Built for builders.
Not back offices.
Enterprise construction software was designed for $50M+ general contractors with full-time finance teams. We built MAGE ID for the rest of you — the residential remodeler, the small-commercial GC, the design-build firm running 4–20 projects with the owner still on a ladder twice a week.
vs. legacy GC software.
The category leaders all share the same playbook — opaque pricing, web-first dashboards, sales-led signup, no AI. Here's how phone-first, AI-first, App-Store-priced changes the math.
| Capability | MAGE ID | Typical legacy GC software |
|---|---|---|
| AI Drawing Analyzer (PDF → estimate) | Drop a PDF of plans → Gemini Vision returns priced line items with margin transparency in 30–60s | Manual takeoff or third-party plug-in only |
| AI Quantity Takeoff (LF / SF / EA / CY) | Reads dimensions and schedules off the sheet, returns editable quantities you can route into a buyout package | Manual measurement or a $200/mo standalone tool |
| AI Spec-Match (callouts ↔ spec book) | Match takeoff callout codes against the architect's spec book in one tap | Trade does this manually, then re-checks before buyout |
| DCMA 14-point Schedule Health | Live scoring against the federal DCMA 14-point assessment — surfaces float, missing logic, lag/lead misuse | Available only in P6 / Asta Powerproject (enterprise tier) |
| Voice-driven form fill (universal) | Tap mic → speak → AI fills RFI / CO / Punch / Invoice / Submittal / New Project / New Lead | Not offered — every record is a typed form |
| AI lead scoring + first-response timer | 1–10 fit score per lead, red flag when waiting >1h to reply | No fit scoring, no response-time KPI surfaced on the lead card |
| AIA G702/G703 pay app generator | One screen — schedule of values, retainage math, change-order roll-up, e-sign export | Available in mid-tier PM software ($300+/mo) — usually a separate module |
| Field verification + correction loop | Mobile-only: walk the site, mark AI-takeoff rows verified or correct them — every correction trains the model | Not offered — corrections live in someone's notebook |
| Open-Book / GMP toggle per project | Flip Open Book on a project → owner sees actual cost vs commitment, not just billed | Client portal shows billed amounts only; "open book" is a manual exercise |
| Sign-up | Self-serve App Store install. Paying in 90 seconds. | Custom-quote sales process. Multi-step form, sales call, contract. |
| Pricing transparency | Free tier + Pro $29/mo + Business — published, in-app | No public pricing. Most quote $400–$900+/mo per third-party industry reports. |
| Mobile-first UX | iOS-first, native sign-in, offline-capable, voice everywhere | Web-first; mobile is a companion app |
| Open-Book / GMP homeowner portal | Toggle a project to Open Book — homeowner sees every commitment line vs. budget | Client portal is opaque — homeowner sees billed, not actual |
| Best-fit user | Owner-operator $1M–$30M residential GC who wears six hats | Established mid-size builder with back-office staff |
Legacy GC software is a great fit for builders who already have an estimator, an office manager, and someone whose job is reports. MAGE ID is for the GC who is all three.
Stop renting eight tools.
Most GCs end up paying for a stack of point-tools — a CRM here, an estimator there, a scheduler, a doc-storage app, a punch-list app — because no single legacy product handles it all without a five-figure sales cycle. Here's what that pile actually costs.
| What you're paying for | Typical category price | In MAGE ID | What MAGE ID does |
|---|---|---|---|
| CRM / lead pipeline | $25–$80/mo1 | Included | Voice intake + AI scoring + first-response timer |
| Estimating software | $179–$269/mo1 | Included | Estimate wizard + AI quick-estimate from a sentence |
| Scheduling / Gantt | $25–$30/mo1 | Included | Phase Gantt + critical path + AI builder |
| Document & photo storage | $18–$25/mo1 | Included | Plans, photos, permits, contracts — per project |
| Daily reports & field ops | $60–$100/mo1 | Included | DFR / RFI / change orders by voice, offline-first |
| Punch list software | $29–$59/mo1 | Included | Voice-walk punch + auto trade routing + photos |
| Client portal software | $30–$80/mo1 | Included | Live portal, six languages, open-book mode |
| AIA pay app + invoicing | $30–$60/mo1 | Included | G702 / G703 + Stripe Connect, all built-in |
| Stack total | $396–$703/mo | $29–$79/mo | ↑ One subscription replaces all eight |
Or: skip the stack and buy a legacy all-in-one PM platform. Industry buyer guides2 place those at $400–$900/mo — same monthly hit, with a multi-step sales cycle, contract, and implementation fees on top.
