App for landscapers and the best apps for landscapers who quote from the truck
LandscapeEstimating is an app for landscapers that turns a property address into a signed price. You trace turf, beds, edging and hardscape on satellite imagery from your phone, tablet or laptop, every layer prices from your own labor rates, production rates and margin, and the client signs the proposal online. Nothing to download from an app store: it runs in the browser. Plans start at $129 a month per company, with estimator seats and satellite measurements included.
The problem
Most landscaper phones carry six apps and none of them gives you a price.
Why the best apps for landscapers still leave the estimate to you
Look at any list of the best apps for landscapers and you will find the same mix: a map app to look at the property, a measuring app to get square feet, a calculator for mulch, a plant ID app, a scheduling app and an invoicing app. Each one does its job. The gap is the step in the middle, where somebody takes the measured area and works out labor hours, materials, disposal, overhead and margin.
That step usually happens at night on a spreadsheet, or in the truck from memory. The quote goes out a day or two later, two estimators price the same yard $600 apart, and the owner finds out which jobs lost money at the end of the season.
- Square feet from one app, typed by hand into a quote in another
- Mulch, sod and paver quantities worked out on a phone calculator with no waste factor
- Labor priced as a guess because production rates live in the owner's head
- A quote sent as a PDF or a text message, with no way to see whether the client opened it
Compare
What each kind of landscaping app actually does.
Landscaping app categories compared
These are the app types landscape contractors use most. The examples are the names that come up again and again on the published lists; check each vendor for its current features and pricing.
| App type | Typical examples | Gives you square feet | Turns it into a price | Sends a proposal the client signs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Map and imagery viewers | Google Earth, Google Maps | Rough, by hand | No | No |
| Phone measuring apps | Planimeter, LiDAR tape apps | Yes | No | No |
| Material calculators | Supplier and mulch calculators | No, you enter it | Materials only | No |
| Field service apps | Jobber, Tradify, Housecall Pro | Not natively | From a price list you type in | Quotes, yes |
| Landscape design apps | iScape, PRO Landscape | From the drawing | No, or through an add-on | Design presentation |
| Satellite estimating app | LandscapeEstimating | Yes, per layer | Yes, from your cost library | Yes, with online e-sign |
Where the others win: field service apps run your schedule, routes and invoices better than we do, and design apps draw the plan a design-build client wants to see. Where we win: the measured area becomes a priced, signed proposal in one sitting. Many companies keep their scheduling app and add ours for the estimate. If you already run Jobber, the Jobber alternative for landscapers post explains that setup.
How it works
Address to signed proposal on one screen.
How the landscaping app works from the curb
Every step fits a phone screen and a thumb, and the same account works on a desktop back at the office.
The full arithmetic for a real lot is on the landscaping estimate example page, and the measuring step on its own is covered on the yard measurement tool page.
- Search the address and the satellite image of the lot loads
- Trace the turf, beds, edging, patio and walls, with square feet and linear feet shown live as you draw
- Tap shrubs and trees to count them as unit-priced items
- Each layer maps to a service in your cost library, so mowing, mulch, sod, edging and pavers price from your materials, labor rate, production rate and margin
- Pick the visits per season for maintenance work, and the per-visit price and season total build automatically
- Send a branded proposal; the client opens it on their own phone, picks an option and signs
On site
Price it before you leave the driveway.
A spring cleanup and mulch quote priced in the driveway
Say a homeowner calls about a spring cleanup, fresh mulch and new edging on a quarter-acre lot. You pull up, open the app and trace three layers while you walk the front yard.
| Layer | Measured | What your cost library adds |
|---|---|---|
| Planting beds | 840 sq ft | Mulch at 3 in. depth comes to 7.8 cu yd, plus 10% waste and delivery |
| Bed edging | 210 linear ft | Material per foot, install rate from your production table |
| Cleanup area | 6,200 sq ft | Labor hours from your cleanup rate, debris disposal per load |
The proposal shows the cleanup, the mulch and the edging as separate lines, with a good, better and best option on Company and above. The client signs before you back out, and on Company the signed proposal carries a deposit request link. Nobody retyped a number, and the next estimator who prices a similar yard lands on the same total.
Who it's for
Owners and estimators who quote between jobs.
Which landscapers get the most from an estimating app
If your main need is phone quoting for mowing and treatments, see the lawn care estimate app. Offices on Apple hardware can read about our landscape estimating software for Mac, and contractors who need maintenance agreements priced for the whole season can look at lawn care contract software.
- Owner-operators who still do every estimate themselves and want the quote out the same day
- Lawn care companies that price mowing and seasonal contracts per visit from measured turf
- Design-build and install contractors pricing beds, sod, hardscape and walls by the layer
- Companies with several estimators who need one cost library so prices stop drifting
Plans
Priced per company, not per user.
Landscaping app pricing per company
Satellite measuring, the cost library and e-signed proposals are on every plan.
| Plan | Monthly | Billed yearly | Estimator seats | Satellite measurements a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | $129 | $64 a month | 2 | 60 |
| Company | $299 | $149 a month | 6 | 250 |
| Operations | $649 | $324 a month | 15 | 800 |
Company adds assemblies, waste factors, good, better and best options, deposit links, job costing and the QuickBooks Online export. Full details are on the pricing page.
FAQ
- What is the best app for landscapers?
It depends on the job you need done. For scheduling and invoicing, field service apps such as Jobber lead most lists. For measuring and pricing a property before you visit, a satellite estimating app such as LandscapeEstimating does both steps and sends the proposal for e-signature.
- What app do landscapers use to measure yards?
Many landscapers start with Google Earth or a phone measuring app, then type the square feet into a quote. A satellite estimating app measures each layer (turf, beds, edging, hardscape) on the map and prices it in the same screen, so the measurement never gets retyped.
- Is there an app to estimate landscaping jobs?
Yes. LandscapeEstimating measures the property from satellite imagery, prices each traced layer from your own materials, labor rates, production rates and margin, and sends a branded proposal the client signs online. It works on a phone, tablet or computer.
- Do I need to download the app?
No. LandscapeEstimating runs in the browser on iPhone, Android, iPad, Mac and Windows, so there is nothing to install or update. Each estimator signs in with their seat and works from the same cost library.
- Can I use it with Jobber or QuickBooks?
Yes. Many companies keep Jobber or another scheduling app for routes and invoicing and use LandscapeEstimating for the estimate. On Company and above, signed work exports to QuickBooks Online as invoice lines, as described on the lawn care software QuickBooks page.
- How much does a landscaping app cost?
LandscapeEstimating costs $129, $299 or $649 a month per company, or half that billed yearly. Seats and satellite measurements are included in each plan, there is no setup fee and you can cancel at any time.
Get started
Price the next yard from your phone before you leave the driveway
Trace a real US address, let the beds, turf and edging price from your own rates and see the margin on every line. When it prices the way you do, create your account.