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Buildertrend vs CoConstruct: what changed, and what it means for builders
For years, Buildertrend and CoConstruct were the two names builders compared. In 2021 the two companies combined. If you’re weighing them today, the real decision has shifted, and it helps to know what each was known for.
By the Before The Build team · Updated
The short version
Buildertrend and CoConstruct both built construction project management software for residential builders and remodelers. In 2021 they joined into one company. Since then, the company has been bringing CoConstruct customers over to Buildertrend. If you’re on CoConstruct today, ask the company directly about timelines and what a move looks like for your account, because that will shape your options more than any feature list.
What Buildertrend is known for
Buildertrend is broad. It covers scheduling, daily logs, to-dos, budgets and job costing, purchase orders, subs and vendors, change orders, selections, warranty, and a view for homeowners during the build. It has sales features too, including lead tracking and proposals. It serves builders and remodelers across a wide range of sizes.
What CoConstruct was known for
CoConstruct built its reputation with custom builders and remodelers. Builders who liked it tended to mention how it tied specifications and selections to estimates, and how it handled communication with clients through a custom build, where every project is a little different.
Side by side
The short version
Before The BuildBuilt for local builders
8 of 9 built in · 1 partly
Buildertrend
5 of 9 built in · 4 partly
CoConstruct
3 of 9 built in · 5 partly
| Feature | Before The Build8 of 9 built in | Buildertrend5 of 9 built in | CoConstruct3 of 9 built in |
|---|---|---|---|
| The basics | |||
| Built for | Local builders selling homes on lots | Builders and remodelers of every size | Custom builders and remodelers |
| Status | Active product | Active product | Combined into Buildertrend in 2021 |
| The sale | |||
| Lots and reservations with deposits | Not a core feature | ||
| Quotes from a locked price sheet | Line-item estimates | Estimates tied to specs | |
| Your own contract templates, filled in and signed | Document tools | Proposals | |
| Texting from your company number | Check with Buildertrend | Check with Buildertrend | |
| Selections | |||
| Selections with private margins | Known for it | ||
| The build | |||
| Schedules, daily logs and change orders | |||
| Trade partner links, POs and invoices | Check with Buildertrend | ||
| A progress page for every buyer | |||
| Job costing and accounting depth | Budgets, bills, draws; QuickBooks export | Core strength | Check with Buildertrend |
| Price | |||
| Pricing | $397/month flat, unlimited users | Tiered plans; see their site | Sold as part of Buildertrend now |
What it means if you’re choosing today
For most builders, the practical choice is no longer Buildertrend or CoConstruct. It’s whether Buildertrend fits the way you work, or whether you want a different project management product altogether. That question is about the construction side of your business: how you schedule, how you manage subs, and how you track cost.
If you’re moving off CoConstruct, a few things are worth doing before the move:
- Export your selections catalog and price data. It’s the hardest thing to rebuild by hand.
- Save your specification and proposal templates, even as documents, so you have the wording.
- List what you actually use day to day, so you compare replacements on the features that matter to you.
- Ask about the sale, not just the build. Lots, quotes and contracts are where most project tools are thinnest.
The part neither was built around
Both products were built primarily around running projects. If you sell homes on lots in communities, the stretch before the contract has its own shape: holding a home site with a reservation agreement, pricing a plan with a lot premium and options from a price sheet, producing a contract from the right template, and running design selections with your margin in view.
Before The Build was built around that stretch first, then carried the same record into the build: reservations, quotes, contracts, the Design Center, and construction management with schedules, trade partners, budgets, draws and a buyer page. When the buyer signs, the job starts itself.
If you’re re-evaluating anyway
A forced migration is a good moment to fix the part of the process that never had a real home. Our onboarding imports your design catalog with costs, sets up three of your contract templates, brands your buyer PDFs, and sets up texting on your own number, for $1,500 one time. After that it’s $397 a month, flat, with unlimited users. Book a demo, or read our Buildertrend comparison first.