Simple, transparent pricing

How to choose a work order software plan

Start with the jobs your business needs to finish and the people who move those jobs forward. A field service team usually has several different responsibilities: someone receives a request, someone schedules the visit, a technician performs the work, and an office user checks the record before invoicing. One person may cover several responsibilities in a small business. A larger contractor may have a dedicated person at each stage. Your software plan should support that actual working arrangement.

The pricing calculator above is a useful starting point. Enter the complete team you expect to set up, compare the available plans, and switch between monthly and annual billing. Check the VAT display before comparing the result with another supplier's quote. Then use the feature and limit tables to decide whether the plan supports your daily workload. The lowest advertised platform fee is only one part of the buying decision.

For a meaningful comparison, write down your current number of team users, your typical monthly job volume, the number of customer sites you maintain, and the records you need at completion. Include the person who manages the system as well as the people working on site. Use the same assumptions when requesting prices from different providers. Otherwise, an apparently cheaper option may simply be quoting for a smaller team or a different collection of features.

Understand the platform fee and team seats

A base platform fee pays for access to the account at the selected plan level. A seat charge adds the cost associated with team users. These are separate parts of the calculation. When a business grows from one field worker to several crews, the total usually changes because more people need access and the business may need different controls. The relevant comparison is the total for your planned team, rather than the base price on its own.

Before paying, reconcile your team list with the user count shown at checkout. Give each person who needs access an individual account so work can be attributed correctly. Shared logins make it harder to establish who changed a job, uploaded a record or approved the next step. They also complicate removing access when a staff member leaves. Clear access responsibilities are useful even when the owner and a single technician are the entire business.

If your workforce changes seasonally, include that in the buying discussion. Explain how many permanent users you have, how many temporary workers join during busy months, and whether those workers need their own access. Ask how additions, removals and disabled accounts affect the next bill. Keep the agreed seat policy with your purchasing notes. Your budget should reflect the policy applied to the account, including any billing-period rules that affect changes.

Compare monthly and annual billing using the full commitment

Monthly billing can suit a business that is still validating its workflow, building its team or learning which features it will use regularly. It makes the first purchasing decision easier to revisit as the operation develops. Annual billing can suit a team that has completed a practical evaluation and is confident it will continue using the system. The annual option should be assessed against the full upfront commitment displayed at checkout.

When an annual price is expressed as a monthly equivalent, use that equivalent for comparison and the actual annual amount for cash-flow planning. Those figures answer different questions. A monthly equivalent helps you compare the cost of using the software over time. The annual amount tells you what the business needs available when the payment is due. Record both figures in your decision worksheet so the person approving the purchase sees the complete commitment.

Consider implementation time alongside the billing period. If you still need to clean customer records, identify a dispatcher or agree on a standard job card, schedule that work before the trial ends. A discount is most useful when the team is ready to use the product. Choose the billing period after you have tested the workflow with the people who will rely on it, reviewed the current terms, and checked the next renewal date.

Compare VAT on the same basis

Keep VAT treatment consistent across your comparison. A price excluding VAT and a price including VAT are different totals, even when the platform and seat assumptions match. Use the calculator's VAT switch to see both views, then check the amount payable on the checkout screen. For your accounting treatment, use the information appropriate to your business and confirm any uncertainty with your accountant.

South Africa's standard VAT rate is currently 15%, according to SARS guidance on VAT. The relevant question when comparing software quotes is whether that VAT is already included in the number you are reading. Keep the supplier's invoice with the purchase record and check that the billing details identify the correct business. A screenshot of a monthly equivalent is useful for discussion, but the invoice is the accounting record of the charge.

Build a total-cost worksheet before subscribing

Software cost extends beyond the subscription amount. A practical budget also includes the time needed to prepare customer records, configure useful defaults, teach the first users and review early jobs. These activities exist even when the supplier does not charge a separate setup fee. Planning them helps the business get value from the subscription sooner and prevents avoidable confusion during the first week.

Use the worksheet below to compare options on a consistent basis. Enter actual numbers from your team and the current supplier quote. Keep uncertain items visible until they are answered. For example, if you have not yet checked whether your field devices can run the required workflow, allocate time for that check instead of assuming every existing phone will work in the same way.

Keep your first estimate simple enough to maintain. A small business may only need a short spreadsheet listing those items, the responsible person and the expected date. The purpose is to expose assumptions that could slow adoption. Update the worksheet after the trial with what you actually learned. That produces a stronger purchasing decision than an estimate based entirely on feature descriptions or a polished demonstration.

Estimate value from your own completed jobs

Choose a few recent jobs and examine the administrative work around them. Look at how the request arrived, how the appointment was arranged, how job details reached the technician, and how the completed record reached the person preparing the invoice. Count the repeated follow-ups and searches you can observe. Avoid assuming a saving simply because a task has moved from paper to a screen.

During the trial, repeat the same measurement on comparable jobs. Record the time taken and whether the record is complete enough for the next person to proceed. A reduction in administrative time is valuable when it is repeatable and the work still meets your quality standard. Treat any early result as an observation from your team. Several successful jobs provide better evidence than a single unusually easy example.

A simple planning formula is: jobs per month multiplied by observed minutes saved per job, divided by sixty. That gives an estimate of hours saved each month. If you attach a monetary value to those hours, use your own relevant cost assumption and keep it visible. Time released does not automatically become extra revenue; the business needs a practical use for that capacity, such as answering enquiries sooner or preparing completed jobs for invoicing.

