Questions contractors ask before their first estimate

You receive a complete cost estimate built from measured quantities: an Excel workbook organized by CSI division with material, labor and equipment costs, color-coded marked-up plans showing where each quantity came from, a material procurement list, and an assumptions and exclusions log. Everything is formatted so you can drop it straight into your proposal.

General contractors who need more bid capacity, subcontractors who want trade-specific takeoffs, developers and owners who need independent budgets and bid reviews, architects and design-build firms who need milestone estimates, and lenders or insurers who need documented replacement costs.

Yes. We estimate projects in all 50 states and adjust labor, material and equipment pricing to the project zip code using current cost data and regional supplier quotes.

Detailed estimates from complete construction documents are typically within ±5% of awarded value; preliminary estimates from schematic drawings carry a ±15–20% band. Every quantity is measured twice and reviewed by a senior estimator before delivery.

Yes. Plans and bid documents are stored on access-controlled systems, shared only with the estimators assigned to your project, and deleted on request. We sign NDAs when required.

Pricing is a flat fee per project based on size, trade count and drawing completeness, starting at $150 for a single-trade takeoff. You receive a fixed quote before any work begins, and monthly plans are available for contractors who bid every week.

No. Revisions driven by addenda, clarifications or your own scope changes are included until bid day on every plan.

Credit and debit cards, ACH and wire transfer, and PayPal. Monthly plans are invoiced at the start of each cycle.

Yes. Contractors who send more than four projects a month save with the monthly plan, and new clients receive an introductory discount on their first estimate.

Most single-trade takeoffs are delivered within 24 hours and full multi-trade estimates within 48 hours of receiving complete drawings. Large or complex sets are quoted individually, and rush delivery is available.

You will hear from an estimator within 2 business hours during business hours (Mon–Sat, 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM CT) with a confirmed scope, price and delivery time.

Often, yes. Tell us the bid date when you upload and we will confirm whether rush delivery is possible for your scope before you commit.

Send it over and we update the quantities and pricing at no charge. Addendum changes are tracked separately so you can see exactly what moved.

Excel workbooks for quantities and pricing, PDF for marked-up plans and summaries, and CSV on request for import into your own estimating software. We can also work inside your Excel template.

Yes. Every quantity is color-coded on the marked-up plans and referenced by sheet number in the workbook, so you can audit any line in seconds.

Full estimates include material, labor hours and rates, equipment and subcontractor pricing, with overhead, profit, bonds and contingency applied to your targets. Takeoff-only packages include quantities and material lists.

Yes. Send us your template once and every estimate after that will follow your tabs, cost codes and markup structure.

PDF plans are standard. We also accept DWG and DXF files, scanned drawings, photos of plans and BIM exports. Incomplete or schematic sets are fine for preliminary estimates.

Upload through the website form for files up to the posted limit, or share a Dropbox, Google Drive, Procore or Building Connected link in the message field and we will download them directly.

For remodels and additions we regularly price from measured sketches and photos. Tell us what you have and we will recommend the right estimate type.

Specifications improve accuracy because they define material grades and finishes. If you do not have them, we price to typical standards and document the assumptions.