Comparison

ServiceMonster vs Permitly

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

ServiceMonster

Streamline your business operations with this app. Manage schedules, create invoices, process payments, and track technicians. Simplify job management from start to finish, all from your mobile device.

Highlights
  • Job scheduling
  • Invoice creation
  • Payment processing
  • Technician management
  • Route optimization
  • On-site job management
  • Customer signatures
Features
Read full description

Organize your business. Schedule jobs, take notes, create invoices, process payments, and manage your technicians and their routes. Business management simplified. Simple scheduling to fit your workflow. Day, week, month, and agenda view. The home screen with everything you need. Search your account, add new customers, manage your leads, view account recent activity, manage all activities, customize company settings, Complete job management from your phone. Check in and out of jobs easily, take photos on-site, contact customers, collect signatures, and edit work orders all from one screen. Manage from the field. With the power of our mobile app, you can run your entire business from a phone or tablet. No more paper. No more mess.

About

Permitly

Easily manage all your business licenses, permits, and renewal dates in one organized place. Smart scanning helps extract details from documents, and customizable reminders ensure you never miss a deadline. Track costs, generate reports, and keep your compliance documentation secure.

Highlights
  • Track licenses and permits by business
  • Smart Scan for document detail extraction
  • Customizable renewal reminders
  • Renewal history and cost tracking
  • Generate compliance PDF reports
  • Local data storage and device-level security
Features
Read full description

The easiest way to keep your business licenses, permits, and renewals organized. Running a business can mean keeping track of licenses, permits, certificates, renewal dates, fees, and paperwork across different agencies and locations. Permitly brings that information together in one place and gives you tools designed to help you keep track of upcoming deadlines. TRACK EVERYTHING IN ONE PLACE • Keep business licenses, health permits, sales tax permits, food handler cards, professional licenses, certificates, and more together • See which items are active, expiring soon, renewal due, late, or expired based on the information and dates stored in Permitly • Organize licenses by business, useful for owners managing multiple locations or ventures • Find what you need quickly with search, sorting, and one-tap status filters SMART SCAN • Take a photo of a license and Smart Scan attempts to identify useful details and fill them in for you • Scan photos or files with processing performed entirely on your device • Scan multiple documents at once and review the results together • Get 2 Smart Scans free, and a scan only counts when you save the license • Review and edit scanned information before saving REMINDERS DESIGNED TO HELP YOU STAY AHEAD • Schedule renewal reminders before each deadline at the time of day you choose • Premium adds escalating reminders and renewal-window alerts to help keep upcoming and overdue items visible • See what may need attention next from your Home Screen widget • Tap a widget item to jump directly to that license RENEWAL HISTORY & COSTS • Link each renewal to the license it replaces and build a complete renewal timeline • Premium can attempt to match renewals with their previous licenses automatically • See estimated renewal fees coming due over the next 90 days and 12 months based on the information stored in Permitly • Export your records to CSV • Premium lets you add renewal deadlines to your calendar DOCUMENTS & REPORTS • Attach photos and documents directly to licenses with Premium • Generate a compliance PDF report using the information stored in Permitly • Create reports for your records or to share with landlords, lenders, inspectors, and others when appropriate PRIVATE BY DESIGN • No Permitly account or sign-up required • Your data is stored locally on your device • Protect access to Permitly with Face ID or Touch ID on supported devices • Premium can sync your Permitly data through your private iCloud account • Create encrypted local backups of your Permitly data • Premium backups can be restored across your supported devices START FREE. UPGRADE WHEN YOU NEED MORE. The Free plan includes up to 2 licenses stored on your device, renewal reminders, 2 Smart Scans, and CSV export. It gives small businesses the core tools needed to organize licenses, permits, and renewal information in one place. Premium unlocks unlimited licenses, unlimited Smart Scan, iCloud sync across your devices, document attachments, escalating reminders, automatic renewal history matching, compliance PDF reports, calendar export, and portable backups. Choose monthly, yearly, or a one-time lifetime purchase. Keep your licenses, permits, documents, and renewal dates organized in one place with Permitly.

Screenshots

ServiceMonster4 screens
Permitly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Permitly at 5.0 against ServiceMonster's 2.8. ServiceMonster's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (55 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Permitly sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. ServiceMonster asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Permitly holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ServiceMonster has 55 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ServiceMonster ships an update fortnightly, Permitly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
ServiceMonster versus Permitly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterServiceMonsterPermitly
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.8 (55 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews22.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings55 — better1
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.4 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size165 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperServiceMonster LLCAlexander Moss

Customer experience

ServiceMonster

All ratings55 ratings
Positive30.9%
Neutral12.7%
Negative56.4%
Written reviews27 reviews
Positive22.2%
Neutral11.1%
Negative66.7%

Permitly

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

ServiceMonster

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Permitly

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly3 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly7 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Premium$129.99

Questions

Is ServiceMonster free?
ServiceMonster is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Permitly free?
Permitly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ServiceMonster or Permitly?
Permitly is rated higher. ServiceMonster averages 2.8 out of 5 from 55 ratings, while Permitly averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do ServiceMonster or Permitly have ads?
Neither ServiceMonster nor Permitly shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ServiceMonster or Permitly?
ServiceMonster ships an update fortnightly, and Permitly every 3 weeks. Most recently, ServiceMonster was updated on October 9, 2026 and Permitly on October 5, 2026.

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