Match the plan to the workflow you actually need

Read a feature list as a set of workflow questions. For example, scheduling matters because someone needs to know who is visiting which site and when. Completion evidence matters because an office user or customer may need to understand what was done. A maintenance contract matters because a recurring obligation must become the next scheduled job. Describe those outcomes first, then check the feature and plan that supports each one.

Separate capabilities you need for the first month from capabilities that may become useful later. A new team could begin with consistent customer records, a clear job queue and a reliable completion process. A contractor servicing many sites may also need recurring maintenance, equipment records or more detailed reporting. Use the current feature table above to identify the appropriate plan, and test the capabilities that are essential to your operation before committing.

Run a trial around one complete job

The most useful first trial task is a complete, representative job. Choose something familiar enough that your team can judge the result. A routine service visit often works better than an emergency with several unresolved dependencies. Nominate one office user and one field user to perform the initial walkthrough. Give them a specific outcome: produce a job record that another person can review and use for the next step.

Begin with a real working scenario and appropriate test data. Set up the customer and site details the technician would normally need, including access instructions and the scope of work. Assign the job, inspect it from the field user's account, and check that the required information is easy to find. Review the behaviour on the actual device the technician expects to use. Browser and device differences should be discovered during evaluation.

After the visit stage, review the completed information with the office user. Check descriptions, quantities, supporting records and any follow-up that remains outstanding. Establish whether the job is ready for the next business action. If a step is confusing, record the exact screen, action and result so it can be investigated. A precise observation is easier to resolve than a general impression that the software feels complicated.

Use a short activation checklist

Give the trial an owner and a small number of visible milestones. A practical checklist is: prepare the first customer and site, create the first work order, assign it to the right person, complete the representative workflow, and review the result together. The checklist helps the team distinguish account setup from operational progress. Finishing a registration form is the beginning of evaluation; a useful completed job is much stronger evidence of fit.

Schedule the review while the trial is still running. Ask the field user what information was missing and ask the office user what follow-up was still necessary. Decide which issues are training questions, which are configuration choices, and which are product limitations that affect the purchase. Keep those findings in the same worksheet as the price comparison. Cost and usability belong in the same decision because both affect whether the team will keep using the system.

Budget for a rollout your team can maintain

Once the first workflow is understood, expand to a small working group before moving the entire operation. Agree on consistent customer names, site naming and service descriptions. Decide who maintains those records and who checks completed jobs. These choices reduce duplicate records and make search more useful. They also give new users a clear example to follow instead of asking each person to invent a separate process.

Avoid importing every historical record simply because an export is available. Review what the team needs for current work, ongoing customer relationships and its recordkeeping requirements. Identify duplicates and outdated contact details before migration. Where a migration service or import capability is important to the purchase, confirm the supported format and scope first. Keep an original copy of your source records so the business can reconcile the result.

Choose a review rhythm that fits your operation. In the first week, a brief daily review of a few jobs can reveal missing details quickly. As the workflow becomes familiar, move to a regular operational check. Look for jobs waiting for assignment, records waiting for completion and completed work waiting for the next action. The aim is a process the team can maintain alongside ordinary customer work.

Questions to resolve before the first payment

Which people should I include in the estimate?

Count every enabled team account, including the owner, dispatchers, administrators and technicians. Disabled accounts are excluded. Activity means the account is enabled; it does not depend on the last login date. Deactivation changes future subscription amounts and does not automatically refund a period already paid. The team list is a useful control because it shows who actually needs access. If some people only need a report or a customer-facing view, establish whether they require a team account rather than assuming the answer. Reconcile that list with the user count presented at checkout.

How should I compare two different pricing models?

Use the same team size, monthly job volume, billing period and VAT basis for both quotes. Note important features or services that are priced separately. Then compare the complete payable amount and the workflow you have tested. A plan with a lower base fee may have a higher total for your team; a higher plan may include a capability your operation needs. The comparison should make those differences explicit.

What if I am unsure which plan fits?

List the tasks that are essential during the first month and match them to the current feature table. Evaluate those tasks during the trial. Bring any unresolved workflow questions to a demonstration or support conversation with a concrete example, such as a recurring service visit across several customer sites. This gives the discussion a practical focus and makes it easier to explain why a particular capability affects your decision.

When is annual billing a sensible choice?

Consider annual billing after the team has demonstrated that it can use the workflow regularly and the business is comfortable with the upfront commitment. Review the annual amount, renewal timing and current cancellation terms before payment. If important workflow questions remain unresolved, complete that evaluation first. The decision should reflect your confidence in ongoing use as well as the displayed discount.

What should I check on the checkout screen?

Check the business account, chosen plan, billing cycle, team count, VAT and total payable. Compare them with your worksheet and the option you selected on this page. Resolve an unexpected difference before completing payment. Keep the resulting billing record with your accounting documents. When the subscription becomes active, confirm that the intended account has the expected access and that the team can continue the workflow it tested.

How do I judge whether the trial was successful?

A useful trial produces evidence that the team can perform its real work. Look for a clearly assigned job, a field user who can find the necessary details, and a completed record the office can use. Also review the difficulties encountered and whether they have a practical resolution. The strongest decision combines that operational evidence with a clear understanding of the ongoing cost and the responsibilities needed to maintain the system.

Take the next step with a clear test in mind

Use the calculator and feature tables to identify a plan to evaluate. Then start a WorkOrderPro trial with one representative job in mind. If the workflow involves several crews, specialist records or a complex handover, request a demonstration and describe that scenario. A focused evaluation gives your team a clear route from comparing software to deciding whether it belongs in the business.