Super time saver

The customer service is outstanding. I had a one-on-one call with CSR to help with a few questions I had, and he was extremely helpful - patiently explaining those things I was confused about. With the new search feature, I am now extremely happy with this product and am very glad to have found it.

Pros

How much faster it is to put accurate estimates together. I also like ability to adjust the labor rates and hourly multiplier for bigger crews. The templates help make sure I don't miss including necessary parts to the proposals, and the ability to edit items for individual jobs is easy and convenient.

Cons

At this time, it does not integrate with QuickBooks Online, something that I have been told they are working toward. I found adding Alternates to the quote to be a little confusing with all the different areas that they can be entered, and still do to a certain extent.

Best investment in construction

The biggest benefit to this is having accurate quoting. Since I started using it, I was able to increase my profit margins from 10% to 30% and capture more clients along the way.

Pros

This is easily one of the best investments I have ever purchased. With quarterly pricing updates and customization proposal forms, it allows me to stand out from other companies with clear and professional quotes and bids. I've done over 100 bids on here and probably capture 80%-90% of the clients.

Cons

This doesn't have a simple feature to convert my quotes into itemized invoices once completed. If it had that feature, this would be all that I would need. It took a while to get used to and to modify for my needs (and I still need to change a few things), but once I got the templates set up, it was fine. Some of the categories use the wrong labor code so I have to pay attention, but that is relatively a small deal.

Review Clear Estimates

Never heard about web based upgrade. was using old version till saw Wyatt's presentation using the upgraded system. Would have been nice to hear from CE that this was available. Much better application for my business.

Pros

Keeps me organized and on track, I dont miss anything on quote.

Cons

Very glitchy, many time need to get out of program and sign back in when it freezes or fails to respond

Well-Designed Estimating Software for Small to Mid-Sized Construction Businesses

Clear Estimates has saved me countless hours over the past few months. I used Contractor Foreman previously and Clear Estimates may not include as many project management-related features, but it is far and away the better choice for putting together estimates, quotes, and project proposals.

Pros

Once you modify the provided tasks to fit the projects you do and the way you bid your work, Clear Estimates allows you to bid out the standard components of a project by the piece or by area. If you track the actual time and materials required to complete a particular component over many jobs and get an accurate figure for the per piece or per square foot cost, this method of bidding can save you a huge amount of time by allowing you to extrapolate from the number of pieces/area of the installation to an accurate estimate of the time and materials required. Once the library of pieces has been built out or adapted, you can create a finished estimate in a few minutes.

Cons

The system for adding sales tax to a proposal is a little clunky, but if you're familiar with the various tax rates in your work area, it's only a minor inconvenience.

Review

Over all I am very satisfied with the program.

Pros

Easy to put together an estimate with in minutes.

Cons

Reports page needs more options. You should be able to put the disclaimer, project disruption etc... any where you would like. Right now it’s gets all jumbled at the top of e proposals.

Great product

This system is great for construction. This system has let me grow my business in a short period of time.

Pros

The pre loaded templates and tasks allowed me to go from putting out 3-5 estimates a day to 15-25 estimates a day.

Cons

Hate that you can not filter the customer list better. Here are some of the filter options I need. Filter customers to see who hasn't paid yet. Filter by approved, open and declined jobs.

Great tool

Overall clear estimates has been extremely helpful building estimates and has saved time estimating projects

Pros

The customer service is excellent, website is easy to use and very customizable presents information in easy to use context.

Cons

I wish there was an option to use offline, some of the templates and parts are hard to find, I wish there were more parts and a different way to sort them or an alternate way to search phrases or components maybe smart assist estimate building like a questioner about the project being estimated then an ai suggest components to add or a way to review your estimate for errors.

Estimate review

Very easy and convient to use out in the field.

Pros

It's really easy to use . I like how it helps with prices and any questions I have I get a same day response. Very happy with software.

Cons

I won't let me send as a text message only email.

Overall a good product

We have been overall happy with the program. It is really hard to teach someone new how to use it though. We have a new employee and there have been several huge mistakes that have costs our company money in the long run due to over seeing some things.

Pros

Produces estimates fast, great to keep track of jobs, easy to change estimates for customers, cuts down on the time spent on the estimate

Cons

The search function is not great at all. It take a long time and rarely find what you need. The organization of parts seems to not be consistent. Sometimes the removal of things are within the right categories and sometimes they are in a general category. It is very time consuming to have to look in both categories. It does not integrate with quickbooks, which would make sending estimates a lot easier. Right now we have to save to word and then go to email and select the document to send to a customer, very time consuming.

Very helpful for bidding jobs!

Accurate job estimates with detailed pricing and flexibility. Up to date pricing info. Professional estimates.

