◆QuotingAI vs Clear Estimates
Their Cost Database Is Their Whole Product. It Stops At The Border.
Clear Estimates prices 15,000+ line items across 400 areas — all of them in the United States. For an Alberta contractor, the one feature you're paying for is the one that doesn't cross over.
Clear Estimates figures verified July 25, 2026 · Every price on this page is cited and dated
The Short Answer
If you build in the United States and want a prebuilt cost database you don't have to assemble yourself, Clear Estimates is a genuinely good buy and cheap per seat. If you build in Canada, its localized pricing covers no part of your market, it has no metric units, no GST or PST handling, and no native e-signature — so you'd be paying for a database you have to override and a proposal you still have to sign somewhere else.
Clear Estimates is a residential remodeling estimating tool (clearestimates.com). QuotingAI does one job end to end: describe a job, get a priced itemized quote, send a branded proposal, collect an e-signature and a deposit.
Published Pricing
What Clear Estimates Actually Costs
Every figure below is quoted from a page we read on July 25, 2026. Where Clear Estimates does not publish a number, this table says so instead of guessing.
Read this first: Clear Estimates' pricing page shows a bare dollar sign with no currency designator, so the figures below are reproduced exactly as published rather than converted. Their FAQ page still advertises a flat “$79 per month”, which contradicts their own three-tier pricing page — we cite the pricing page only. They have also published a post titled “Why our Subscription Prices are Changing”, so re-check before you sign anything.
| Clear Estimates plan | Price | Billing basis | Users included | Each extra user |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $79/mo[1]$59/mo billed annually | Per month, monthly or annual | 1 login[4] | Not available[10]Additional users are a Pro-only feature — a second login forces an upgrade |
| Pro | $119/mo[1]$99/mo billed annually | Per month, monthly or annual | Base seat count not publicly listed[1] | $9/mo[1]Per additional user |
| Franchise | From $249/mo[1]From $199/mo annually. Vendor's own footnote: plans “start at” this rate, priced on scope of customization | Per month, scope-based | Not publicly listed[1] | Not publicly listed[1] |
Seat model
One login on Standard, then $9 per extra user on Pro.
Free trial
30 days[1]Whether a card is required is not publicly listed — we're not claiming either way
Setup / onboarding fee
None published[1]
QuotingAI, For Comparison
Solo
$55/mo CAD
One user. Step up to Crew when someone else starts quoting.
Crew
$132/mo CAD
Up to 5 users — one flat price, whether you fill the seats or not.
Shop
$244/mo CAD
Up to 15 users — one flat price, whether you fill the seats or not.
QuotingAI prices are our own list prices in Canadian dollars, shown here so the comparison is like for like. A 14-day free trial requires a card and can be cancelled before it converts.
The Arithmetic
What Happens When You Hire
Clear Estimates priced at three crew sizes, using only figures Clear Estimates publishes — against QuotingAI Crew at $132/mo flat.
| Estimators | Clear Estimates — Standard, then Pro | How that's worked out | QuotingAI Crew |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $59/moon Standard | Standard, billed annually — $59/mo. One login is all Standard allows. | $132/mo |
| 3 | Not derivable | Standard is off the table at two users, so the floor is Pro at $99/mo annually, plus $9 for each user beyond whatever the base includes. Clear Estimates doesn't publish that base, so the real figure sits somewhere between $99 and $117 — we won't pretend to know which. | $132/mo |
| 8 | Not derivable | Pro at $99/mo annually plus $9 per user above the base — between $99 and $162, on the same unpublished base. | $132/mo |
Where this comparison is and isn't fair: Clear Estimates is not an expensive product per seat, and at eight estimators it is very likely cheaper than QuotingAI Shop. We're not going to pretend otherwise — $9 a user is genuinely inexpensive. Price is not the argument on this page. What you're buying at that price is a US cost database, imperial units and a proposal you sign in a separate PDF tool.
Feature By Feature
QuotingAI vs Clear Estimates, Row By Row
Where we couldn't confirm a Clear Estimatescapability from their own documentation, the row says “Not publicly listed” rather than scoring it against them.
| Capability | QuotingAI | Clear Estimates |
|---|---|---|
| AI drafts the quote from a plain-language job descriptionClear Estimates' AI Scope Assistant is real and recent — it reads plans, blueprints and site photos to build an estimate, on Pro. It works from documents, not from you describing the job out loud in a driveway. | Yes | No[5] |
| Prebuilt regional cost databaseTheir genuine strength, and we don't have it — QuotingAI prices from the pricebook you build. Theirs covers 400 U.S. areas, refreshed quarterly. | No | Yes[1] |
| Cost data covering Canadian marketsVendor's own words: prices “are sourced from the United States only”. | Yes | No[3] |
| Metric units | Yes | No[3] |
| Itemized line-item quoting | Yes | Yes[3] |
| Branded proposal documentLogo on reports and line-item breakdowns; deeper custom branding is a Franchise-tier feature. | Yes | Yes[11] |
| Client e-signature on the quoteTheir knowledge base directs users to sign proposals in an external PDF editor. | Yes | No[6] |
| Deposit collected at signatureCard and ACH payments through a Clearent by Xplor integration. Processing rates aren't published, and neither is Canadian availability. | Yes | Paid add-on[8] |
| Full invoicingQuotingAI stops at the signed deposit on purpose — invoicing and books stay in your accounting software. | No | Yes[7] |
| Scheduling and dispatchNeither tool does this. Clear Estimates points users to Buildertrend; we expect you to keep your own scheduler. | No | No[3] |
| Native mobile appQuotingAI installs to a phone home screen as a PWA and works offline. Clear Estimates is browser-based and says it “works best on desktop”, though it does run on a tablet. | Yes | No[3] |
| GST / PST / HST handling by provinceIn Clear Estimates tax is a free-text miscellaneous line and a percentage you key in yourself — nothing computes or validates it. | Yes | No[9] |
| Prices and bills in Canadian dollarsTheir pricing page shows no currency designator and offers no CAD option; their advice to Canadian users is to “convert to CAD as needed”. | Yes | Not publicly listed |
Straight Talk
Who Should Actually Pick Which
Pick Clear Estimates If…
You build in the United States and want pricing handed to you
This is Clear Estimates' real competency and it's a strong one. 15,000+ line items localized across 400 U.S. areas, refreshed quarterly. A remodeler who has never priced systematically can open it and produce a defensible number the same afternoon. Building that database yourself is genuinely hard, and we don't hand you one.
