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Markate alternatives, add-ons counted in.

Markate is one of the simpler deals in field service software: one plan with most of the system inside. The real price depends on which add-ons and how many employees you have. Here's how the alternatives line up for cleaning, landscaping and exterior crews.

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Who Markate suits, and what adds up

Markate is a service operations platform for small field service businesses: cleaning, landscaping, electrical, painting, general contracting, pressure washing and holiday lighting. It covers CRM, a drag-and-drop calendar, dispatch, invoicing, online card payments, QuickBooks Online sync, and SMS and email marketing.

Markate's pricing page lists one plan at $39.95 a month billed annually, or $49.95 billed monthly. Employee app access is $5 per employee a month. Online booking, a branded customer portal and Zapier are $10 a month each. So a cleaning company with five employees on the app, plus online booking and a portal, adds $45 a month to the plan price, by Markate's own numbers.

That's still competitive, and for a crew it can beat Redline (more on that below). People look elsewhere when they want to start free, when they'd rather run the business by typing than by screens, or when their trade has a more specialized tool. Two-way comparison: Redline vs Markate.

Markate alternatives

Redline

Free plan for one person with chat, contacts, pipeline, calendar and repeating visits. Solo at $29 a month adds invoicing and card pay links, cheaper than Markate's plan for a solo owner. A crew costs more: the tech app is on Team at $129 for 3 seats. No online booking, customer portal, marketing texts or Zapier.

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Jobber

Its own material leans on cleaning and lawn businesses, with online booking and quote follow-ups built in; its pricing page lists Core at $29 a month billed annually and extra users at $29 each.

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QuoteIQ

Aimed at pressure washing and lawn care, with AI estimating and measurement metered by monthly credits. A card is needed to start the trial.

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Kickserv

Small-business service software for cleaning, handyman and landscaping, with a customer center and recurring appointments built in.

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ServiceM8

Priced by jobs per month with unlimited users, so a big crew doing a modest number of jobs doesn't pay per head.

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Side by side

Dollar figures only where the vendor's own pricing page confirmed them.

Built forPricing as publishedFree plan or trialFits a Markate user who
RedlineContractors and home-service businesses, solo up to about 10 peopleFree; Solo $29 a month; Team $129 with 3 seats; Team+ $299 with 10 seatsFree plan, no card. Solo has a 7-day trial on the webWorks alone or nearly alone and wants a free start
JobberHome and commercial service businesses, solo to multi-crewJobber's pricing page lists Core at $29 a month billed annually ($49 with no commitment), Connect $99 and Grow $149 for 1 user billed annuallyNo free plan. 14-day trial, no cardWants online booking included rather than added
QuoteIQHome-service contractors, marketed heavily to pressure washing and lawn careTiered plans with a monthly AI credit allowance. See QuoteIQ's pricing pageNo free plan. 14-day trial, card requiredIs mostly pressure washing and wants AI estimating
KickservSmall service businesses: handyman, cleaning, landscaping, locksmith, movingPlans tiered by user count (5, 10, 20 users). See Kickserv's pricing pageFree trial offeredWants a customer portal without an add-on
ServiceM8Trade and service businesses: electrical, plumbing, HVAC, locksmithServiceM8's pricing page lists a Free plan (1 user, 30 jobs a month), then Starter at $29 a month for 50 jobs, up to Premium Plus at $349. Unlimited users on paid plansFree planHas a big crew and a steady job count
MarkateSmall service businesses: cleaning, landscaping, painting, pressure washingMarkate's pricing page lists one plan at $39.95 a month billed annually ($49.95 monthly), plus $5 per employee for the appNo free plan. 14-day trial, no cardFor reference

Where Redline wins and loses against Markate

Markate is the better deal if

  • You have even one employee who needs the field app
  • You want customers booking online
  • You send marketing texts or emails in bulk
  • You need QuickBooks Online synced, not a CSV

Redline is the better deal if

  • You're one person and want to start on Free
  • You invoice on your own and Solo's $29 covers it
  • You'd rather say "book the Lambert move-out clean Friday" than click
  • You want a free Pro Page that collects quote requests

Questions contractors ask

Is Redline cheaper than Markate?

For one person, yes: Free costs nothing, and Solo with invoicing is $29 a month against Markate's listed $39.95 billed annually or $49.95 monthly. For a crew, usually not: Markate's employee app is listed at $5 per employee, while Redline's tech app comes with Team at $129 a month for 3 seats.

Can I run biweekly cleans and holiday light takedowns in Redline?

Yes for scheduling. Book a repeating series (every 2 weeks, monthly, or a custom cadence up to 52 visits), or a one-off takedown date. Redline doesn't bill the series automatically. See cleaning scheduling and holiday lighting.

Does Redline have a customer portal like Markate's add-on?

No. Customers get a pay link for each invoice, and that's it. There's no portal or customer login.

Sources

Running solo? Start free.

Put this week's cleans or cuts on the calendar by chat, and add Solo when you want to bill through Redline.

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