wrong with this software. Everything others lack, PlanSwift has it included. Again... I haven't found another digital takeoff software that even comes close. I would recommend this one and let readers know you can buy with confidence.

Planswift is and essential tool that we use everyday - could be improved though

Date Posted: September 2018

Robert

KEA Corporation

Review source:
Software Advice

4.5/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: Please lower price ? Or introduce discounts at certain times of the year for existing customers who have had the software for a certain amount of time.

Pros: I love that we're able to take off drawings digitally, a lot different than I when used to have to take off projects when I was younger by hand. I love the support we're able to access when we have questions, everyone seems to be very knowledgeable about the software and knows how to answer our questions directly and effectively. I also like how we're allowed to disable the license each time we're finished using the software each day at the office - allows me to pick up different projects that I

Cons: The price can be overwhelming at times - we like to keep up with the maintenance/updates and support which is an additional couple hundred dollars every year. Not to mention wanting to get a couple more computers with Planswift on each with their own license is impossible for us at this time, which is actually holding us back.

Great takeoff software, good parts estimation, NO database

Date Posted: October 2017

Shane

PDC

Review source:
Software Advice

3.3/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: Planswift is like an open-source, do-it-yourself platform. It is awesome in it's capability to write what you need and even design the input screens to look very clean and professional. But negatives come with that...it's not good at all for multiple users, you have to define all your own processes and there is little to no bid-level abilities with the software. Most of the great reviews for Planswift are based on the Takeoff aspect. They are correct. But the estimation side is only great for a

Pros: -Takeoff probably couldn't be better. All takeoff software should be judged against Planswift. -Estimation is confusing at first, but very powerful. Everything is customizable. -Price is very low for what you can do.

Cons: -No database. This is a basic requirement. You can connect to MS database, but one shouldn't need to do that. -Reporting is not good at all. It is very glitchy. So it appears easy to customize, but then things just quit working. -Support and upgrades have seemingly stopped. Ownership has a changed a few times and now the software seems to be in limbo.

Easily the best takeoff & estimating software available!

Date Posted: June 2017

Dean

DK Construction, Inc.

Review source:
Software Advice

4/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

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Value for Money

Comment: We are a large GC and self-perform much of our own work (concrete, framing, roofing, drywall, siding, etc.) and even do takeoffs on the work we are subbing out to keep our subs in check. We feel the sample parts & assemblies that come with the software as well as the plugins PlanSwift offers are useless. We found a company (www.precisiontakeoffs.com) that makes what PlanSwift refers to as "Third Party" plugins and they have been amazing. We have purchased 6 plugins from this company and they are

Pros: We love the fact that you can do everything (takeoff, pricing, overhead, profit, & bid proposal) within PlanSwift!

Cons: It does have a bit of lag on bigger takeoffs as it is only a 32 bit system. Customer service is terrible!

Great On-Screen Takeoff Tool

Date Posted: December 2016

Matt

Gates Construction

Review source:
Software Advice

4.3/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: We started using this product to save money on plans and expedite the takeoff process. We still use our own excel-based estimating template, but the software allows us to quickly takeoff and add/subtract sections from the estimate with ease and without having to commit to print a full plan set without first being awarded the job. The accuracy is close to what we get for counts with a scale and excel line items.

Pros: The takeoff interface is much easier to use than On-Screen that I have used. Most commands and different functions can all be performed with the mouse and keyboard in a very streamlined and user-friendly manner. It also always you to use and arc function to measure arc distances. The area and linear takeoff/deduct items are very useful as long as you know what exactly you are looking for.

Cons: It is very easy to make a mistake in your takeoff of the elevations if you don't keep track of the floor plans and returns into the building as well. It requires you to be as thorough as if you were taking it off by hand, but the measuring and recording parts become much easier. You must still learn all wall types and details to no make a mistake. A 3D software would take into account returns into the building and wall backups/details that are sometimes hard to keep track of in 2D.

Decent digital take offs

Date Posted: October 2016

Jesse

Canar Contracting Ltd.

Review source:
Software Advice

3.8/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: After using Planswift for the last few years, I would have to say the program is definitely worthwhile and provides bang for the buck. As an affordable program, the features included, after a bit of getting used to, rival the more expensive suites out there in terms of usability and over all value. Coming from a civil background, the features were relatively easy to dive in and get figured out. With a wealth of resources available, anyone who can't figure it out in a hurry is simply not trying e

Pros: Planswift is relatively easy to navigate, with the user interface friendly and not too cumbersome. As some programs tend to feel bogged down with features that are specific to a few endusers, Planswift allows the addition of add-ons to free up the real-estate and allow for an easier transition. Further, the customer support is great and has helped me on numerous occasions to get through whatever issue arose at the time. Technically tight, easy to use and a wealth of support.

Cons: There has not been many instances where the program has left me desiring, however, there has been a couple of shifts internally since I have been using the program and things have been rather confusing as to who, what, where and when the ownership was being turned over. There was a bit of confusion when my licence had expired and the company had been purchased by Oracle, along with the Gradebeam service. However, even during this uncertainty, the helpful customer service was able to set things r

Planswift meets our growing needs and is expandable

Date Posted: July 2018

Linda

RLI Building Envelope Specialists Ltd

Review source:
Software Advice

4.5/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: Overall, we love this product for our companies needs.

Pros: Easy to use and great support for training and technical issues. The support team works well to accomplish better performance and has a great system for followup and trouble shooting. The program itself is very intuitive to use for the takeoff section, and lots of autocad shortcuts work wtih planswift.

Cons: Building of assemblies is not straight forward. It is cumbersome to put them together. The reporting function as well is not as all encompassing as we would like to see it. Too generic in its applications with no real way to modify the output without great difficulty.

PlanSwift Does The Job

Date Posted: November 2016

Jamie

Newberg Irrigation

Review source:
Software Advice

4.8/5

Overall

Ease of Use

Features & Functionality

Customer Support

Value for Money

Comment: We have being using PlanSwift now for close to a year and it has been a blessing. We are a commercial irrigation business and strictly use PlanSwift for takeoffs and estimating. It does just about everything we need. It's easy to learn, accurate, customizable for us and their customer service is first class.

Pros: The biggest plus with PlanSwift is that it's easy to use. The takeoffs are accurate, the tools are there to use and all the data is right there at your finger tips. You can create your own library of items, which saves times once you begin to do multiple takeoffs over time. Speaking of time, using PlanSwift is definitely a time saver compared to the way we used to takeoff jobs. Again, the counts and linear footage tools are spot on so I am never worried about inaccurate data.

Cons: At this time, PlanSwift is not compatible with our existing excel spreadsheet. So we do the takeoff in PlanSwift and import the data onto our spreadsheets. On another note, PlanSwift slows down with the bigger takeoffs deep into the takeoff cycle for that particular job. And if I really had to be nit-picky I would love to see more "count" symbols.