Managing a lawn care business is no easy task. Dealing with routes, estimates, invoicing, payroll, and employees can quickly become overwhelming. Then, of course, there are the regular curve balls that get thrown at every lawn care business that need to be dealt with immediately.
Thankfully, there are several software programs on the market designed specifically for the lawn care industry and other field-service related businesses to help make things easier. These programs offer one centralized dashboard for all of your business’s core functions.
Below, we’ll look at some of the top software programs designed for lawn care businesses and review the benefits of each one.
RazorSync
RazorSync is a flexible field management solution that is also voted as one of the most affordable options out there. Because of this, it may be a good place to start for those just opening their own businesses or for those who have tight budgets.
RazorSync also has a totally paperless workflow, so combining the desktop version for office use and giving field workers the phone or tablet app, the entire process from quoting to invoicing can be paper-free if you choose.
When it comes to features, RazorSync has all the core features you would expect in a field management program. These include:
- Dispatching and scheduling
- Reports
- Payment processing
- Preset automated notifications
- Mobile app
The above are all included in every plan, including the 30-day free trial. However, there are pricier options for those who want to add extra features.
For example, route optimization is an add-on and will need to be added to an existing plan. Next, inventory management and options to connect to Quickbooks are also available, but only with an additional charge.
So while the core functions are affordable, the price can start to increase with the additional features if needed.
RazorSync Pricing
RazorSync offers a free trial, which is always a good idea when deciding which software to choose. Paid plans are as follows:
Solo – $60 per month for up to 2 users. Discounts are available for being billed annually.
Team – $170 per month for up to 7 users. Includes advanced reporting and Quickbooks integration.
Pro – $350 per month for up to 15 users. Adds route optimization, inventory management, and other features.
RazorSync Reviews
Trustpilot: N/A
G2: 1.7
Jobber
Jobber is next on the list and it also features a rather affordable pricing for those looking for more economical options.
Another popular aspect of Jobber is that it is one of the easier-to-learn field service suites out there. For those who may not like diving into new software and learning new menus, this may be its biggest selling point.
The app takes a similar approach, with a very easy-to-use interface that doesn’t overwhelm the user with options. This is great for many people, however, it does come at the cost of leaving out a few features on the app.
The one place we found this not to be the case is the billing area, which at first does seem a little overly busy. But once you understand the features, it becomes rather easy to use. This was the only area of the entire software that seemed a bit more complicated than it had to be.
Jobber Pricing
Core – $30 per month for 1 user. Discounts are available for being billed annually.
Connect – $105 per month for up to 7 users. Includes routing, time tracking, and Quickbooks integration.
Grow – $210 per month for up to 30 users. Adds several marketing features.
Jobber Reviews
TrustPilot: 4.0
G2: 4.2
Aspire
Aspire is a fully- featured field service CRM that comes with some great features that are also scalable, so it can grow with your business, no matter how large it gets.
Estimating new jobs works well with Aspire as it helps track every potential job and then moves the wins into the next portion of the software.
Scheduling is handled smartly with the addition of multiple boards that can be broken down by route or by department manager. All of these route options have full GPS integration to maximize efficiency
Invoicing has an easy-to-use assistant which can help walk you through complex billing issues. All options are available for recurring customers or one-time jobs.
Finally, Aspire has a robust reporting system that allows you to get a fast overview of any aspect of your business to see where improvements can be made.
Aspire Pricing
Aspire pricing starts at $1000 per month. Potential customers must reach out to the company for specific quotes.
Aspire Reviews
Trustpilot: N/A
G2: N/A
Real Green
Real Green is a software solution that is more tailored to lawn care specifically than some of the other options listed here.
While many other programs are meant to help with field services like plumbing or HVAC as well as lawn care, Real Green is focused on the needs of lawn care and similar businesses.
For example, Real Green’s robust measuring assistant tool works by using GPS data to immediately let you know the square footage for an area of land that needs service.
This can be done without even visiting the property. Real Green is a great tool for giving quick estimates or allowing for a sales pitch to be more accurately drawn up before visiting a potential customer.
Real Green also offers a marketing assistant which tracks a wide variety of marketing efforts, both pre-sale and post-sale. Businesses can monitor follow-up emails to customers as well as track prospective customers via various campaigns.
For those businesses running dedicated direct-contact marketing campaigns, this is a unique feature of Real Green and may be a great selling point.
One drawback is that Real Green is somewhat opaque when it comes to pricing. Costs are not listed on the website and instead, customers need to speak with a sales rep to find out what pricing will apply to their business.
