Why is Estimating Software Crucial in the Construction Industry?

Contractor holding building plans

Every construction project is unique, and it's hard to figure out how much time, effort, and money it will take to complete it until you begin the work. 

Estimating software has become an essential tool for contractors, remodelers, and other construction professionals to have on their side. 

The software helps you automatically estimate new jobs' time, materials, labor, and costs for your construction or remodelling projects. 

This allows you to provide more accurate quotes that your clients can depend on when they hire you to complete their job.

Read on to learn more!


What is a construction estimate?

A construction estimator calculates what it will cost for a specific project to be completed. 

Every piece of work gets itemized and added up to get an accurate picture of your project's cost from start to finish. 

Any reasonable construction estimator should include everything that goes into a job—from foundation work to paint, cabinets to flooring. 

Construction estimating software offers a robust, efficient way to calculate costs on a given project. 

If you're a remodeler or contractor specializing in construction work, it's important to understand what an estimate involves and why it is crucial to any successful remodeling project. Professional construction estimates help contractors cover all their bases when beginning a new job. 

This allows them to give potential clients realistic pricing information and gives them time to prepare materials and plan how much time each part of a construction project will take to complete. 

If you specialize in home renovation, contracting, or property management. There are plenty of ways that construction estimating software can benefit your business: 

  • Increased efficiency
  • More time to market your business (Time is money, especially when it comes to construction projects)
  • Accurate costs
  • Hassle-free estimate to the clients


Importance of Using Professional Estimates!

If you're serious about running a successful construction company, you know that getting estimates for jobs will be an integral part of your business. 

But if you're relying on an ad-hoc system for getting bids, it will be challenging to grow your business as quickly as possible. 

An excellent estimating program makes it easy to communicate with clients, contractors, and employees to ensure that you are always hitting your deadlines.

Additionally, utilizing software can help reduce waste and eliminate potential problems by keeping track of past estimates to look at trends over time. 

For any contractor or remodeler who wants to take their business from good to great, investing in a quality estimating program is one of the best decisions you can make. 

Using a professional estimating tool gives you peace of mind when working on new projects. 

Still, it can also save your business lots of money and materials. It doesn't matter whether you're just starting or have been doing construction work for years—using professional software makes it easier to run your company smoothly.


Helps in Achieving Your Business Goals!

Estimation software provides short-term and long-term benefits for construction contractors, developers, subcontractors, etc. Knowing what kinds of goals you want to achieve with your company will help you decide how to use estimation software most effectively. 

For example, if you own a small remodeling business that wants to grow over time by providing better service, or if you're a contracting company that wants to keep overhead low while reaching more clients: 

What are your goals? What do you need from an estimating program? 

It all depends on your business objectives. 

If you don't know where you want to go, it can be challenging to get there. And that applies whether we're talking about driving directions or planning a business strategy. 

Planning is essential because businesses have various ways to make money; knowing which avenues appeal to you most will help inform decisions about your growth plan and overall financial strategy. 


Benefits of a Reliable and Accurate Estimate!

Accuracy and reliability are essential to any business. Your estimate plays a critical role in determining how successful your business will be, no matter what. Let's have a look at some benefits of a good estimate:

  1. A reliable estimate helps you assess your total expected profit for a project before it begins. 
  2. It also serves as an important management tool to determine what projects to work on and which ones to pass up or turn down. 
  3. Without reasonable estimates, it can be challenging to manage workloads effectively and focus on improving your bottom line. 
  4. In addition to being easier on contractors, accurate estimates also benefit customers. 
  5. Good estimates help customers get a better idea of their overall project costs and timelines. 
  6. It makes it easier for your customers to make informed decisions about whether they want to proceed with a project or not. 
  7. Having all your information stored in one location makes running your business easier. 
  8. When you have easy access to pricing and cost information, preparing quotes becomes faster. That means more time spent making money than doing paperwork! 
  9. Accurate estimates can increase customer satisfaction. It helps customers avoid unpleasant surprises like additional fees or unexpected delays that could cause problems later.

Estimating software should be at the top of every contractor's priority list for all these reasons. 


Impacts of Poor Estimates!

