Stay on ServiceM8 if everyone needs a login and a busy month fits the job cap. Paid plans do not charge per user. Look elsewhere when the cap is the thing you keep hitting, or when you want a website in the same price. Mortar is one price for the business, with no job-card cap. Powered Now is the one-person plan that also files Making Tax Digital.
We make Mortar. Here's how we compared these tools, and where others may suit you better.
ServiceM8 is not in the six. The honest reason people look past it is the way the plans are priced: you buy a monthly allowance of new job cards, not a seat. That is also why a lot of teams should stay.
The wider UK shortlist is in best job management software for UK trades. A US contractor leaving Jobber can read Jobber alternatives.
What ServiceM8 does well
ServiceM8's UK pricing page says paid plans do not charge per user. The free plan is the limit for a sole trader: one user and 30 jobs a month. Starter is £25 a month for unlimited users and 50 new jobs. Growing is £59 for 150 new jobs. Premium is £119 and Premium Plus is £269. The page does not state a job-card allowance for those two higher plans, so those allowances are left out.
A job credit is a new job card. A job can start as a quote or a work order. Turning an accepted quote into a work order does not use a second credit. Every plan includes job cards, scheduling, quotes, invoices, email and SMS, mobile payments, accounting integrations, and iOS and Android apps. AI Smart Helpers, on every plan, draft emails, texts, and the description and billable items on a quote or invoice. Prices exclude VAT. The trial is 14 days, no card. There is no lock-in.
If you go over the allowance, you can still create jobs for seven days. If the month resets in that time, the credits reset. Otherwise you are prompted to upgrade. The website is a separate add-on. It needs a subscription, is free for the first 24 months, then costs £24 a year, and it registers a new domain. You cannot transfer a domain you already own.
Stay if several people need a login and 50 or 150 new jobs is enough. That is the point of the paid plans. The six below are for a month that keeps breaking the cap, or for a website and enquiries in the same subscription.
How we compared
Five things, and nothing else. No star ratings, and no review sites. Every price was taken from that company's own site on 21 October 2026, except Jobber, which was checked again on 2 November 2026.
- What the price is counting. ServiceM8 counts new job cards. Others count the business, or each login.
- Getting work in. A website in the plan, or an add-on.
- Quotes and invoices. Can you send a quote, turn it into a job, and get paid from the same record.
- A mobile app. Can the person on site see the job.
- AI help. Named only where the company describes it.
The six
Prices as listed on each company's website on 21 October 2026, except Jobber, checked again on 2 November 2026. Monthly list prices, not annual discounts. Jobber's $49 is the monthly price with no commitment. Jobber is in US dollars.
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Per-user fees | Website | Job cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mortar | Website and jobs, one price | £49 a month plus VAT | No | Yes | Not listed |
| Powered Now | A sole trader who also wants MTD | £28 a month, ex VAT | Business is one user. Then yes. | Yes | Not listed |
| Tradify | Job costing and accounting sync | £34 per user a month | Yes | Add-on, £10 a month | Not listed |
| YourTradebase | Quoting and invoicing, kept simple | £29 a month, plus VAT | £15 a month per extra user | Not listed | Not listed |
| Fergus | Supplier price books and job cards | From £39 a month per user | Yes | Not listed | Not listed |
| Jobber | A website plus field service, in USD | $49 a month for one user | Yes, $29 a month each extra | Yes, on Core | Unlimited on Core |
Mortar
Best for: a small trade that wants the website and the jobs on one price, without a published job-card cap.
What it does well. Core is £49 a month plus VAT for the business, not each login, and not each new job: a website built by Morris, an enquiries inbox, quotes, jobs, scheduling, forms signed on site, the mobile app, and invoices with card payments. Morris drafts replies and writes quotes from your notes. You approve what a customer sees. Pro is £79 a month plus VAT when Morris should answer chat, texts and the phone, and book jobs. Invoices, payments and expenses sync to Xero or QuickBooks. Build the site free. The first 14 days after it goes live are free.
