Build the estimate once (templates & cost library)
Create estimates faster with reusable templates and a structured cost library; reuse past projects when scopes repeat, then export a polished PDF for clients.
Construction Estimating Software Compatible with Xero
Stop rebuilding numbers in spreadsheets. Create accurate estimates in Planyard, convert them into live budgets and purchase orders, then post only approved bills to Xero with the correct vendor, chart of accounts, and tracking category—so reporting stays clean and consistent.
- Estimate -> budget in one click
- Templates and cost libraries to standardise estimating
- Approved bills sync to Xero
Free 14-day full-featured trial. No credit card required.
Trusted by construction companies globally
Why contractors add Planyard to Xero for estimating
Estimators and PMs build estimates in Planyard; delivery teams call off against the agreed budget; Finance receives only approved, correctly coded bills in Xero. That means no duplicate entry, accurate tracking categories/accounts tagging, and fewer AP corrections at the end of the month.
From estimate to live budget (and into Xero)
A single flow from estimate to budget, purchasing, approvals, and posting to Xero—so numbers stay consistent from bid to final account.
Templates
Start from prefilled templates and adjust to the project—no blank-sheet estimating
Cost library
Insert standard items from your library for consistent pricing
Duplicate past projects
Copy a previous estimate when scopes are similar to save time
Export PDF
Produce professional, branded estimate PDFs in seconds
Versioning, markups & accuracy controls
Keep estimates defensible with versions, structured categories, and automated totals—so nothing slips through during revisions.
Version control
Track revisions and who changed what throughout the estimate
Structured categories
Use consistent layers and headings for clearer roll-ups
Markups & overhead
Apply standard markups to maintain target margins
Auto totals
Let the system calculate line, group and grand totals to reduce errors
Upload your project budget and follow the financial progress in real-time
No credit card required. No sales or IT support needed.
Convert the estimate to a live project budget
When the price is agreed, convert the estimate into a control budget with cost codes that downstream teams actually use.
One-click hand-off
Turn estimate lines into budget lines without re-typing
Codes preserved
Cost codes flow through to purchasing and AP
Baseline locked
Freeze a baseline and measure changes against it
Change logging
Record approved adjustments with notes for audit
Map lines to Xero COA & tracking categories
Keep reporting consistent by aligning budget lines to Xero’s chart of accounts and tracking categories from day one.
Import COA & tracking categories
Bring your accounts and tracking categories into Planyard in minutes
Auto-mapping
Map budget lines once; mappings are reused project-wide
Tracking category tagging
Tag posted bills to the correct tracking category for job reporting
Error prevention
Block postings without required account/tracking category coding
Upload your project budget and follow the financial progress in real-time
No credit card required. No sales or IT support needed.
Tax outcomes respected in Xero
Planyard keeps vendor linkage and coding correct, so Xero applies all taxes correctly as required.
Vendor master sync
Use the same supplier records that Finance maintains in Xero
Tax rules applied in Xero
Bills land on the right vendor so the correct tax rates are used
Reverse charge
Retention amounts are calculated automatically and reduce risks for errors
Attachments & refs
Invoice PDFs and PO refs travel with the bill for audit
What syncs to Xero
Planyard posts a ready-to-pay bill to Xero once it passes coding, 3-way matching, and approvals—no drafts, no duplicates.
Approved bills with complete context
Planyard posts a ready-to-pay bill to Xero Online once it passes coding, 3-way matching, and approvals
Approved bills only
Nothing syncs until coding, matching, and required sign-offs are complete
Vendor, GL account, tracking category, tax & currency
Each bill carries the correct supplier, account, tracking category, and tax/currency
Invoice PDF + PO/pay app references
Original documents and references go with the bill for finance/audit
Process costs faster
Capture → Auto-link to PO → Approve → Sync
01
Capture: Email invoices to the project inbox or scan via mobile; key fields are extracted automatically.
02
Auto-link to PO: If a PO is referenced, pair with orders and deliveries; flag quantity/price variances.
03
Approve: Route by project or on demand (e.g., Site → QS → Finance) with thresholds; approve on web or mobile.
04
Sync: Approved bills post to Xero with vendor, COA, tracking category, tax/currency, and attachments.
Estimating & project control: Planyard vs Xero alone
| Capability | Xero Alone | Xero + Planyard |
|---|---|---|
| Estimating (templates, libraries) |  Spreadsheets/add-ons |
 Built-in templates and cost library |
| Estimate → budget conversion | Manual re-typing |
One-click conversion with codes |
| COA/tracking category tagging | Manual |
Auto-mapped from budget lines |
| Purchase orders & goods received | Basic/limited |
Full PO issuance and receipt tracking |
| 3-way matching (PO ↔ receipt ↔ invoice) | Not enforced |
Enforced with variance blocks |
| Multi-step approvals | Email/manual |
Project-configured or ad-hoc workflows |
| Invoice capture & pre-coding | Re-typing into Xero |
Email-in/OCR with default coding |
| Job variance & EAC visibility | After posting/reports |
Live variance alerts and EAC updates |
| Duplicate entry | Common |
Eliminated (approval-only sync) |
| Attachments & audit trail | Manual uploads |
Bills post with PDF and references |
| Taxes & multi-currency handling | Manual checks |
Clean, coded bills respect Xero tax/currency settings |
Pricing for construction contractors
Start with estimating and budget conversion; add purchasing, approvals, and 3-way match as you standardise processes.