One of the most significant impacts of construction projects and remodeling ventures when a proper estimate isn't completed before moving into full-scale work is that you run out of money. Contractors and remodelers often attempt to calculate an accurate total dollar amount to complete all aspects of a project. Still, they frequently don't take enough time to ensure their costs are right on target with what was initially envisioned by those who authorized or contracted for the work. 

If you're one of these types of contractors or remodelers, you need a better method for estimating; it could be very beneficial for your company and even save your clients from unnecessary frustration. 

They will thank you, too! 

You also want to make sure that you can alert your client so they know about any cost overruns before final payment if you get over budget during any stage of a project. 

A poorly estimated job can quickly become a big problem if there aren't contingencies built in for unexpected expenses. You want to avoid running out of money during construction or remodeling projects! 

Also, knowing exactly how much work needs to be done ahead of time saves everyone involved from experiencing confusion and miscommunication due to inaccurate estimates.


How can software help construction companies with estimating?

Before we delve into how estimating software helps contractors and remodelers get more accurate estimates, it's worth looking at how humans make estimates. 

Studies show that humans overestimate their abilities, leading to optimistic budgeting and planning. 

This tendency might be rooted in our hardwired optimism bias: when facing uncertainty, humans tend to believe they are more capable than they are. 

So when looking at cost-to-complete figures—or anything else—we may view an outcome as rosier than it is. 

This approach works well for individuals but leads organizations into financial trouble if left unchecked. 

So, why should you choose to remodel estimating software? 

As stated above, your estimated costs must match up precisely with actual costs after a project. With remodeling estimating software available today, companies have many benefits that aren't possible without its use. 

It helps provide consistency between jobs and prevent costly mistakes and misunderstandings. 

Consistency means having appropriately prepared estimates. That provides more opportunity for profit while reducing risk exposure regarding bidding projects or obtaining contracts/jobs.

It also saves you money and increases profits while providing a more accurate estimate. 

Remodeling estimating software has been shown to save upwards of 30% on construction projects. 

It eliminates costly mistakes by making it easy to identify problems early on in a project. 

This will help you avoid unforeseen expenses and delays, which often mean higher bids and lost contracts for construction companies. 

That makes remodeling estimating software a solid investment for construction companies looking to improve their bottom line! It's an investment that pays for itself.


Features to consider while selecting your construction estimating software!

As discussed, the benefits of construction estimating software are numerous; however, it can be challenging to choose which solution to use. 

There are many features to consider when deciding on what estimation tool will best serve your organization. Some features include collaborative features, construction cost calculation, and proposal generation tools. 

After all, you don't want your business held back by ineffective technology! 

These factors will help you find a system that meets your needs and helps grow your company.


  • SaaS (Software as a Service) - Most companies opt for SaaS solutions due to their low upfront costs, ease of implementation, and convenience. 
  • Contractor or Remodeler Specific - Some construction estimating software is designed specifically for contractors or remodelers. While some programs are more general and allow users to estimate projects from multiple perspectives. When choosing your construction estimating software, think about how many projects you typically work on at one time and what type of projects those are: commercial, residential or industrial.
  • Calculation in Construction - A good construction estimating software should include cost calculation features within its application.
  • Collaborative Features - Collaboration tools help streamline project management by allowing users to share documents online across different devices, including mobile phones, tablets, and computers.



Which estimating software should I use? 

Nowadays, estimating software has become necessary for anyone doing contracting or remodeling. 

However, while there are numerous programs, not all of them have everything you need. 

To find which is best for your needs, think about what you need most out of an estimating program: powerful tools to speed up your workflow or built-in modules that support particular aspects of construction such as tile work and siding installation. 

With an estimator like 247PRO by your side, you can create accurate pricing estimates for jobs at a click of a button. 

This software helps you quickly break down every part of a project into its most basic components. 

That helps you make an informed estimate as quickly as possible. 

The best part: these estimates automatically calculate your overhead costs, profit margins, and labor costs. So, you can keep track of your bottom line from start to finish!

You don't have to guess anymore—you can plan accordingly with reliable information that takes all of your hard work into account. 

Plus, thanks to easy-to-use features and built-in templates, it takes only minutes to learn 247PRO's ins and outs before you have professional-grade estimating capabilities. 

So why wait? Start using 247PRO today to help grow your business and ensure more predictable profits.