Solid Takeoff vs Buildxact
In short
Buildxact is an all-in-one estimating and job-management platform for residential builders, sold by subscription with no free plan. If you mainly need to measure drawings, Solid Takeoff does the takeoff part cleanly — in the browser, free to start — and exports to whatever you price in.
Buildxact bundles takeoff with estimating, quoting and job management aimed at home builders and renovators. It's a lot of platform, and priced to match.
If you already have a way to price and manage jobs — or you just want quantities off a plan — Solid Takeoff focuses on the takeoff and hands the numbers off via CSV.
| Solid Takeoff | Buildxact | |
|---|---|---|
| Scope | Focused takeoff + markup + export | Estimating + quoting + job management |
| Free plan | Yes | No — subscription (trial) |
| Pricing | Free, or Solo $12.99/mo · Team $49.99/mo | Higher monthly subscription |
| Runs on | Any browser — Mac, Windows, Chromebook, iPad | Cloud (browser) |
| Real-time collaboration | Yes — live co-editing + presence | Team features |
| Best for | Anyone who needs quantities off a plan | Residential builders wanting one platform |
Buy the takeoff, not the whole platform
Buildxact makes sense if you want a single tool for estimating and running jobs. But you pay for that breadth every month, and there's no free tier to start.
Solid Takeoff keeps it focused: set scale, measure lengths/areas/counts, group into conditions with waste, mark up and export. Start free, and move to Solo or Team only when you need it.
Plays nicely with what you already use
Because it exports a clean CSV, Solid Takeoff drops into whatever you price with — a spreadsheet, your accounting tool, or an estimating package — without committing to a whole new platform.
The verdict
Buildxact suits builders who want one platform for everything. If you specifically need fast, accurate takeoff — free to start, on any device — Solid Takeoff is the focused choice.
Working on a Mac? Most desktop takeoff tools are Windows-only — see takeoff software for Mac for the options that actually run on macOS.
Frequently asked questions
Does Buildxact have a free plan?
Buildxact is subscription software with a trial rather than a permanent free plan. Solid Takeoff has a genuinely free tier for takeoff.
Is Solid Takeoff a good Buildxact alternative for takeoff?
If it's the measuring you want — not full estimating and job management — yes. It's faster to adopt, free to start, and exports to your existing tools.
Can I use it alongside Buildxact?
Yes — measure in Solid Takeoff and export a CSV into whatever you estimate with.
What do the paid plans cost?
About $12.99 a month for Solo (or $49.99 for a 3-user Team). Buildxact is a higher monthly subscription — check the vendor for current pricing.
Try it on your own plan — free
Open a PDF and measure in your browser. No card, no install, no CAD. Free plan forever.
Comparison based on publicly available information at the time of writing; competitor features and pricing change — check each vendor for current details. All product names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners and are used here for identification and comparison only.