Joist and Invoice2go both look like affordable ways to handle estimates, invoices, and payments without adding more admin to your day. But the starting price only tells you so much.
Plan limits, payment fees, estimating tools, mobile features, and accounting integrations can all change what you actually pay and how useful each platform feels once the jobs start coming in.
We compared both across the parts of the workflow that matter most to solo contractors. That includes everything from sending the first estimate to collecting the final payment, so you can see which offers better overall value.
Joist vs Invoice2go at a Glance
| Joist | Invoie2Go | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Solo contractors and small trade businesses | Freelancers and small service businesses |
| Starting price | $10/month | $7.99/month |
| Plan limits | 5 documents/month on Basics; unlimited on Pro and Elite | 2 invoices/month on Starter; 5/month on Professional; unlimited on Premium |
| Estimating | Contractor-focused estimates, estimate-to-invoice, plus change orders on Elite | Estimates and estimate-to-invoice conversion |
| Time tracking | none | Yes |
| Accounting integrations | QuickBooks Online Sync on Pro and Elite | QuickBooks and Xero on Professional and Premium |
| Payments | Cards, ACH, Tap to Pay, digital wallets | Cards and free ACH |
| Homeowner financing | Yes | Not currently available |
| Free trial | 14 days, no credit card required | 30 days |
What’s the Biggest Difference Between Joist and Invoice2go?
At first glance, Joist and Invoice2go overlap quite a bit. Both let you quote work, send invoices, and get paid.
The difference becomes clearer once a job gets more complicated.
Joist is built around the steps contractors deal with between the first estimate and final payment as well as running an organized business. That includes labor and material pricing, approvals, work orders, change orders, digital signatures, homeowner financing, and QuickBooks Online sync.
And this isn’t a small niche. The U.S. Census Bureau counted nearly 2.9 million nonemployer construction businesses with $238 billion in receipts.
Invoice2go can handle the same core invoicing process, but it extends its features into general business admin, including time tracking, scheduling, banking, expenses, reporting, and additional accounting integrations.
Joist is more specialized for contractor jobs. Invoice2go is broader.
Joist vs Invoice2go Pricing and Value
Invoice2go has the lower advertised starting price.
But the better-value option depends on how many estimates and invoices you actually send, because both platforms limit their entry-level plans.
How Much Does Joist Cost?
Joist has three plans:
- Basics: $10/month
- Pro: $17/month
- Elite: $32/month.
All plans include a 14-day Elite trial, with no credit card required.
Basics allows up to five documents per month, unlimited clients and you can accept online payments.
Pro removes that limit and adds contracts, and eSignatures, work orders, expense tracking, branding, and QuickBooks Online sync.
Elite adds more advanced features, including change orders, line-item controls, business reports, sales dashboards, automated review requests, and additional business-profile tools.
The Run plan adds new features like scheduling and jobs alongside Joist’s core estimating and invoicing tools.
For many solo contractors, Pro is the most popular plan for everyday quoting and invoicing, Elite is the better fit for more complex job management and reporting, and Run enters into job management and scheduling.
How much does Invoice2go cost?
Invoice2go has three monthly plans:
- Starter: $7.99/month
- Professional: $11.99/month
- Premium: $44.99/month.
Starter allows two invoices per month, while Professional increases that to five. Premium removes the limit completely.
Professional also adds QuickBooks and Xero integrations, advanced reports, and a lower card-processing rate. Premium adds recurring invoices, phone support, and Invoice2go’s lowest card rate.
Invoice2go also offers a 30-day free trial.
For an active contractor, those limits matter. Invoice just three jobs in a month, and you’ve already outgrown Starter. Send more than five invoices a month, and you’ll need Premium.
Which Is Cheaper?
Invoice2go has the lower starting price at $7.99/month, compared with $10/month for Joist Basics.
But the comparison changes once you need more capacity than just a few invoices.
Invoice2go Starter allows just two invoices per month, while Professional allows five. To get unlimited invoices, you need Premium at $44.99/month.
Joist Pro costs $17/month and removes the document limit altogether.
So while Invoice2go is cheaper at the entry level, Joist can offer better value for an active contractor who regularly creates estimates and invoices.
Which Is Better for Estimates?
Winner: Joist
Invoice2go has an advantage on volume. Estimates are unlimited across all plans, while Joist places limits on estimates on its Basic plan.
But Joist wins overall because it offers a more contractor-focused estimating workflow.
You can add labor and material line items, markups, taxes, discounts, notes, photos, and customer signatures, then send the estimate from your phone or tablet while you’re still on-site.
If the scope changes later, Joist also supports change orders, so any extra work and costs are documented before you continue.
Invoice2go handles straightforward estimates well, too. Estimates are unlimited across all plans, and approved estimates can be converted into invoices without starting again. If you mainly want to create lots of simple estimates, its unlimited estimates are a real advantage.
But for contractors who use estimates as part of managing the job from quote through to payment, Joist provides the more complete workflow.
Related: Estimate vs. Proposal vs. Quote: What Contractors Should Send and When
Which Is Better for Invoicing and Payments?
Winner: Tie, depending on how your customers pay
Both platforms make it easy to turn approved work into an invoice and collect payment online.
Joist’s contractor invoicing features are closely connected to the job. You can convert an estimate into an invoice, track whether it has been sent, viewed, or paid, and collect deposits or scheduled payments without rebuilding the customer details.
Invoice2go also supports customizable invoices, automatic reminders, online payments, and recurring invoices on Premium.
The bigger difference is the cost of getting paid.
