The Jobber alternative you own outright.
Forge Built AI is the Jobber alternative for trades that have outgrown renting their software. Jobber is a field service platform you pay for every month by tier and by user. Forge builds you a custom back office in six weeks for one flat price, and you own all the code and data. No monthly rent, no lock in, backed by a $50,000 revenue guarantee and built by an operator who runs a $3M HVAC shop.
Jobber is priced per tier and per user, forever.
Jobber is a capable field service tool for smaller trades. It is also a subscription that grows with your headcount and never ends.
As you add users and move up tiers, the monthly bill climbs, and you still own nothing. Your data sits in their system. Deeper customization means their roadmap, not yours. Every month you pay is rent on software that stays theirs.
Own the whole system.
Forge builds you a custom back office in six weeks. You own the code, the data, and the integrations. Built to your shop, not a template you bend yourself to fit.
You own it
All the code and all the data are yours. Modify it yourself, hire any developer, or export everything and leave. No license expires. No monthly dependency on us.
Built to your shop
We build around how you actually run jobs. Lead intake, dispatch, follow up, upsell, reporting. Need something the platform does not offer? We build it in instead of waiting on a vendor roadmap.
One flat price
$25,000 for the build. Optional $3,000 a month if you want us handling updates and support, and you can cancel anytime. No forced upgrades, no surprise price hikes.
Rent versus own, over five years.
Jobber pricing varies by tier and add ons. These are approximate 2026 ranges, not a quote.
| Forge Built | Jobber | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $25,000 one time | ~$30 to $350 a month by tier and users (approx 2026) |
| Five year cost | $25,000 | ~$18,000 at a typical $300 a month, more as you add users |
| You own it | Yes, code and data | No |
| Built to your shop | Yes, custom | No, shared platform |
| Leaving later | You own it, take it anywhere | Your data stays on their platform |
Optional maintenance with Forge is $3,000 a month and you can cancel anytime, so your long term cost is your call, not a locked contract.
When Jobber is the right call.
Straight answer, because that is what earns trust.
If you are a smaller trade business, early on, and you want something running this week without an upfront build, Jobber is a fair choice. Owning makes sense once you have scaled, your process is settled, and the per user rent plus the lock in cost you more than a one time build. That is the point where the math flips.
One shop. One year. Real numbers.
This is one anonymized build, a roughly $3M per year HVAC shop, measured year over year from 2025 to 2026. One shop's results, not an industry average.
Jobs: 159 to 283
Up 78 percent in a year. Same market. The difference was owned data, faster follow up, and a system built to how they run.
Customers: 168 to 256
Up 52 percent. When you can see and track every customer, you stop letting them fall through the cracks.
$26 cost per lead
Their best performing ad creative hit $26 per lead, at a 4.12 percent click through rate, roughly twice a typical contractor rate. This is one creative in one market, not a benchmark for every shop.
A 7x tracking fix
Their Meta pixel was undercounting real conversions by seven times. Because they owned the system, we caught it and fixed it the same day, instead of filing a ticket and waiting.
$50,000, or we keep working.
Within 12 months of your system going live, we guarantee it generates at least $50,000 in new revenue. If it does not, we keep working at no charge or refund the difference. It is a floor, not a ceiling, and there is no other timeline attached beyond that 12 month window.
Jobber alternative, answered.
Is Jobber a good tool?
Yes, for smaller trades getting started. The tradeoff is that you rent it, it charges per user as you grow, and you never own the system or your data. Forge is for shops ready to own what they run on.
What is different about owning with Forge?
You hold the code and the data. Change it, hire any developer, integrate anything, or move it. Nothing expires and nobody raises your price. Jobber gives you none of that.
Is the Forge price worth it over Jobber?
Upfront it is more, at $25,000 for the build. Over five years, with tier and per user increases on the rental side, owning usually costs less and you keep the asset. Maintenance is optional at $3,000 a month, cancelable.
Can a custom build replace Jobber for my trade?
For most shops, yes: scheduling, dispatch, quoting, follow up, and reporting, built to how you actually work. We scope it on a call so you only build what you need.
How fast can it be live?
Six weeks, then it is yours, backed by the $50,000 revenue guarantee.