The best construction bidding software helps track proposals, create estimates, and bridge communication between general contractors and subcontractors. We’ve examined 15+ providers across 7 metrics, using our advanced review methodology to rank the top options on the market today.
- Procore: Best Overall
- Buildertrend: Best Collaboration Tools
- Contractor Foreman: Best for Small Businesses
- Knowify
- Clear Estimates
- Buildxact
- InEight
- STACK
- HeavyBid
- Estimating Link
1 Procore - Best Overall
Why We Chose It: Procore tops our list for its rich feature set, catering to general contractors, property owners, and specialty contractors. We particularly liked Procore’s built-in templates, making it a breeze to assemble bid packages. Its Planroom feature can directly store details like drawings and specifications within bid packages. From there, it’s easy to convert awarded bids into subcontracts or purchase orders, with line-item breakdowns for the schedule of values.
However, we think smaller businesses might find Procore too pricey. Though it covers unlimited users, it starts at $375/month for the project management module and $549/month if you integrate the accounting module. Procore also doesn’t list their pricing publicly, so you’ll need a custom quote to get a true idea of what you’ll pay.
2 Buildertrend - Best Collaboration Tools
Why We Chose It: Buildertrend made our list because of its client portal feature, apt for specialty contractors, home builders, and remodelers. Homeowners can view daily progress updates, including videos and photos. They can also communicate directly with the construction team, make payments, and sign project documents through the portal.
Buildertrend goes a step further with its “Bids” feature, letting users craft bid packages and distribute them directly to trade partners via email. We also like how easy it is to track bid submissions from subcontractors and compare quotes.
QuickBooks users might run into some limitations though. Though it integrates with QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop, payments in Buildertrend do not always sync with QuickBooks. Some users also report issues with time clock data not flowing properly from Buildertrend to QuickBooks.
3 Contractor Foreman - Best for Small Businesses
Why We Chose It: We found Contractor Foreman best for small to mid-sized firms with 10 to 500 employees. It has a full suite of project management, estimating, and scheduling tools without the complexity or cost of larger systems. We also appreciate that Contractor Foreman offers a 30-day free trial and 100-day money-back guarantee for annual plans, starting at $49/month.
During our live demo of Contractor Foreman, we found its design fairly intuitive compared to some competitors with more traditional interfaces. This ensures a shorter learning curve, allowing small teams to adopt its features quickly. However, our research showed that users wish Contractor Foreman had offline capabilities, especially for the time clock function. If internet connection is spotty, workers in remote job sites won’t be able to access the app.
4 Knowify
Why We Chose It: Knowify is our top choice for commercial contractors. The platform streamlines the creation of detailed budgets, covering labor, materials, subcontractors, and equipment, organized by line item and project phase. We also liked how simple it was to convert a project budget into a polished bid in a few clicks.
Additionally, Knowify helps manage the financial complexities of commercial projects. It supports both standard and AIA-style (G702/G703) invoicing. And Knowify’s integration with QuickBooks Online pulls invoices, bills, employee time, and expenses into Knowify and vice-versa. A word of caution though: reviews for the iOS and Android mobile apps show that some field workers have problems clocking in and out of the app.
5 Clear Estimates
Why We Chose It: We added Clear Estimates to our roster because it has a parts library to help generate bids quickly. Powered by RemodelMAX, this tool includes 10,000 pre-loaded parts, including location-specific labor and material costs. Overall, Clear Estimates is a strong option for residential remodelers and small construction firms with 2-10 employees.
Clear Estimates allows users to create professional proposals and contracts from estimates. They can easily copy and reuse previous estimates to track material and labor cost changes over time. There is one drawback, however: Clear Estimates syncs with QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, Zapier, Buildertrend, and Clearant. Beyond that, we found Clear Estimates lacking in integration options, especially compared to products like Procore or Heavybid.
6 Buildxact
Why We Chose It: We picked Buildxact for residential construction professionals, providing easy-to-use estimating and job management tools. It also integrates with supplier price lists, streamlining the bidding process for custom home builders and remodelers.
Buildxact can perform digital takeoffs and create detailed bids, incorporating local labor and materials costs. What’s particularly useful is that Buildxact can easily convert cost estimates into proposals and invoices using customizable templates.
However, we found the pricing model potentially costly for those requiring multiple users to access the software. That’s because Buildxact charges on a per-user model rather than per account.
7 InEight
Why We Chose It: We picked InEight because it simplifies bid preparation. The software accomplishes this through a takeoff database that leverages historical data for future projects. We also liked that it includes a tool for “what-if” scenario analyses, allowing users to assess the impact of scope or cost changes.
Another module within the larger suite includes InEight Contract, where users can craft various bid packages for Permanent Material, Freight, Engineered Equipment, and Subcontracts. The Bid Wizard tool is also worth mentioning, enabling the creation of new estimates by copying data from existing job folders, including pay and cost items.
