Guide · Software
Flooring estimating software: what it does and how to choose
“Flooring estimating software” covers very different tools, from a PDF measuring program to a system that runs the whole business. The right one depends on where your quotes come from and what takes your time. This guide sorts them into kinds, lists the questions worth asking, and suggests a fair way to test any of them.
What estimating software does
A flooring estimate has four parts, and products cover different combinations of them:
- Takeoff: measuring the rooms, from plans or from a site measure.
- Calculation: turning areas into what you buy, with waste, packs, roll widths, stairs and trims.
- Pricing and the quote: applying your rates and producing a document the customer or builder can accept.
- Running the job and the business: orders, stock, scheduling, invoicing and job costing.
Knowing which of the four costs you the most time tells you which kind of tool to look at first.
The main kinds
Product descriptions below are taken from each company's own website, checked on 3 October 2026. Products change often; check their current pages and run your own trial before deciding.
| Kind | Examples | Built for |
|---|---|---|
| Spreadsheet and calculator | Your own template | Full control and no subscription. Every room is still measured and typed by hand, and formulas drift between copies. |
| General PDF measuring and takeoff | Bluebeam Revu, PlanSwift | Measuring areas and lengths on any construction drawing by tracing them. PlanSwift describes itself as takeoff software for construction estimating. Flooring rules such as packs and roll widths are usually set up by you. |
| Flooring takeoff and estimating | Measure Square | Flooring specific measuring and estimating. Measure Square describes itself as a cloud based flooring takeoff and estimating platform with AI takeoff tools. |
| Flooring business systems | RFMS, QFloors | Running a flooring business: operations, job costing and stock. RFMS describes RFMS Core as an ERP for flooring businesses; QFloors describes itself as flooring business software for operations, job costing and inventory. |
| AI plan reading | Togal (general construction), Squaro (flooring) | Reading the drawings automatically. Togal describes itself as construction takeoff software for estimators. Squaro reads builder plans and selections for flooring contractors and prices them with the contractor's rules. |
Many contractors combine kinds: a takeoff or plan reading tool for quoting, and a business system or accounting package for everything after the quote is won.
Questions to ask before you choose
Where do your quotes come from?
If most of your work is builder plan sets, the time goes into reading drawings and selections, and a tool that starts from the PDF matters most. If most of it is site measures for homeowners, a tool that starts from a sketch or a laser measure on a tablet is a better fit.
How do you price?
Check that the tool handles the way you buy: packs for hard floors, lineal metres off a fixed roll width for carpet, per step for stairs, per item or per metre for trims, and your standing extras. A tool that only gives square metres leaves the hard part to you.
Can you check every figure?
Whatever does the measuring, the estimator signs the quote. Look for a way to see where each figure came from, and to correct it, before anything goes to the customer.
Which units and regions?
Metric plans and imperial plans are different problems. Confirm the tool reads the drawings you actually receive, and handles your tax, currency and spelling on the quote.
What happens after the quote?
If you need stock, scheduling and job costing, you need a business system or an integration with one. If your accounting package already does that, a quoting tool that exports cleanly may be enough.
What does it really cost?
Count the subscription, setup and training time, and the time it saves. Some tools price per user, others per volume of work.
A fair way to test one
Demos use plans chosen to look good. Use yours instead:
- Pick three recent jobs you have already quoted by hand: one simple, one awkward, one with stairs or carpet.
- Run each through the tool, timing it from opening the plans to a quote you would send.
- Compare the areas, pack counts and totals with your own quote, and look at every difference until you know which one was right.
- Ask how long the checking took, not just the measuring.
Example only
An estimator who quotes 20 plan sets a month at 90 minutes each spends 30 hours a month on takeoffs. If a tool brought the whole job, checking included, to 30 minutes, that is 20 hours a month back. The figures are illustrative; measure your own.
Where Squaro fits, and where it does not
Squaro is built for flooring contractors who quote from builders' plan sets. It reads the working drawings and the selections, measures every room from the printed dimension strings, and prices the quote with your own rules: waste, packs, carpet roll widths, stairs, trims, extras and your price lists. Every line shows the sheet and the dimension it used, the estimator ticks each line, and the quote can be sent from the app.
It is not a business management system: it does not hold stock, schedule installers or do your accounts. It reads plans dimensioned in millimetres or metres today; plans in feet and inches are on the roadmap. If most of your work is site measures, a site measuring tool will suit you better. More detail is on the flooring takeoff software and flooring quoting software pages, and in the FAQ.
Related reading
- Flooring takeoff vs measure-upWhen to quote from plans, when to measure on site, and how to word the quote.
- How to quote flooring from builder plansThe full method, from the builder's pack to a priced quote, with a worked hybrid example.
- How to price flooring installationBuilding a supply and install rate per square metre from your real costs.
Quote your next plan set with Squaro
Squaro is open to a small group of flooring contractors first. Tell us how you quote and we will set up your rules with you and run your first plan.
Request early access