Free Construction Estimating Software: 5 Jobs, 1 a Month or 30 Days

Need construction estimating software free after the trial ends? Methvin’s Free Forever tier is the only plan in these sources described as permanently free with core estimating and 2D takeoff, per TruTec’s roundup. Takeoff means measuring quantities off the plans.

Of the other six, STACK has a capped free plan. RSMeans Data Online and Houzz Pro run free trials, and Planyard is listed as free to try. Knack and SimplyWise give you a template or an app. For several, the sources leave the limit unstated, so know what to ask before you price a real job.

Verdict: If you need to keep estimating at no cost after next month, start with Methvin. TruTec calls its free plan a working tier with the core estimating and 2D takeoff tools, not a demo.

The flaw, and the fix: TruTec says Methvin’s interface “can also feel less polished” than some competitors and that “finding specific documentation may require some patience.” The free tier also caps Estimating, Job Costing and BIM (building information modeling) at 5 active projects. To learn the screens, build your first estimate on a finished job whose numbers you already know. If you carry more active jobs than that, ask Methvin for its paid price before your next bid.

Strengths: TruTec says the free plan also gives you a Gantt scheduler and a tender portal. A Gantt scheduler is a bar-chart job schedule, and a tender portal handles bid packages.

Who should skip it: If you only need takeoff on 1 project a month, STACK’s free plan may be enough. If you need published unit costs rather than your own, run the RSMeans Data Online trial and plan around its 30-day end date.

Pick Methvin, the Only Permanent Free Plan With Estimating and 2D Takeoff

“Free” covers four different deals:

• Free-forever plan: a working tier with no end date. Methvin’s is the only plan described this way.
• Free plan or free account with caps: a free login with project or page limits. STACK is in this group, and BuildVision gives no end date for its free plan.
• Free trial: access until a set date, then you pay. RSMeans Data Online and Houzz Pro are in this group. Planyard is listed as free to try, with no length given.
• Free template or app: free to start, but upgrades or account limits may apply. Knack and SimplyWise are in this group.

BuildVision notes that some tools offer a free bidding plan while full cost estimating stays paid. Its own list shows the pattern: ConWize Essential is a free bidding plan for up to 3 users, and its cost-estimating module is listed under Pro. A free bid tool can send your number, but it may not help you work it out.

Methvin and STACK Have Free Tiers, Capped at 5 Projects and 1 a Month

Methvin’s cap, per TruTec, counts active projects: jobs open at the same time, not projects started per month. If you keep more bids open than that, you hit the limit.

STACK’s own page confirms a free account. It also shows what the software does: it works out gallons of primer and each paint color from a wall square-footage takeoff.

BuildVision’s review, dated Sept 16, 2026, describes STACK’s free plan this way:

• 1 active project a month
• up to 300 plan pages and 50 measurements per project
• 7 days of the Pro tier

The same review lists Premium at $249 per user per month. It lists Pro at $299, billed annually, but gives no unit for that figure. At 1 project a month, the free plan covers 12 projects a year. At $249 per user per month, STACK Premium comes to $2,988 per user per year as of Sept 16, 2026.

STACK’s page does not state these caps or say whether the free account ever ends. Check both inside your account.

RSMeans Data Online Is a 30-Day Trial; Planyard’s Free Try Has No Stated Length

RSMeans Data Online is offered as a free trial, not a free plan, and the trial runs 30 days. It lets you look up costs at the material or task level. Use it to check your own unit prices against a published database. The weak spot is that this source shows no free tier after the trial.

Start the trial in the same week as a large bid so the 30 days count.

Planyard appears on GetApp’s list of estimating tools you can try free. The listing says it connects to Xero and QuickBooks. The weak spot is that the listing gives no length for the free try and doesn’t say what stays after it. Ask Planyard about both before you connect your books.

Knack and SimplyWise Give You a Template and an App, With Paid Extras Possible

Knack’s free construction estimate template comes with four pages: Project Details, a Quote Page, a Resources Page and a List of Vendors. That gives you a place to build a quote and keep a supplier list. The weak spot is that the template page lists no account limits, so check them in your Knack account first.

The SimplyWise Cost Estimator listing on Google Play says the app prices labor and material line by line. It also has receipt OCR, which reads the text from a photo of a receipt, plus expense tracking. The weak spot is that the listing shows in-app purchases without saying which features they unlock.

Houzz Pro’s AI Estimates Start With a Free Demo, Then a Trial

Houzz Pro’s estimating page says its AI builds edit-ready estimates from a voice or text prompt. The page offers a “Start Free Trial” button. It also has a free demo estimate builder with “no signup or login required”.

The weak spot is that the page gives neither the trial length nor the price after the trial. Treat an AI draft as a first pass, and check every line against your own labor rate and material costs before it goes out.

Run These Five Checks Before a Free Tool Handles Your Bids

BuildVision advises contractors who quote service calls to check monthly document caps, mobile use and the features they will need after the trial. Here is that advice, applied:

1. Count your volume against the cap. The table below lists each sourced cap. Methvin’s counts open jobs; STACK’s counts projects per month.
2. Check mobile use. STACK says its software works on any smartphone, tablet, laptop or desktop, and SimplyWise is a Google Play app. Ask the other vendors before you rely on a phone.
3. Write down the features you need after the trial. RSMeans ends at day 30. STACK’s Pro access ends at day 7.
4. Confirm the free tier covers cost estimating, not just bidding. BuildVision warns that some tools split the two.
5. Price the paid step before you start. Check the paid prices in the table, and ask any vendor that lists none.

Side-by-Side: What Each Free Option Includes and When It Runs Out

This table sorts all seven tools by the kind of free they offer. It draws on TruTec, STACK, RSMeans, Knack, GetApp and BuildVision’s after-trial checks.

Tool	Kind of free	What the source says it does	When free runs out	Still to confirm (BuildVision’s checks)
Methvin	Free Forever plan	Core estimating, 2D takeoff, Gantt scheduler, tender portal	Estimating, Job Costing and BIM capped at 5 active projects	Mobile use; paid price above the cap
STACK	Free account; free plan per BuildVision	Primer and paint gallons from a wall square-footage takeoff	1 active project a month, 300 plan pages, 50 measurements per project; Pro for 7 days; Premium $249/user/month; Pro $299 billed annually, unit not given (Sept 16, 2026)	Whether the free account has an end date
RSMeans Data Online	Free trial	Costs at the material or task level	Trial ends after 30 days; no free plan	Mobile use; what you keep after day 30
Houzz Pro	Free demo plus free trial	AI estimates from a voice or text prompt	Demo needs no signup; trial length not stated	Document caps; features after the trial
Planyard	Free to try	Xero and QuickBooks integration	Length of the free try not stated in the listing	Document caps; mobile use; features after the free try
Knack	Free template	Project Details, Quote Page, Resources Page, List of Vendors	No cap stated on the template page	Mobile use; limits on your Knack account
SimplyWise Cost Estimator	Free app with in-app purchases	Line-by-line labor and material, receipt OCR, expense tracking	Listing shows in-app purchases, not what they unlock	Document caps; features behind purchases

Methvin is the only row described as free forever. STACK is the only row with a sourced paid price. Every row still has an open question, so get the answers before you send live bids.

Next step: Compare tools and pricing methods in our construction estimating guides.

Next step: read more in Construction Estimating on ContractorPriced, or check the figures in Construction Estimating Software Prices.