Electrical contracting software is two products wearing one name. The service shape runs calls: the property record, the price book, the estimate approved at the door, the invoice paid on the phone. The project shape runs construction jobs: phases with budgets, draws against a schedule of values, change orders. A shop that does both needs both, and a shop that buys the wrong one will fight it every day.
The service shape
A day of calls needs the customer's history on the phone before the door, a price book to tap rather than type, an estimate the customer approves with a signature, a work order that becomes the invoice, and payment at the door. The free tools on this site cover the documents; the record they hang off is the paid product.
The project shape
A fit-out or a new build needs rough-in, trim and final as phases with their own labor budget and material, actual hours recorded against each, draws produced from progress, retainage tracked and every change order priced before the work. Service software has none of that; project software is built around it.
The four jobs either has to do
Hold the customer and the property with the equipment on it, keep the schedule with the licence on each electrician, carry the estimate through to the invoice without re-typing, and feed the books. A product that does those four for your shape is the one to buy.
What the products cost
From the vendors' own pricing pages on the day they were read: Tradify's Lite plan is $47 USD per user per month, with Pro at $51 and Plus at $61; Jobber's Core plan is $49 a month including one user, with additional users at $29 a month each; Housecall Pro's Basic plan is $59 a month billed annually, or $79 billed monthly. Multiply the per-user line by everyone who needs a login, because that is what a plan actually costs a shop.
Questions people ask about electrical contracting software
Can one product do both shapes?
Some do, usually on a higher tier. Ask the vendor to show a change order and a draw on a phone as well as a service invoice before deciding.
Which shape does a small residential shop need?
The service shape. Project features matter when a job is paid in draws and has phases.
Are any of the tools here free?
Six are: cost calculator, estimate calculator, invoice, price book, receipt template and residential price list. No account needed.