A free Excel sheet for comparing NextMinute with up to three other job management apps on the same 40 questions. Rate each one Yes, Partial or No, mark your must-haves, and the scorecard ranks them for you. Works in Google Sheets too.
Fill it in as you sit through demos and trials. The sheet does the scoring, so you're comparing on the same questions, not gut feel.
Add up to three other apps you're looking at next to NextMinute in the header row.
Mark each question as a must-have, important or nice to have, so the score reflects how your business actually runs.
Work through the questions in a demo or trial and rate each one Yes, Partial or No, with room for notes.
An overall score for each app, a flag on any tool that misses a must-have, a rank from first to last, and what each one really costs in year one.
Pop your details in and we'll send the Excel file straight to your inbox. It also works in Google Sheets.
Running a crew of three or more and moving off spreadsheets? Or outgrown the app you started with? This keeps the decision honest. Best for businesses running jobs that last weeks, not hours.
Every app gets the same 40 questions, so a slick demo can't dodge the hard ones.
The must-have check flags any app that misses one, so it can't hide behind a good overall score.
The true cost calculator adds per-user fees, add-ons, setup, training and contracts, not just the headline price.
The 40 questions are grouped into seven sections, each with a short note on what to look for. A separate tab covers what to ask on a demo, how to test a free trial properly and which hidden costs to watch for.
Shortlist your tools. Add up to three apps next to NextMinute in the header row.
Rate them on a real job. Book a demo or start a trial with each one and rate the questions as you go, with notes on anything Partial.
Check the true cost. Add per-user fees, add-ons, setup, training and contracts, then look at must-have flags before overall scores.
Updates automatically as you rate each tool.
Most bad software picks come down to the same few traps. The sheet's built to catch them.
Demos show the best bits. Rate each app on a real job in a trial.
The cheapest app costs more if the crew won't use it or it can't do progress claims.
If it doesn't work on a phone on site, the timesheets and photos won't happen.
Apps built for one-day call-outs struggle with staged scheduling, variations and job costing.
See how NextMinute stacks up on a real job. Quoting, scheduling, timesheets, progress claims and live job costing in one place, with your crew on the same system on site. Start a 10-day free trial, no credit card needed, or book a demo and bring the sheet.
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Rated 4.9/5 with 100+ reviews on Google and Facebook, with local Aussie support that actually helps.
We’ve answered the ones we hear most from builders and tradies.
Compare every tool against the same list of questions, rated on a real job. Our free comparison sheet gives you 40 questions across fit, core features, devices and integrations, support, pricing, reviews and growth. Mark each one Must have, Important or Nice to have, rate each tool Yes, Partial or No, and the scorecard ranks them. You can start a NextMinute free trial to test it alongside the others.
Look for software that handles the way your jobs actually run. For construction trades that means quoting with takeoffs, variations, scheduling across multiple jobs, timesheets from site, supplier bills, progress claims and job costing. It also needs to work on your crew's phones and sync with your accounting software. A tool that misses one of these leaves you with workarounds. See how NextMinute covers them on our features page.
A must-have is something your business can't run without, like progress claims for a builder or timesheets from site for a crew of ten. A nice-to-have makes life easier but won't stop you using the tool. In the comparison sheet, must-haves carry the most weight in the score, and any tool rated No on one gets flagged. Keep your must-have list short, or every tool will fail it.
Yes, the Tradie Software Comparison Sheet is free. Pop your details into the form on this page and we'll email you the Excel file. You don't need a NextMinute account to use it, and you can compare any job management tools you like, including the ones we compete with. We've also got other free templates and calculators on our free resources page.
Yes. The comparison sheet is an Excel file, but it also works in Google Sheets. Upload it to Google Drive, open it with Google Sheets, and the ratings, importance dropdowns and scorecard all keep working. That makes it easy to share with your office manager or leading hand, so everyone can add notes after each demo or trial and the decision isn't made on one person's gut feel.
Shortlist three or four apps at most. Any more and the demos blur together and the decision drags on for months. The sheet has room for NextMinute plus up to three other tools. Start by ruling out anything that clearly isn't built for your trade or team size, then put the rest through a proper trial. If you're moving off Excel, our spreadsheets vs NextMinute page is a good place to start.
Do both if you can. A demo shows you what the software can do, and a trial shows you whether it works for your business. Book the demo first so you know where everything is, then run a real job through the trial: a quote, a schedule, a few timesheets and an invoice. Rate the sheet as you go. NextMinute's 10-day free trial needs no credit card.
A deal-breaker is any must-have the tool can't do, no matter how good the rest of it is. Common ones for construction trades are no progress claims, no way to handle variations, no live job costing and a mobile app the crew won't use. The comparison sheet's must-have check flags any tool rated No on a must-have, so a missing feature can't hide behind a high overall score.
Switching from spreadsheets takes less time if you move new jobs across first rather than everything at once. Most of the work is loading your price lists, setting up your first few jobs and getting the crew used to the mobile app. Pick a quieter week to start and keep the old spreadsheet for jobs already underway. NextMinute's local support team can help with setup and training when you start a free trial.
Add up everything you'll pay in the first year, not just the monthly price. That includes per-user fees for the office and crew, add-ons, setup or onboarding fees, training, and any lock-in contract. A cheap headline price can cost more once the extras are in. The comparison sheet has a true cost calculator that does the maths for each tool. NextMinute's pricing is month-to-month with no lock-ins.
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