USD
EUR
GBP
AUD
CAD
Estimating
$52
€49
£40
$82
$74
/ month / project manager
Cost estimating
Essential
$105
€99
£82
$166
$149
/ month / project manager
$43
€40
£33
$49
$60
Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
for supporting staff
Perfect for support roles or stakeholders—gain access to essential project features and view key financial data without full platform permissions, enabling users to stay informed and contribute without hands-on tasks.Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
Estimating and budget control
- Everything in Estimating
- Track budgets and actual spend
- Manage purchase invoices automatically
- Reuse active project cost data for estimating
- Sync invoices to Xero and QuickBooks
Professional
$158
€149
£123
$250
$225
/ month / project manager
$43
€40
£33
$49
$60
Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
for supporting staff
Perfect for support roles or stakeholders—gain access to essential project features and view key financial data without full platform permissions, enabling users to stay informed and contribute without hands-on tasks.Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
Estimating, cost control and purchase orders management
- Everything in Essential
- Issue and manage purchase orders
- Track committed cost on the budget
- Forecast project profitability in real-time
- Create cashflow forecasts
- Manage client contracts and progress reports
Ultimate
$210
€199
£164
$333
$300
/ month / project manager
$43
€40
£33
$49
$60
Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
for supporting staff
Perfect for support roles or stakeholders—gain access to essential project features and view key financial data without full platform permissions, enabling users to stay informed and contribute without hands-on tasks.Usually selected for: site engineers, clients, estimators or auditors.
Full functionality
- Everything in Professional
- Automate subcontractor and vendor quoting
- Track subcontracts and progress
- Manage subcontractor change orders
- Collect subcontractor payment applications
Read success stories from our customers
See how Planyard helps businesses like yours succeed - read their stories in our blog.
"Planyard's integration with Xero has streamlined our project financials, providing clear insights and saving us valuable time. It's easy to use and keeps all commitments organized for seamless financial tracking."
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"Planyard is basically a live CVR and saves time by making Excel unnecessary. Once a project’s set up, I can rely on Planyard to stay organized without spreadsheets."
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"If there’s some problem with the budget, it just tells you what you need to fix and you’ll be fine. It really just kind of thinks a step ahead for you."
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"Planyard saves us 3-4 days per project by simplifying financial tracking and cutting out double data entry. It’s user-friendly and lets us focus on our main tasks."
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"Planyard is exactly what I’m after as a business owner: a good-value system that keeps everything in one place, saves me money and makes sure I’m not losing any money on projects. As a businessman, that’s a no-brainer."
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"I’m confident that we can manage multiple projects effectively. We’re currently running three fairly large ones, and the system makes it very clear and easy to manage all of them at once."
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"I chose Planyard because it stood out as the most straightforward and intuitive option on the market. I really wanted a tool that would simplify our existing processes and make everything more efficient, rather than switching to a system that was far too complicated for us to use on a daily basis."
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"Planyard has completely replaced my CVR process. Cost Value Reconciliation is essentially about tracking your budget against your actual spend to see exactly what remains, and that functionality is the absolute essence of the central core of Planyard."
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"For me Planyard is essentially the go to software for SMBs. There are other software packages out there that are a large investment upfront with a significant monthly cost. These are all potential solutions once you get to a very large business but they are not a solution for SMBs."
"Timewise, on a single project, I'd probably save 6 to 8 hours—essentially a full day every month. When it comes to processing monthly payments, it saves me a solid day, perhaps even a day and a half, just in sorting through the invoices. Saving a day and a half of my time means the system pays for itself time and time again."
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Frequently asked questions
We've got your questions covered. If you can't find the answer below, then feel free to contact us via the chat.
Yes. Planyard integrates with Xero and posts only approved, coded bills to Accounts Payable with the correct Chart of Accounts, Tracking categories, supplier, and the invoice PDF attached.
Yes—turn estimate lines into a live control budget in one click; quantities, rates, and cost codes carry forward to POs and approvals.
No—estimates and budgets stay in Planyard for project control. Only approved supplier bills/credit notes post to Xero with accounts, tracking categorie,s and attachments.
Yes—budget/cost codes map to Xero Tracking categories (e.g., Project/Phase), so posted bills are already tagged for accurate job and phase reporting in Xero.
Yes—PO / delivery (goods received) / invoice 3-way match and project-configured approval routes are enforced before anything can post to Xero.
Xero applies VAT, CIS, and domestic reverse charge rules on posted bills; Planyard ensures correct supplier linkage and coding. Retention/holdbacks are supported in the project workflow and reflected in documents; multi-currency is handled by Xero.
Yes—map estimate items to Xero account codes and Tracking categories once; the same mapping is reused when costs are approved and posted to Xero.
Upload your project budget and follow the financial progress in real-time
No credit card required. No sales or IT support needed.