The math, monthly and yearly.
Pick the tier that fits your operation. Both tiers replace the stack above.
| Setup | Per month | Per year | Savings vs stack3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Point-tool stack (8 apps, midpoint pricing) | $549 | $6,588 | — |
| Legacy all-in-one PM platform (midpoint) | $650 | $7,800 | — |
| MAGE ID Pro — owner-operator GC | $29 | $348 | +$520/mo · +$6,240/yr |
| MAGE ID Business — small team, advanced AI | $79 | $948 | +$470/mo · +$5,640/yr |
That's $5,820–$6,288 a year back in the truck.
A new mid-size compressor. Or 3 weeks of materials credit at your supply house. Or a Pro tier subscription that pays for itself the first time you avoid one missed change order.
Notes:
1 Category price ranges from publicly-listed pricing on the leading point-tool vendors as of Q2 2026. CRM (Pipedrive Pro / Salesforce Essentials), estimating (STACK / Buildxact), scheduling (Microsoft Project / Smartsheet), doc storage (Dropbox Business / Google Workspace), field ops + punch + portal + pay apps (various trade-specific tools).
2 Legacy all-in-one PM platform pricing reflects publicly-discussed quotes in industry buyer guides ($400 entry, $900+ for full financials with AR / WIP / pay app modules).
3 "Stack" baseline is the midpoint of the eight-category total ($549/mo). Annual MAGE ID prices assume month-to-month App Store pricing — no contract, no annual hike committed for the life of your subscription. Add-on fees (implementation, training, premium support) are excluded from both columns; legacy platforms typically add $1,500–$5,000 in year 1.
Everyone bids. We learn.
The new wave of “AI estimating” apps price your job off a generic catalog — Home Depot, regional averages, a ZIP code. MAGE prices it off your own closed jobs, and warns you before a job loses money. No one else does either.
| Capability | MAGE ID | AI estimating apps |
|---|---|---|
| Where the price comes from | Your own job actuals — every closed job sharpens the next bid | Generic supplier / regional data — the same number for every contractor |
| Margin defense | Live margin, a risk score, and alerts before a job bleeds | None — you find out at the final invoice |
| Estimate confidence | Each line checked against your own history — underpriced, padded, or proven | “Trust the AI” — then proofread the hallucinations |
| Takeoff | Lasso an area on a plan → priced from your learned rates | Photo / plan → quantities, priced from the catalog |
| The whole job | Estimate → buyout → actuals → margin → next estimate, one app | Estimate-first; project management bolted on, priced off the same generic data |
Where we win.
A clean look at MAGE ID against typical enterprise construction-management software.
