Joist is one of the most widely downloaded contractor apps on the App Store. It's cheap, it's fast, and for a lot of one-person operations it's genuinely enough.
Estimation Builder and Joist Pro are within a few dollars of each other — EB is $19/month, Joist Pro is ~$13-16. So price isn't really the question. The honest question is: do you need the construction-specific features EB adds (six charge types, real change orders, QuickBooks Online + Desktop export) or is Joist's simpler workflow enough? This post walks through exactly when each one is the right call.
Joist in one paragraph
Joist (owned by EverCommerce) is a mobile-first estimating and invoicing app aimed at handymen, painters, plumbers, and small contractors. Free tier gets you basic estimates and invoices. The Pro tier adds client signatures, payments via credit card, and a few polish features. The product is deliberately simple — that's its appeal and its ceiling.
Estimation Builder in one paragraph
Estimation Builder is purpose-built for contractors whose bids have multiple line items priced by different units — square feet, cubic feet, quantity, flat rate, per foot, per hour. It handles the full bid-to-bill lifecycle: estimates → accepted → change orders → invoices → QuickBooks export. Same $19/month, all features, no tiers.
Side by side
| Feature |
Joist Pro |
Estimation Builder |
| Price |
~$13-16/mo |
$19/mo |
| Free trial |
Free tier available |
14 days, full access, no credit card required |
| Mobile-first workflow |
Yes |
Yes |
| Professional PDF estimates |
Yes |
Yes, with reusable signature and company branding |
| Change order management |
Limited / workaround |
First-class, tracked against original estimate |
| Charge types |
Basic (qty × price) |
6 types: sq ft, cu ft, qty, flat, per foot, per hour |
| Reusable item catalog |
Limited |
Full catalog with per-item charge type |
| Convert estimate → invoice |
Yes |
Yes, one tap |
| QuickBooks Online export |
No native export |
Monthly CSV export |
| QuickBooks Desktop (IIF) |
No |
Monthly IIF export |
| Customer payments via CC |
Built-in (fees apply) |
Not built-in (use Stripe or QB separately) |
| Account model |
Solo operator / single user |
Solo operator / single user |
When Joist is the right call
- You're a solo operator and your bids rarely run more than 3-4 line items.
- You rarely deal with change orders. When scope changes, you verbally agree and adjust the invoice.
- You want customers to pay the invoice via credit card inside the app (Joist has this built in; EB does not).
- You don't use QuickBooks or you use a different accounting system.
- You don't bid often enough to need a paid estimating tool, and Joist's free tier covers your volume.
Don't feel bad about picking Joist here. It's a well-built app for this use case.
When Estimation Builder is the right call
- Your bids have 10+ line items across different charge types (square feet for flooring, per-foot for trim, flat rate for demolition).
- Change orders are a real part of your business — remodels, additions, anything where scope shifts mid-job.
- You use QuickBooks and you're tired of re-typing data at the end of every month.
- You have a reusable catalog of materials/services and you want to stop re-entering them on every estimate.
- You want the polish of a purpose-built construction tool (branded PDFs, change orders, QB export) and the $19/mo pays for itself the first time you save 30 minutes on a bid.
The honest pricing math
$19 - $16 = $3/month. That's about $36/year — basically a sit-down lunch. The price difference is nominal, so the decision really does come down to whether the construction-specific features (charge types, change orders, QB export) match how you bid. If they do, the cost gap doesn't move the decision. If they don't, Joist is genuinely simpler and you save the three bucks.
What we don't have that Joist does
- In-app credit card payments. We don't process payments. Your customers pay via invoice, ACH, check, or whatever you set up separately.
- A free tier. We offer a 14-day trial with full access, no credit card required, but there's no "free forever" option.
- The App Store presence. Joist has apps. Estimation Builder runs in a mobile browser — responsive, fast, but not a native app.
The verdict
- Solo operator, simple bids, want payment processing built in: Joist.
- Multiple trades, real change orders, QuickBooks user, reusable catalog matters: Estimation Builder.
Not sure which camp you're in? Start a free 30-day Estimation Builder trial — if the full feature set doesn't obviously pay for itself within the first month, you're probably a Joist contractor. No credit card needed either way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Joist cheaper than Estimation Builder?
Joist Pro is about $13-16/month; Estimation Builder is $19/month — within a few dollars. At that price gap, the decision is about features, not price. Estimation Builder adds six charge types instead of simple quantity × price, first-class change order management, a reusable item catalog, and QuickBooks Online + Desktop export — none of which Joist includes.
Can I convert a Joist estimate to an invoice?
Joist supports converting estimates to invoices. Estimation Builder offers the same with one tap, plus it carries line items with multiple charge types (e.g. square footage, flat rate, per hour) that Joist can't model natively.
Does Joist integrate with QuickBooks?
Joist does not have a native QuickBooks export in either Online or Desktop formats. Estimation Builder emails monthly exports in QBO CSV or QB Desktop IIF formats, covering customers, items, invoices, payments, estimates, and change orders.
Should a solo handyman pick Joist or Estimation Builder?
For a solo handyman with simple bids, Joist is often the right call — it's cheaper and the added Estimation Builder features (charge types, change orders, QB export) add less value at that scale. Contractors with multiple trades, reusable catalogs, and change order volume see more from Estimation Builder.