What electrical shops need from field service software
Electrical work runs on two clocks. Service calls are short and unpredictable: a dead circuit, a flickering kitchen, a tripped GFCI that won't reset. Project work is long and lumpy: rough-in, a rough inspection on the inspector's schedule, insulation and drywall by someone else, then trim-out, then final. A shop with six people usually has both going at once, and the software has to show which is which at a glance.
Here's what that means in practice:
- Multi-visit jobs with a hold in the middle. You need to mark a job as waiting on inspection, keep the permit number on it, and get a reminder to schedule trim. Otherwise those jobs disappear until the GC calls asking why the house has no devices.
- Job costing that includes your material. A panel upgrade can carry $800 or more in parts. If the tech's time and the material pulled from the van don't land on the job, you can't tell which jobs made money.
- Photos and notes per address. Pictures of the panel, the meter base and the service drop save a second trip and settle arguments with the utility or the homeowner later. A note that says "Federal Pacific panel, quoted replacement, declined" is worth having when that customer calls back.
- Estimates that turn into jobs. Whether the quote came from a takeoff tool or a tablet in a living room, the approved number should become the job's budget without retyping.
- Progress billing, if you do commercial work. GCs pay on a schedule of values with retainage. Homeowner-focused apps don't do this well, and it's the main reason commercial subs end up on Knowify or construction accounting.
How the picks compare
The six tools sort into three groups.
Residential service apps (Housecall Pro, Jobber, Workiz). These are quick to set up and built around a homeowner calling, booking, approving and paying. Housecall Pro takes the top spot because it handles a residential electrical week well at a published price, and its marketing and review tools help a shop that lives on Google. Jobber is the better buy for one to three trucks, mainly on price. Workiz earns a spot for emergency-heavy shops that want calls and jobs in one system, but its 2026 move to quote-only pricing removes one of the reasons people picked it.
Service platforms for larger shops (ServiceTitan, FieldEdge). Both lean on flat-rate pricebooks and service agreements. ServiceTitan is far deeper and far more expensive. FieldEdge sits between Housecall Pro and ServiceTitan on depth and is aimed at offices that run their books in QuickBooks. Neither publishes pricing, and FieldEdge has no free trial, so you're buying off a demo.
Project tools for commercial subs (Knowify). Knowify is the odd one out and the right answer for a specific shop: one that bids GCs, signs contracts, bills progress and needs to know whether job 2417 is over budget on labor. It's weaker for same-day residential service.
A lot of shops grow into a split setup: a takeoff tool for bids, plus one of these for everything after the contract. If you also run HVAC or plumbing crews, or you're comparing tools across trades, start from our roundup of field service management software.
What to look for before you sign
- Build a rough-and-trim job in the trial. Create one job with two visits and a hold between them. If the software can't show "waiting on inspection" clearly, you'll lose jobs in the gap.
- Count the logins you'll actually pay for. Jobber and Housecall Pro charge by user bracket, Knowify includes 10 users on Advanced, and FieldEdge counts mobile licenses (2, 4 or 6 by plan). Include your office manager and any part-time estimator.
- Check van inventory before you need it. If you stock vans, pick a tool that tracks inventory now. Adding it later means a painful re-count.
- Ask how the QuickBooks sync handles job costs. Some tools sync invoices and payments only. You want labor and material costs flowing to the right job or class too.
- Get add-ons in writing. ServiceTitan's pricebook, marketing and phone tools are extras; Workiz sells phone and answering separately; Knowify sells fleet and equipment tracking per vehicle.
- Plan the switch around your slow season. Moving systems in the middle of a new-construction push is miserable. Most electrical shops are quieter in late winter.
What it costs
Prices are as of October 2026, billed annually unless noted, before card processing fees.
| Shop size |
Jobber |
Housecall Pro |
Knowify |
ServiceTitan |
| 1 user |
$29/mo (Core) |
$59/mo (Basic) |
$99/mo (Core) |
Not built for one tech |
| 5 users |
$149/mo (Connect) or $229/mo (Grow) |
$149/mo (Essentials) |
$329/mo (Advanced, 10 users) |
Roughly $1,225 to $2,500/mo (third-party estimate) |
| 15 users |
$299/mo (Connect) or $399/mo (Grow) |
About $544/mo (MAX + 7 users at $35) |
About $474/mo (Advanced + 5 users at $29) |
Roughly $3,675 to $7,500/mo (third-party estimate) |
ServiceTitan figures multiply third-party estimates of $245 to $500 per technician per month and leave out implementation. FieldEdge and Workiz are quote only. For FieldEdge, third-party estimates of about $125 per technician and $100 per office user would put a five-tech shop with one office user near $725/mo, but treat that as a rough guide, not a quote.
The cost that doesn't show in the table is card processing. A residential shop running $60,000 a month through Jobber at 2.9% + 30¢ pays about $1,740 a month in card fees before the per-transaction charges, which is more than any subscription here. Push large invoices like service upgrades toward ACH, which Jobber charges at 1%.