| Capability | MAGE ID | Typical enterprise PM |
|---|---|---|
| Annual price (single GC) | ~$348 / yr (Pro) | $6,000 – $12,000 / yr1 |
| Implementation / onboarding fees | $0 — sign up, post your first project in 5 minutes | Common — separate "implementation" + "training" line items |
| Mobile-first UX | Native iOS + Android — built first, web is the secondary surface | Web-first — mobile is a companion, drawing downloads + PDF preview unreliable2 |
| AI for forecasting + diagnostics | Issue / cause / impact / fix breakdown across the portfolio. AI cash-flow projection. AI estimate from drawings. | Basic — auto-scheduling at most. Most financial tracking still manual2 |
| AIA G702 / G703 pay apps | Native — full SOV editing, retainage, prior-billings, owner e-sign via portal | Yes (often a separate add-on) |
| Bank-ready WIP report | PDF + CSV export, branded, three taps | Yes — but several clicks, often a separate financials tier |
| Profit / margin per project | Live, color-banded, exportable | Typically through accounting integration only |
| A/R aging | Built in — bucketed 0–30 / 31–60 / 61–90 / 90+ | Often via 3rd-party accounting tie-in |
| Open-book / GMP transparency | Toggle on any project — homeowner sees real cost vs. budget vs. cap by phase | Not designed for residential transparency |
| Live client portal | Schedule, photos, RFIs, AIA pay apps, CO approvals, messaging — one passcode-protected URL | Yes (often gated behind enterprise tier) |
| Edit a CO or PO after invoicing | Yes — you can fix what you typed wrong | Often locked — cascading edits required2 |
| Offline-first field ops | Daily reports, photos, RFIs, time-tracking all work without signal — sync flushes on reconnect | Spotty — most flows fail without connectivity |
| Homeowner project marketplace | Post a project, get bids from nearby verified contractors — included | Not offered |
| AI homeowner daily digest | Plain-language daily update written from your field log — "rough-in" becomes "wiring inside the walls." Six languages. | Not offered — homeowner sees the technical DFR or nothing |
| AI-curated selections / allowances | Three options per category (budget / on-target / premium) with brand, SKU, supplier. Homeowner picks from portal. | Spreadsheets back-and-forth; or a $40/mo selections-only tool |
| Contract e-signature | Built in. Sign on phone, send portal link, homeowner counter-signs. Real-time push when they do. | DocuSign / Adobe Sign add-on — $25-$45/user/mo |
| Closeout binder | Auto-compiled at handover. Lives in homeowner portal forever. Branded PDF on tap. | Hand-built spreadsheet or PDF; no portal archive |
| Lien waivers | All 4 types (conditional / unconditional × partial / final). PDF generation + state disclaimer. | Often a separate $30/mo product (Levelset, etc.) |
| Handover checklist | Computes status live across selections, punch, warranties, binder, lien waivers, final invoice. One screen tells you what's blocking handover. | Not offered — GC improvises |
| Photo markup | Arrows, circles, freehand, text on any photo. Sub sees it. Homeowner sees it. | Plans-only markup typically; not on every photo |
| Multi-language portal | Six languages out of the box. AI summary lands in homeowner's language. Section labels translated. | English-only typically |
| Voice-to-daily-report | Tap to dictate. AI parses crew, weather, work, materials. Preview card shows what was extracted. | Type it manually or skip the report |
| Real-time client signals | Push + email when homeowner signs / picks tile / asks pre-bid Q. Per-event toggle. | Periodic email digests typically |
| Sub portal (no login) | Sub sees their punch items + schedule slice + commitments + invoice history. Submits invoices through same link. | Subs need accounts and seats — extra cost per sub |
| Hidden fees / contracts / annual lock-in | Monthly. Cancel any time. One transparent price. | Annual contracts, hidden line items reported by users1,2 |
1 Industry-typical pricing of enterprise construction PM software for a single GC, per published quotes and review aggregators. Actual quotes vary by project volume and add-on modules.
2 User-reported limitations from public reviews on G2, Capterra, and contractor community forums (2024–2026).
Where they win — for now.
We're honest about what's not in the box yet. Most of these matter to GCs over $30M revenue running 100+ projects.
Deep accounting integrations
QuickBooks Desktop, Sage 300 CRE, Viewpoint Vista. We integrate via CSV export today; native sync is on the roadmap.
Certified payroll / prevailing wage
LCPtracker-style federal Davis-Bacon submissions. Not yet — coming when our public-bid customers ask for it.
Multi-approver CO routing
Sequential + parallel approver chains with delegation. Our CO approval today is single-approver; multi-approver is in design.
Standard 1099 / W-9 vendor compliance
Enterprise-grade vendor compliance hub. We track sub commitments + payments today; year-end 1099 generation is queued.
Lien waiver auto-generation
Conditional / unconditional / partial / final by state. On the roadmap — high-priority for 2026.
Massive enterprise deployments
If you're a $500M+ GC running 200+ active projects with a 12-person finance team, enterprise PM is still the right call. We're built for everyone else.
Stop paying enterprise prices for back-office software.
Five minutes to your first WIP report. $24/mo when you're ready to bring on Pro features.
Request early access