But reviews have shown customers generally pay more with Real Green than some other alternatives, making it a more pricey option. But for those who need some of the unique features for marketing and estimating, it may be worth the price.
Real Green Pricing
Real Green pricing varies based on a number of factors and ranges between $125 and $300 per month. Please contact RealGreen to book a demo and get a specific quote.
Real Green Reviews
Trustpilot: N/A
G2: 4.3
FieldRoutes
FieldRoutes is one of the better-known software solutions for recurring service businesses. It can be adapted for most service route businesses and has a custom version for pest control known as PestRoutes, so potential users need to make sure not to confuse the different options.
Field Routes offers a deep set of features that can sometimes overwhelm new users. So the learning curve with Field Routes is higher than with other programs.
This makes it more suitable for larger operations willing to take the time and resources to fully leverage its capabilities. For smaller businesses that want to get up and running quickly, there are better options that cost less.
FieldRoutes does offer a unique customer portal. This gives your customers a way to interact with their billing and other services. One nice touch is that this also offers the ability for customers to leave reviews.
This handy feedback can let you know what your customers are thinking and give you ideas on ways to improve. It also prompts good reviewers to also share the review on various social media sites with supplied links.
This makes it easy to get a few more reviews on common social media sites, which can really help your online presence. It’s also helpful if you have had some unfair or bad reviews and need to solicit some new reviews from happy customers.
FieldRoutes does have route optimization, but it is billed per route at the rate of $.20. This is a strange sort of way to bill this extra feature as many competitors just use a flat rate. Although, this may be cheaper if you don’t use it that often, but still, many customers prefer flat rates as it’s easier to budget expenses that way.
One downside of Field Routes is the program only allows for the use of one payment processor, which is Playrix. So if you don’t want to use Playrix or for some reason are not able to, you have no other options.
This lack of billing options is one of the major drawbacks of the software in customer reviews.
FieldRoutes Pricing
FieldRoutes does offer custom pricing but it is based on the number of users. Up to 500 users is $250 per month. Over 500 users $299 per month up to 1000 users.
FieldRoutes Reviews
Trustpilot: N/A
G2: 4.4
Arborgold
Arborgold is a software management solution aimed at lawn care, landscaping, tree service, and other field service businesses.
It boasts some of the most features available with any of the programs in the same category. The pricing is also unique in that each feature is essentially an add-on, allowing you to customize the software with only what you need.
For some, this may save money. But for others who need many features or certain features that are only used occasionally, this approach may end up costing more than other solutions that have all these features available without add-ons.
Scheduling is a very nice feature with Arborgold and eliminates a lot of typing or clicking with other software programs. With Arborgold, there is a simple drag-and-drop interface. This allows users to quickly and easily set up initial or recurring jobs without any extra typing or entering data.
Overall, the scheduling features with Arborgold are some of the nicest we’ve seen.
Arborgold has robust task management and tracking as well, allowing users to keep close tabs on employees as they move about from job to job.
GPS integration shows when employees arrive on the job site and that information can be integrated with time tracking to keep track of hours worked for each location.
However, all these features do come at the cost of complexity. Arborgold has a lot of tutorials and learning resources on its website and social media channels, but still, the learning curve is somewhat steep compared to easier solutions.
Arborgold Pricing
ArborGold is available in 3 tiers.
Standard – Pricing is $129 per month or $109 per month if paid annually.
Professional – Pricing is $274 per month or $229 per month if paid annually.
Enterprise – Pricing is$439 per month or $359 if billed annually.
ArborGold does offer a variety of add-ons as well which can increase the monthly costs outlined above.
Arborgold Reviews
Trustpilot: N/A
G2: 4.3
Final Thoughts On Lawn Care Management Software
There are a lot of options out there to help you manage and run your lawn care or landscaping business. Most of these software programs are very similar. they all include phone apps for you or your crew to use in the field. And most have free trials, but some do not, so it’s important to decide which features are most important to you before diving in.
When comparing prices, reviews, and ease of use, Jobber is the clear winner in my opinion. They have a 2 week free trial, and after that their price is a very reasonable $30 per month. This is money extremely well spent to keep your whole business organized.
Finally, the pricing on these can get confusing with most having one-time “sign-up” fees as well as a plethora of add-ons, which can drive up the costs pretty quickly. Always contact the company and ask if any specials are currently running or if certain fees can be waived. It’s not uncommon for them to offer discounts nearly year-round, but sometimes you have to ask.