Grow is £29 a month plus VAT, on Core or Pro. Morris asks ChatGPT, Google AI and Perplexity the questions your customers ask, prepares directory details for you to submit, keeps your Google Business Profile in sync, and sends a review request after a job. You approve the fixes. It does not promise a mention.
Watch-outs. Mortar is newer, and it lists fewer supplier connections than Tradify or Fergus. It does not file a tax return. Pro and Grow are separate prices.
Price. Core £49 a month plus VAT for the whole team. Pro £79. As listed on 21 October 2026.
Official page: mortar.site/pricing.
Powered Now
Best for: a UK sole trader who wants quotes, invoices, Making Tax Digital and a free website on one plan.
What it does well. Business is one user. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is built in on every plan, including Business, and Powered Now says it is recognised by HMRC. Every plan includes a free website. Quotes, invoices, a diary, job sheets and the mobile apps, including offline, are on Business. Professional adds the team, certificates, and Xero and QuickBooks.
Watch-outs. A second login is Professional at £32 per user, excluding VAT. AI writing is on Premium, at £40 per user. There is no job-card cap on the pricing page. Your own domain is £100 a year unless you are on Premium.
Price. Business £28 a month for one user. Professional £32 per user. Premium £40 per user. All exclude VAT. 14-day trial, no card. As listed on 21 October 2026.
Official page: powerednow.com/pricing.
Tradify
Best for: a team that wants job costing, timesheets and accounting sync, and will pay for each user.
What it does well. Lite covers jobs, scheduling, quotes, invoices, and sync with Xero, Sage and QuickBooks Online. Pro adds the enquiry form, timesheets and certificates. Plus adds AI reading of bills and AI writing. The app is on iPhone, iPad and Android. The trial is 14 days and includes every feature. Billing is month to month, and they train the team during setup. There is no job-card cap on the pricing page.
Watch-outs. Every plan is per user. Instant Website is £10 a month on top, and you need a subscription to publish it. The UK pricing page does not say whether the figures include VAT.
Price. Lite £34 per user a month. Pro £37. Plus £44. Instant Website £10. As listed on 21 October 2026.
Official page: tradifyhq.com/uk/pricing.
YourTradebase
Best for: quoting and invoicing kept simple, with a published fee for each extra user.
What it does well. Quotes, estimates, invoices, job sheets, schedules, lead tracking and card payments. The trial is 30 days, no card. Prices are subject to VAT. The pricing page does not list a job cap.
Watch-outs. £15 a month for each additional user. No website, and no AI feature, was listed on the home page or the pricing page.
Price. £29 a month, plus £15 a month for each additional user. As listed on 21 October 2026.
Official page: yourtradebase.com/pricing.
Fergus
Best for: job costing with supplier price books, once you have confirmed the live per-user price.
What it does well. The job card app covers directions, notes, photos, a timer, sign-off and certificates. It connects to Xero, QuickBooks, and suppliers including CEF, City Plumbing, Wolseley and Screwfix. You pay per user, month to month. The job-card page says plans start from £39 a month. The trial is 14 days, no card.
Watch-outs. The UK pricing page shows Essentials as £39 and also as £3.90, and Professional as £45 and also as £4.50, without saying which you pay. Those pairs are not in the worked example. No website was listed. No job cap was listed.
Price. From £39 a month per user, as stated on the UK job-card page on 21 October 2026. Confirm it before you multiply it.
Official page: fergus.com/uk/pricing.
Jobber
Best for: a field-service platform with a website, if you are happy to pay in US dollars.
What it does well. Core is one user, with unlimited quotes, jobs and invoices, so there is no job-card cap on that plan. The pricing page lists a professional website for a one-person team. Clients can request work, book online and pay online. Jobber Payments is available in the UK. Extra users are $29 a month. An AI receptionist add-on is listed at $29 a month. The trial is 14 days, no card.
Watch-outs. Prices are in US dollars and exclude sales tax where it applies. On 2 November 2026 Core was $49 a month with no commitment, $39 a month on a one-year commitment, and $29 a month billed annually. The sums use the $49 monthly price with no commitment.
Price. $49 a month for one user on Core with no commitment, or $29 a month billed annually, plus $29 a month for each extra user. As listed on 2 November 2026.