Pros

The constantly updated materials and labor costs based on my geographical area is invaluable! I also like the flexibility to adjust pricing.

Cons

Can be a bit time consuming putting all the bid pieces together. Would also like to see an invoicing option based on the bid.

My Clear estimate review.

I've been using Clear estimates software for about 4 years and the Program is very compatible with other programs out there. What makes Clear estimate different is that it is user-friendly and the layout of the program is very professional. When I hand my estimate over to my customer it's very well laid out and detailed . What I like most about Clear estimate Besides it's layout it pretty much covers all the trades. But the best thing is that it's very affordable for contractors like me that runs a small business.

Pros

What I like most about this software is being able to set up Parts & Templates which makes putting together an estimate a lot faster which means you have more time to oversee your business.

Cons

The thing I least like about this software is not being able to use it for insurance work. What I mean by that is some jobs I get may be from insurance companies and the estimate might call for dehumidifiers and fans board ups stuff like that. But I can get by with it.

Great product it has helped my business.

I do not like the estimating side of my business cause I am bad at it and I tend to be optimistic which causes me to short myself in the long run. I started using this product to help me with the process to get estimates out faster and to know I am giving a good estimate that doesn't short me. It has helped me in that aspect for sure. The customer service is superb. There is this little icon u click and send them a msg with your questions and they get back to you in a timely fashion. The nice thing is the msg comes back in the program and they also send me an email. So if I am in the field working I know they have responded with an answer when I get the email. I love how you can email the estimate right from clear estimates and the estimate looks very professional. You can customize the formal estimate to how ever you like. Also if you don't like the prices they give you, you can easily adjust them for that estimate per item. Or you can customize that item to show up every time with your adjustment in price on every estimate. The customization to the items and pricing is endless. I have had to add very few new items they have so much to chose from already. The program is easy to use. I could teach my 11 year old to use it if I needed to. I have had nothing but great success using there program. They also give u a free trial to use it first. Take the free trial and try it you won't be dispointed. I am surprised this program does not cost more. I have made up for its cost monthly in the more money I am making due to its estimates. Thank you clearestimates.

Pros

Easy of use, price, use on any device, customer support, the quarterly updates for pricing, and formal look of the estimates, and being able to email the directly from clearestimates to my customers.

Cons

Does not import directly in to quickbooks online. If it did that it would be perfect for me. I prefer using quickbooks online so I can use the program from any where like clearestimates.

Worth every dollar!!!

I used this software when it first came out. Now it has come a long way on appearance and functionality. As far as learning a new software, the curve was easy for me. If you are a small contractor this is a must for speed of quoting and accuracy. Also with the reports function you look as professional as the big guys. If you want to step up your company, get Clear Estimates!!!

Pros

Easy to learn. Professional looking reports. The ease of updates prices for material and labor. Customer support is spot on. And the software was created by remodelers that understand the struggle. They are always striving to make the software better.

Cons

Some minor software updates could be done. A mobile version could also help a lot more small business.

Only great experiences using Clear Estimates!

I've been a Clear Estimates subscriber for several years now and couldn't imagine what I'd do without the program.

Pros

I'm not very technologically advanced and struggle greatly with estimates as well. Clear estimates was as easy to work with as possible and the real selling point for me is their amazing customer service. I will never be great at using any software but several times I have emailed questions or called their customer support and I have always been able to speak with a live person who smoothly assists me through my issues. The quick response time is amazing and I have grown to count on their availability to help me with any issues and they have never let me down.

Cons

If I had to choose I guess I'd like it to be a bit cheaper but in all honesty it is a really good value and worth every cent. But who doesn't want everything a bit cheaper?

Perfect Answer to Estimating

Been with them from the start up , great customer service and always striving to make things better for remodeling estimating . We searched and tried many other software options for estimating our large projects , maintenance , and repairs and were pleased to find CE nailed it for quoting everything we do and almost instantly made our estimating chore quick and painless.

Pros

User Friendly / Excellent adjustable database / Easy to make proposal changes for re-submittal /Proposals that Clients Complement Every time

Cons

No Cons with this software , we adjusted to fit our needs .

Easy to use, unassuming software for remodel estimating - Saves hours of work.

After using both the downloaded and cloud versions of this software for about 4 years, I can't imagine how I ever did without it. Previous to this we used QB to estimate our projects, which was a time consuming and tedious process that seemed like it always being done from the ground up on every project. Once the initial time of a 1/2 day to a day is invested to set this software up to fit your business needs, even the most complicated proposal or estimate can be completed in an hour or less, with many of our standard proposals being generated in 15-30 minutes.

Pros

Easy to use, great support, cloud storage

Cons

Little technical items like having to manually fill and delete lines in individual categories