Overall, InEight is a solid choice for owners and contractors in heavy civil construction, power and energy, general building construction, and mining. However, we found InEight poses a learning curve for new users. This may be partly due to its traditional UI and complex navigation, with more advanced features requiring multiple clicks to access.
8 STACK
Why We Chose It: We recommend STACK as a lighter alternative to Procore or Buildertrend. It’s focused mainly on takeoff and estimat.ng, as opposed to comprehensive project management.
We like that it offers strong digital plan control, providing quick access to the most up-to-date documents so users can respond to bid invitations faster. Workers can upload digital versions of construction plans directly into STACK. They can then view different layers of their plans, isolating specific aspects like electrical or plumbing work.
However, we found STACK’s markup options a little basic. Users can add text boxes, lines, and shapes. However, we often hear they want more versatility, like drawing arrows, boxes, and circles independently of takeoff tasks.
9 HeavyBid
Why We Chose It: HeavyBid is specifically designed for heavy civil construction bidding. We found it performs best at handling large-scale projects like highways, bridges, and utilities. That’s because HeavyBid can import DOT data from state websites, making bids more competitive and compliant with state regulations.
Another reason we added HeavyBid to our list is its extensive integration capabilities. The system syncs with over 75 popular platforms, like ADP, Deltek Vantagepoint, Paylocity, Sage 100 Contractor, Sage 300 CRE, and QuickBooks. However, we think the UI looks and feels fairly traditional, akin to an earlier version of Windows. Plus, the system can be challenging to navigate for newcomers, and users run into occasional crashes and laggy performance.
10 Estimating Link
Why We Chose It: We picked Estimating Link for its automated calculation capabilities. Also designed for heavy civil construction projects, the system offers pipe trench and fuel calculators and bond and overhead calculation tables that auto-adjust costs based on project details.
We particularly liked its crew building and rate comparison tools. Estimators can assemble the right crew composition and compare the associated costs. They can also compare the rates of different materials, subcontractors, and labor. However, the lack of a copy-and-paste function might be a dealbreaker for some users.
What is Construction Bidding Software?
Construction bidding software manages bid project data, documents, and subcontractor communications during preconstruction. Sometimes found as a part of a larger construction management software, common bidding features include contact management, project calendars, proposal request management, prequalifications, and RFI creation tools.
Features of Construction Bidding Software
The advantage of today’s bid management solutions is that they leverage a single, comprehensive system to provide all of the following functionality:
- Bid sourcing and submission review
- Advanced analytics
- Project management
- Contact management
Companies seeking further functional integration can select a construction ERP package with bid management as a component of the full construction management solution.
Bid Sourcing and Review
Tools designed to help identify bid candidates and accurately assess the quality of proposals represent cornerstone bid management system functionalities.
- Bid target discovery tools: Bid management systems offer internal and external tools for identifying suitable bid targets. Search tools help general contractors leverage their own database of subcontractors to find bid submission candidates. Additionally, some software systems offer access to networks of subcontractors, providing an additional means of discovering bid invitees.
- Bid submission interface: Traditionally, soliciting bids has meant considerable leg work transferring subcontractor proposals into a consolidated repository for tracking and comparison. Many online bid management solutions now offer submission portals. Utilizing a common submission interface eliminates the step of collating responses into a common format.
- Bid response filtering: Filtering tools can only surface bids that match definable criteria. This capability helps limit the time spent reviewing bid submissions that don’t meet the qualification requirements (such as union status or insurance coverage).
- Vendor comparison matrix: Comparing a large set of responses can be difficult. Visual presentations of bid response data that provide a top-level comparison of proposal attributes can make the comparison process easier and more effective.
- Automated project cost roll-ups: Automated project cost roll-up calculation offers the ability to easily determine total potential vendor costs across many vendor selection what-if scenarios and subcontractor combinations.
Analytics
What makes for a successful bid process? To answer the question, general contractors are increasingly looking to the analytics tools available in bid management software. Business intelligence capabilities help turn the massive amount of data captured throughout the bid management process into tactical information.
- Bid portfolio tracking: Visibility into the portfolio of upcoming bids is necessary for accurate business planning. Understanding response rates and other key status indicators across the range of bids-in-process provides the data to allocate resources and plan cash flow more accurately.
- Automatic reporting: Recreating reports can be tedious. The ability to save report templates allows a more efficient means of staying on top of key bid tracking data.
- Bid outreach tracking: There is a direct correlation between the number of bid recipients and the ability to source more aggressive pricing and more qualified subcontractors. Simply put, the more options you have, the more likely you will find what you seek. Measuring bid invitation outreach efforts provides an opportunity to understand what is working and what isn’t when soliciting bids.
