Comparison

Joist vs ContractorTools

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

Head to head
About

Joist

Streamline your contracting business with this app. Create professional estimates and invoices quickly, accept payments, and manage client information all from your mobile device. Save time and win more jobs with organized project management.

Highlights
  • Create professional estimates and invoices
  • Accept credit card and PayPal payments
  • Manage client information
  • Convert estimates to invoices
  • Attach photos and contracts
  • Export to accounting software
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Win more jobs and get paid faster with Joist — the ultimate estimate, invoice & job management tool for contractors. Manage your business entirely from your iPhone or iPad. Create professional quotes in seconds, schedule work, accept secure payments, and stay ahead of the competition with the industry's most trusted tool for builders. Whether you are estimating on-site, scheduling upcoming work, or sending professional bills from the office, Joist saves time, keeps you organized, and helps you stay on top of your workday. Note: Payments functionality is currently available in the US & Canada. ——— WHY CONTRACTORS LOVE JOIST • SAVES TIME – Complete administrative work at the jobsite or on-the-go. Stop spending evenings catching up on paperwork, paper notes & digital receipts. • STAY ORGANIZED – Keep every job organized in one place. Connect customer details, estimates, invoices, notes, and schedules so you always know where work stands without digging through texts or spreadsheets. • PLAN WITH CONFIDENCE – See upcoming work in a simple calendar view, avoid scheduling conflicts, and always know what’s coming next. • WIN MORE JOBS – Send your client an estimate before you leave. Be the first to create an estimate & give them the opportunity to say YES on the spot. • SPEED UP ESTIMATING & INVOICING – Build estimates & invoices quicker by selecting from your list of commonly used materials + labor rates. • ACCEPT PAYMENTS – Accept Credit Card & PayPal payments directly through Joist. No more driving around to pick up checks. • EASILY MANAGE CLIENTS – Create, organize & store valuable info to access your clients' data anytime, on the go. • LOOK PROFESSIONAL – Show clients you are the contractor they should trust with customized estimates & invoices. ——— KEY FEATURES • Create & organize jobs, keeping notes, photos, estimates & invoices connected • Schedule visits for every job & track workload in a simple calendar view • Customize estimates & invoices with company info & logo • Attach a client contract & collect a signature on the spot • Accept Credit Card & PayPal payments directly through the app • Build a list of commonly used items, services & materials • Attach photos to your estimates & invoices • Preview, print, or email estimates & invoices on the spot • Create personal messages & digital receipts for your clients • Convert estimates into invoices ASAP • Keep track of customer payments & bills • Export data into your accounting program to reduce costs • Access all your info from any device or the web — Joist is cloud-based. ——— USE CASES & VERSATILITY • On-Site Estimates: Walk through a job & create a quote before leaving the property. • Smart Scheduling: Plan your workday, set up job site visits, and stay on top of active work. • Job Organization: Keep estimates, invoices, client notes & photos grouped neatly under each job. • Instant Invoicing: Convert approved quotes into professional bills & send instantly. • Mobile Payments: Accept payments immediately upon job completion. • Project Tracking: Use the estimator for accurate material & labor margins. ——— WHO USES JOIST General contractors, handymen, electricians, plumbers, builders, landscapers, roofers, painters, HVAC, flooring, remodeling, construction & more! ——— WHAT OTHER CONTRACTORS ARE SAYING "Now I can do quotes on the fly! I don't have to walk through the job & write everything down; it's all programmed into my iPad right from material cost to cost per square foot! This app is so awesome." ——— JOIST SUBSCRIPTIONS You can subscribe to Joist Pro or Joist Elite (Monthly/Annual). Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off 24 hrs prior to the end of the current period. Manage settings in App Store or iTunes. ——— Joist is FREE to Download & FREE to try! Available on iPhone, iPad & desktop. Get support FAST: hello@joist.com | www.joist.com | In-app live chat Terms: https://www.joist.com/terms/ Privacy: https://www.joist.com/privacy-policy/

About

ContractorTools

Streamline your contracting business with tools for creating estimates, invoices, and managing payments. Sync data seamlessly with QuickBooks Online and collaborate with your team across multiple devices. Focus on your work while this app handles the paperwork.

Highlights
  • Estimating
  • Invoicing
  • Payment tracking
  • QuickBooks Online sync
  • Multi-device sync
  • Offline functionality
  • Job templates
Features
Read full description