Your work is repeatable residential remodels
Over 200 preloaded templates cover the standard scopes — kitchen, bath, addition. If you quote the same five projects with different measurements, template-and-adjust beats writing line items from scratch.
You want an estimating tool, not a sales system
They say plainly that they focus on the estimating. If you already run a CRM and a project manager and only need a number, that narrowness is a feature, not a gap.
You have a large team and are counting dollars per seat
Nine dollars per additional user is cheap. At eight estimators their published cost is likely below ours. If headcount economics is the deciding factor, that's a fair reason to choose them.
Pick QuotingAI If…
You quote in Canada and want the numbers to mean something
Alberta labour and material costs are not U.S. border-area costs converted at spot rate. QuotingAI prices from the pricebook you actually buy at, in Canadian dollars, with GST or your province's rate on the line where it belongs.
You want the client to sign before you leave the driveway
The gap between “I'll email you a quote” and a signature is where jobs die. QuotingAI takes the client from proposal to e-signature to a deposit on a card in one link. Clear Estimates sends you to a separate PDF editor to get signed.
You'd rather describe the job than upload a blueprint
Their AI reads plans and photos. Ours listens to “two-hundred foot cedar fence, six foot, one gate, post holes through clay” and produces the itemized quote. On a residential callout there usually is no blueprint.
You want the deposit in the bank, not an invoice in a queue
QuotingAI captures a Stripe deposit at the moment of signature. Clear Estimates can invoice and take payment through a third-party processor whose rates and Canadian availability it doesn't publish.
Questions
Switching From Clear Estimates
Can I use Clear Estimates in Canada?+
You can log into it from anywhere — but its cost database is, in the vendor's own words, sourced from the United States only, it has no metric units, and it has no GST, PST or HST logic. Their published suggestion to Canadian contractors is to use U.S. border-area pricing and convert to Canadian dollars as needed. The database is the reason to buy the product, so if you're in Alberta you'd be paying for the part that doesn't apply and re-keying your own prices anyway.
Does Clear Estimates have AI?+
Yes. Their AI Scope Assistant, announced in April 2026 and available on the Pro tier, generates a structured estimate from an uploaded floor plan, blueprint or job-site photo. The difference isn't whether AI exists — it's the input. Theirs starts from a document; QuotingAI starts from you describing the job in plain language, which is what you actually have standing in a customer's yard.
Is Clear Estimates cheaper than QuotingAI?+
At one user, their annual Standard rate and our Solo plan are within a few dollars of each other. Above about five estimators their per-user pricing is likely cheaper than ours, because nine dollars a seat is inexpensive. We'd rather tell you that than have you find out later. The reason to pick QuotingAI is Canadian cost data, e-signature and deposit capture in one flow — not a lower monthly bill at scale.
Can Clear Estimates collect a signature and a deposit?+
Not natively for the signature. Their proposals include a printed signature block, and their own knowledge base tells users to e-sign in an external PDF editor. They do invoice, and they can take card or ACH payments through a Clearent by Xplor integration, though the processing rates and whether a Canadian-domiciled business can onboard are not published on their site.
How current are the prices on this page?+
Every Clear Estimates figure here was read from their own pages on July 25, 2026, and each one links to the page it came from. They have published a post titled “Why our Subscription Prices are Changing”, so treat these as a snapshot and confirm on their pricing page before you buy. If you spot something stale, email hello@quotingai.ca and we'll correct it.
Sources
Every Clear Estimates figure on this page traces to one of these. Pricing changes — if you find one of these out of date, tell us at hello@quotingai.ca and we'll correct it.
- [1] Clear Estimates pricing pageClear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [2] Clear Estimates homepageClear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [3] What can Clear Estimates do? (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [4] Clear Estimates FAQClear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [5] AI estimating software for contractors — build estimates from plans and photosClear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25 · published 2026-04-01
- [6] Using a PDF editor for e-signature (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [7] Create an invoice (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [8] Accept payments — Clearent by Xplor integrationClear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [9] Adding taxes and discounts (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [10] How to add an additional user (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
- [11] Add your company logo (knowledge base)Clear Estimates · accessed 2026-07-25
Clear Estimates and all other product names are trademarks of their respective owners. QuotingAI is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Clear Estimates. Comparison last researched July 25, 2026.
Draft A Quote Before You Decide
Describe a real job in plain language and see the priced, itemized quote QuotingAI produces. Fourteen days, cancel any time.