- Visual dashboards: Visual information is often easier to digest. Graphical presentations of bid management data can help executives stay up to speed on bid activity.
- Flexible report exports: While bid management systems attempt to create a comprehensive, all-in-one experience, there can be occasions where it is necessary to export data for further reporting. Most bid management products can export reports in formats like PDF, XLS, and CSV.
Contact Management
A large part of the complexity involved in bid management arises from communicating with many different parties. To minimize this complexity, bid management tools provide an integrated interface for managing bid-related communication.
- Email management: Most bid management suites integrate an email client. The advantage of integrated email clients is better support for tasks like sharing email templates, associating messages with projects, and providing unified message access to multiple bid managers. Integration with Microsoft Exchange and other mail server systems is common.
- Web publishing: Publishing bid solicitations online offers a means of connecting with an expanded audience of subcontractors. Some systems offer an entirely branded and turnkey web presence to contractors interested in publishing bid opportunities. Other software options allow general contractors to add bid solicitations to networks dedicated to bringing together general contractors and subs.
- Contact information tracking: One of the core benefits of a bid management system is the ability to build a searchable database of subcontractors. Customizable contact database fields help bid management professionals store any data they’d like about subcontractors and other contacts in a queryable manner.
- Contact import tools: Importing contact information from Outlook, Excel, and other sources offers an opportunity for data-entry time-savings.
Project Management
While you may not conceive of bid management software as a classic “project management” application, it incorporates many features from the PM playbook. Critical project management-oriented features include:
- Project-oriented organization: Bid management solutions are organized by projects. While each project will be subdivided into biddable tasks, a hierarchical organizational structure with the project at the top level allows for the definition and application of global settings (such as identifying a project scope statement, targeted completion date, or point of contact).
- Job/activity/task definition: Activity, job, or task definitions are utilized to define each biddable unit of the project. Bid level definitions allow for the presentation of relevant specialized information for each job (for instance, pitch and square footage for a roofing job).
- Status tracking: Effectively managing the bid process requires monitoring the completion of various tasks. Status tracking can help monitor project set-up, communication, and contract award conditions.
- Document management: Sourcing subcontractors necessitates sharing files. Document management capabilities offer storage and version control capabilities for project plans, licensing paperwork, and other related documentation.
- Access control: The ability to restrict access to schedules, definitions, and documents lets bid managers share data with varied audiences while maintaining granular control over who sees what.
Bid Management in the Successful Construction Firm
General contractors navigate a complex set of business challenges–not the least of which is the bid management process.
Complex though it may be, taming the bid process is critical. Effective bid management means capturing more project work and sourcing the right subcontractors to complete projects profitably.
Why Ia Bid Invitation Management Software Popular?
Bid invitation management solutions are proving especially popular because they help deliver 4 specific positive outcomes:
- Lower subcontractor pricing. Improved notification processes yield more bid submissions, which increases the likelihood of receiving more aggressive vendor pricing.
- Better subcontractors. The lowest-priced subcontractor is not always the best option. Sourcing more choices also helps general contractors select the most qualified subcontractors.
- Reduced operating costs. Integrated bid management systems are easier to use and require less administrative overhead.
- Improved strategic decision-making. Integrated bid management software solutions provide an opportunity to gather business intelligence data that can be used to make better strategic decisions.
Considerations for Choosing Bid Management Software
The features included within each bid management program will vary–as will user interface presentations. But beyond these functional differences, there are a few other key contrasts between the available software options that bear consideration: security, platform, and integration.
- Security: Access control should represent a primary concern for bid management software evaluators. With multiple internal and external audiences (executives, bid managers, project managers, and subcontractors), utilizing customizable user access controls is important. An auditable log of program interaction will provide a forensic reporting option if the ethics involved in bid selection come into question. Buyers interested in web-based options will want to qualify further security considerations such as data encryption standards and physical data center protection. (The Cloud Security Alliance does a great job of discussing cloud security standards and is worth checking out if you are actively engaged in considering web-based software.)
- Platform: Buyers will find bid management systems available in both traditionally licensed client-server and software-as-a-service (SaaS) deployments. The benefits associated with several commonly provided features–web publishing of solicitation requests and access to subcontractor networks–have led to a larger adoption rate of web-based systems.
- Integration: While bid management solutions consolidate much of the actual bid invitation and review process, there are some important potential functional integration points to consider, including estimating, proposal management, and forecasting applications. When evaluating integration capabilities, an API indicates a solution whose developer has already paid attention to how data can be brought into and out of their software. Another option for bid management buyers looking to support functional integration is to source the software as a component of a larger, entirely integrated construction management or construction ERP solution. (General contractors looking to consider a wider range of functionality than just bid management can check out our construction management software guide here.)