ContractorTools helps construction contractors quickly create estimates, invoices, and payments on an iPhone or iPad and sync them with QuickBooks Online. You can also sync between multiple people within your company using the iPhone, iPad, or Mac versions of the app. We know how difficult it is to manage a contracting business, and our goal is to make your life easier. FEATURE SUMMARY • Estimating • Change Orders • Credits • Draw Schedules • Invoicing • Payments • Job Templates • Custom Costbooks • Craftsman costbooks (optional in-app purchase) • Sync with QuickBooks Online • Sync between multiple users and multiple devices • Full support for international currencies and units QUICKLY CREATE PROFESSIONAL ESTIMATES AND WIN MORE JOBS • ContractorTools takes care of the paperwork so you can focus on your work. • Create an estimate at the job site and have your customer sign it on your iPhone or iPad. • Email a PDF estimate to the customer directly from your iPhone or iPad. • Win more jobs by creating professional estimates in minutes instead of hours. SYNC WITH QUICKBOOKS AND ELIMINATE REDUNDANT DATA ENTRY • Create an invoice and collect a payment at the tap of a button. • Sync your estimates, invoices, and payments to QuickBooks Online. • Eliminate hours of redundant data entry. • Your bookkeeper will love you! ADD HOME DEPOT PRODUCTS TO YOUR ESTIMATES • Add products from Home Depot directly to your estimates. • View live pricing and inventory from your local store. • Get discounts on materials with your ProXtra account. • Have the materials delivered to your job site or pick them up at your local store. INSTANT ACCESS TO 40,000 COST ITEMS WITH CRAFTSMAN COSTBOOKS • Subscribe to the Craftsman costbooks (optional), and access 40,000 construction cost items. • Costs are localized to your area based on your zip code in the US or your postal code in Canada. FULLY FUNCTIONAL OFFLINE – SYNCS TO THE CLOUD WHEN ONLINE • ContractorTools is a native app that is fully functional without an internet connection. • Keep working in a basement or at remote job sites. • Your data automatically syncs to the cloud when you're online. We're dedicated to providing outstanding customer support, so if you have any questions, feel free contact us any time at support@contractortools.com or (888)802-1040. Privacy Policy: https://contractortools.com/privacy Terms of Use: https://contractortools.com/terms

Screenshots

Joist4 screens
ContractorTools4 screens

Verdict

The call

Joist and ContractorTools both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 82% of ContractorTools's written reviews are positive against 62% of Joist's. Joist's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 weeks) and ratings volume (14K vs 1.8K). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases 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. Joist sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month and ContractorTools sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Joist against 4.7 for ContractorTools. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Joist has 14K ratings behind it against 1.8K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 62% of Joist's written reviews are positive against 82% of ContractorTools's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Joist ships an update every 2 weeks, ContractorTools every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Joist versus ContractorTools: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJoistContractorTools
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (14K ratings)4.7 (1.8K ratings)
Positive reviews61.9% of reviews81.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings14K — better1.8K
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#15 — better#194
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size191 MB118 MB
Age rating+44+
DeveloperJoist Software Inc.Contractor Tools

Customer experience

Joist

All ratings14,117 ratings
Positive94.6%
Neutral1.4%
Negative4.0%
Written reviews454 reviews
Positive61.9%
Neutral7.3%
Negative30.8%

ContractorTools

All ratings1,760 ratings
Positive94.6%
Neutral2.4%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews92 reviews
Positive81.5%
Neutral7.6%
Negative10.9%

User reviews

Joist

From 14K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Professional-looking invoices
  • 🚀 Convenient for small businesses
  • 🚀 Helpful for organizing estimates and invoices
  • 🚀 Great customer service

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches
  • 🔒 Security and payment processing issues
  • 💰 Expensive subscription fees
  • 🔒 Locking users out of their data
  • 🤯 Removing previously free features

ContractorTools

From 1.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great solution for estimating
  • 👍 Easy to learn and operate
  • 🚀 Convenient and professional
  • 👍 Seamless access across devices
  • 👍 Integrates with QuickBooks

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive for small contractors
  • 🐛 Glitches and bugs
  • 🔒 Limited payment processor options
  • 📄 Limited customization for invoice templates
  • 🔒 Frequent layout/hierarchy changes

Bugs and requests

Joist

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Freezing when removing photos
  • Estimates and invoices not being delivered
  • Inconsistent behavior across devices
  • Issues with payment processing and funds being held

Requested features

5 requests
  • Offline mode
  • Ability to customize invoices and estimates
  • More payment options
  • Integration with accounting software
  • Better organization and search for past invoices

ContractorTools

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Deleting items from estimates causes issues with invoices
  • Syncing problems leading to incorrect data
  • App crashing and becoming unusable

Requested features

5 requests
  • Option to show labor and materials costs separately
  • Ability to copy/paste entire sections in estimates
  • Quarterly updates for cost books
  • Stage manager support
  • Basic company financial reports

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Joist

Subscriptions10
  • Quickbooks Sync Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Joist Basics Monthly$9.991 Month
  • Joist Pro Monthly$16.991 Month
Show 7 more
  • Joist Elite Monthly$31.991 Month
  • Quickbooks Sync Annual$90.991 Year
  • Joist Run Monthly$99.991 Month
  • Joist Basics Annual$99.991 Year
  • Joist Pro Annual$169.991 Year
  • Joist Elite Annual$319.991 Year
  • Joist Run Annual$999.991 Year
4 purchases

ContractorTools

Subscriptions4
  • Craftsman Costbooks1 Month trial$12.991 Month
  • Basic Plan1 Month trial2 variants$24.991 Month
  • Essentials Plan1 Month trial2 variants$34.991 Month
Show 1 more
  • Pro Plan1 Month trial2 variants$64.991 Month

Questions

Is Joist free?
Joist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ContractorTools free?
ContractorTools is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Joist or ContractorTools?
Joist and ContractorTools are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 14K and 1.8K ratings respectively.
Do Joist or ContractorTools have ads?
Neither Joist nor ContractorTools shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Joist or ContractorTools?
Joist ships an update every 2 weeks, and ContractorTools every 5 weeks. Most recently, Joist was updated on September 24, 2026 and ContractorTools on September 22, 2026.
Which is more popular, Joist or ContractorTools?
Joist currently peaks at #15 in the App Store charts, and ContractorTools at #194. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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