Joist Payment Fees
For U.S. users:
- Cards: 3.49% + $0.49
- ACH: 1%, capped at $15
- Tap to Pay: 2.79% + $0.49
- PayPal/Venmo: 3.49% + $0.49.
Joist also supports Apple Pay, Google Pay, deposits, payment schedules, and mobile check deposit.
Giving customers a choice of payment methods matters too. Credit and debit cards account for around two-thirds of U.S. consumer payments, according to the Federal Reserve.
Processing fees are managed by the provider and may change in the future, fees listed here are as of Sept 2026.
Invoice2go Payment Fees
For U.S. domestic cards:
- Starter: 3.5% + $0.30
- Professional: 3% + $0.30
- Premium: 2.9% + $0.30
- ACH: Free.
If customers regularly pay larger invoices by bank transfer, Invoice2go’s free ACH can make it cheaper to get paid.
Joist has the edge if you want more ways to collect payment at the jobsite, including Tap to Pay and payment schedules.
Related: Payment Plans for Contractors: When to Offer Them and How to Manage Them
Which Has the Better Mobile App for Contractors?
Winner: Joist
Joist and Invoice2go let you handle most day-to-day invoicing tasks from your phone, including estimates, invoices, payments, and customer management.
Invoice2go gives you a broader set of mobile business tools. Alongside invoicing, you can track time, manage projects, store job files, and keep more of your general admin in one place.
Joist is more focused on the contractor workflow itself.
You can create an estimate while you’re still at the property, send it to the customer for approval, convert the approved work into an invoice, and collect payment without going back to a desktop.
That makes the mobile experience feel more closely aligned with how a solo contractor actually works during the day.
If most of your phone use revolves around quoting jobs, invoicing customers, and getting paid in the field, Joist has the edge.
Which Has Better Contractor Features?
Winner: Joist
Invoice2go actually offers more in a few areas.
It has built-in time tracking, scheduling, expense tools, and business banking, which can be useful if you want one app to handle more of your day-to-day admin.
Joist goes deeper into the job itself.
With Jobs & Scheduling on the Run plan, you can keep the customer, estimate, invoice, notes, and scheduled visits connected to the same job. You can also see upcoming work on a calendar, track active jobs, and spot scheduling conflicts before you double-book yourself.
That sits alongside Joist’s other contractor-focused tools.
Depending on your plan, you can create detailed estimates, collect signatures, issue contracts and work orders, manage change orders, take deposits, set payment schedules, sync with QuickBooks, and collect payment on-site.
It also offers homeowner financing, which can help when a customer wants to spread the cost of a larger project rather than pay everything up front. That matters in a huge market. U.S. homeowner spending on improvements and repairs is projected to reach around $519 billion by mid-2027.
If you’re a handyman billing five hours of labor, Invoice2go’s built-in timer could be more useful. If you’re quoting a $10,000 installation that includes materials, deposits, approvals, and possible scope changes, Joist gives you more tools to manage that process.
Related: Progress Invoicing for Contractors: Bill in Stages, Get Paid Sooner
Joist vs Invoice2go Integrations
Winner: Tie
Invoice2go offers a broader accounting integration lineup.
Professional and Premium can connect with QuickBooks and Xero, giving you more flexibility if your accountant or bookkeeper already uses either platform.
Joist takes a more focused approach. Pro and Elite integrate directly with QuickBooks Online, allowing estimates and invoices created in Joist to sync into your accounting records without re-entering the same information.
If you use Xero, Invoice2go has the advantage.
If you use QuickBooks Online, both platforms cover the integration that matters.
Reporting, Expenses, and Business Admin
Winner: Invoice2go for breadth
Invoice2go packs more general business tools into one platform, including time tracking, scheduling, expense management, reporting, accounting integrations, and business banking.
That gives it the advantage if you want your invoicing software to cover a wider range of back-office tasks.
Joist is more selective about what it includes.
Expense tracking is built in, while Elite adds business reports and sales dashboards. The rest of the platform stays centered on the tasks contractors deal with most often such as quoting work, managing job paperwork, invoicing customers, and getting paid.
For many solo contractors, that focus can be more useful than a long feature list.
Related: Best Contractor Invoicing Software for 2026
Joist vs Invoice2go Which Should You Choose?
Winner: Joist
The best invoicing software should make the path from “Can you give me a quote?” to “Payment received” as short as possible.
For contractors, there are usually many steps in between.
You may need to price labor and materials, get the customer’s approval, collect a deposit, document extra work, update the final cost, and then collect payment.
With Joist, those steps sit within a contractor-focused workflow.
You can create the estimate, get it approved, manage job paperwork and changes, turn the finished work into an invoice, and collect payment without rebuilding the job as you go.
Invoice2go offers more general business tools and a wider choice of accounting integrations. Those can be valuable if you bill by the hour or want a broader small-business toolkit.
But if you regularly quote and invoice several jobs each month, Joist combines a more contractor-focused workflow with unlimited documents on Pro, without requiring the jump to Invoice2go Premium.
Quoting, invoicing, and chasing payments already take up enough time in the day. Joist keeps those jobs in one place, so you can create estimates, get customer approval, send invoices, and collect payment without piecing together separate tools. Try Joist free for 14 days. No credit card required.
Try It FreeFAQ
Can I switch from Invoice2go to Joist?
Is Joist suitable for a one-person contracting business?
Can Joist replace accounting software?
Is Joist suitable for larger contractor jobs?
Article Sources
- Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, Remodeling Spending Poised for Further Slowdown, July 23, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Census Bureau Statistics Shed Light on Self-Employment by Sector and State During Small Business Week, May 6, 2025.
- Federal Reserve Financial Services, 2026 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, May 11, 2026.