Official page: getjobber.com/pricing.
What a team of one, three and five costs
Monthly list prices. The figures other than Jobber are as listed on 21 October 2026. Jobber was checked again on 2 November 2026, and this column uses $49 a month with no commitment, not the $29 a month billed annually. Fergus is left out, because its pricing page shows two figures for the same plan. ServiceM8 is in the last column so you can see the bill you would be leaving. It is Starter: unlimited users, 50 new jobs a month, website not included. A busier month is Growing at £59, still with no per-user fee.
Tradify is Pro plus the £10 website. Powered Now is Business for one person, then Professional. YourTradebase adds £15 for each extra user. Mortar is Core. Jobber is Core at the monthly price with no commitment.
| People | Mortar Core | Powered Now | Tradify Pro + website | YourTradebase | Jobber Core | ServiceM8 Starter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £49 | £28 | £37 + £10 = £47 | £29 | $49 | £25 |
| 3 | £49 | £32 × 3 = £96 | £37 × 3 + £10 = £121 | £29 + £15 × 2 = £59 | $49 + $29 × 2 = $107 | £25 |
| 5 | £49 | £32 × 5 = £160 | £37 × 5 + £10 = £195 | £29 + £15 × 4 = £89 | $49 + $29 × 4 = $165 | £25 |
Add VAT where the supplier says the price excludes it. Mortar, Powered Now, ServiceM8 and YourTradebase exclude VAT. Tradify's UK page does not say. Jobber is in dollars.
ServiceM8 is the flat column, and it stays flat only inside 50 new job cards. At five people the per-user tools cost more than that £25, and more than Mortar Core, before VAT. The difference is the cap, and whether the website is already in the price. Mortar's £49 includes the website. ServiceM8's £25 does not.
Where Mortar isn't the best fit
Stay on ServiceM8 if you want every person logged in and your month fits Starter or Growing. That is a lower figure than Mortar Core, and the paid plans do not charge for seats. Mortar is the wrong move if the only gap is a form or a certificate you already buy in ServiceM8's form store. Powered Now is the clearer pick when Making Tax Digital inside the job app is the requirement. Tradify or Fergus is the clearer pick when supplier price books and job costing matter more than a flat bill. If you are under the cap and happy, there is no reason in these prices to move.
How to choose
- How many new job cards do you open in a busy month? Under 50, Starter still fits. Under 150, Growing at £59 still has no per-user fee. Over that, the cap is the reason to look at a tool that does not publish one.
- Does a new person need a login? On ServiceM8's paid plans, no, the price does not change. On Tradify, Powered Now Professional, YourTradebase, Fergus and Jobber, it does.
- Is the website the gap? ServiceM8's add-on registers a new domain. Mortar and Powered Now include a site. Jobber includes one on Core, in dollars.
- Do you want the software to file the tax? Powered Now files Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. Mortar does not. ServiceM8 syncs to accounting software and does not describe filing the return on the pricing page.
Questions
Who should stay on ServiceM8?
Stay if the whole crew needs a login and your busy month fits the job cap. Paid plans do not charge per user. Starter is 50 new job cards a month. Growing is 150. Turning a quote into a work order does not use a second credit.
What happens when you go over the cap?
ServiceM8's pricing page says you can still create jobs for another seven days. If the month resets in that time, the credits reset. Otherwise you are prompted to upgrade.
Which alternatives charge per user?
Tradify, Fergus and Jobber charge per user. Powered Now Business is one user, then Professional and Premium are per user. YourTradebase adds £15 a month for each additional user. Mortar does not charge per user.
What does a team of three cost?
On the monthly list prices checked on 21 October 2026, three people cost £49 on Mortar Core, £96 on Powered Now Professional, £121 on Tradify Pro plus its website add-on, and £59 on YourTradebase. Jobber Core is 107 US dollars at the no-commitment monthly price, checked on 2 November 2026. ServiceM8 Starter stays at £25, inside 50 new jobs a month.
Does ServiceM8 include a website?
Not in the plan price. The website add-on needs a ServiceM8 subscription, is free for 24 months, then £24 a year, and it registers a new domain. It cannot take a domain you already own.