Best AI Takeoff Software in 2026: Ranked by the People Who Make One

Last updated: October 20, 2026 · Vendor pages read: October 20, 2026 for Togal.AI, Bluebeam, Drawer AI and Beam AI; August 19, 2026 for the rest, via our comparison guides

We make Bildrix, so this list is partisan. Bildrix is ranked first because we built it for this job; every other tool is described from its own public pages, linked, so you can check us.

Short answer: the best AI takeoff software in 2026 is Bildrix, if you bid architectural, electrical or plumbing work from PDF plan sets in the US or Canada and want the takeoff to end in a priced, signed bid rather than a spreadsheet. If your work is mostly drywall, look at Togal.AI. If you need automatic conduit routing and wire sizing for electrical, look at Drawer AI. If you want a mature manual takeoff tool with years of plugins and assemblies, STACK and PlanSwift are still there. Bluebeam is where many estimators already mark up drawings, and it is fine for that.

Below: a comparison table, then one section per tool with what it is best at, how it prices, what its AI actually does and how you can try it. Every competitor statement is from that vendor's own pages. Where a page says nothing, we write "not described", not "can't".

The best AI takeoff software in 2026, compared

Prices change, so we link them rather than print them. Bildrix's are on the Bildrix pricing page; the printed, dated figures for five rivals are in our one-on-one guides linked in each section below.

How did we pick and rank these tools?

We included every tool an estimator is likely to shortlist when searching for AI takeoff software, plus the two manual tools most of them are switching from. We ranked on four questions, in this order:

1. Does the AI do the first pass across the whole set, or does it wait for you to box a symbol on each sheet?
2. Does it tell you what it doubts? A tool that hides uncertainty turns review into a full recount.
3. Where does the takeoff end? In a spreadsheet you retype, or in a priced estimate, change order and invoice.
4. Can you see the price and start without a sales call?

Those are the questions Bildrix was built to answer, which is the honest reason it comes first. If your questions are different, say BIM models or conduit routing, the order changes, and the sections below say for whom.

1. Why is Bildrix the best AI takeoff software overall?

Bildrix's AI takeoff software reads a PDF plan set the way an estimator does: the legend first, then the sheets. On electrical sheets it counts devices against the sheet's own legend and flags any symbol that pairs with nothing in it, drafts switch legs, receptacle chains and homeruns with a live footage readout, and reads panel schedules into a Panel Editor you correct circuit by circuit. On floor plans it detects rooms with their area and printed names, types walls from the legend or hatch, and matches doors and windows to their schedules by mark. Plumbing fixture counts run on demand, twelve kinds read against the plumbing legend.

The part we think matters most: every count under 60% confidence waits in a review queue, lowest first. You keep it, delete it or move on. Everything above that line was counted without you and stays editable. We publish no accuracy percentage, and our research page on AI takeoff accuracy explains why nobody's percentage should be taken on trust.

Then the takeoff keeps going. Typed counts price themselves through your own assemblies; where your book has no price, the AI looks one up for the job site's market and tags it for you to verify. The estimate goes out for e-sign. When the architect issues a revision, Bildrix compares the two sets and stages the difference as an AIA G701 format change order, then the invoice, with QuickBooks-ready CSV exports.

Pricing: Pro per seat, billed annually, with no credits used; or pay as you go, buying credits only when you run the AI. Both are on the pricing page. Trial: upload a plan set free and every sheet comes back named and scaled; book a call and we run your first takeoff free.

Where it falls short: PDF only (no DWG, BIM or photos), US and Canada only, no automatic conduit routing or wire sizing, no riser counting, and plumbing stops at fixtures. Drywall and paint are priced as assemblies from wall length and room area, not detected as trades of their own.

2. Is Togal.AI the best choice for drywall-heavy work?

Togal.AI is the best-known name in AI takeoff and the closest thing to a direct rival. Its drywall page describes a one-click takeoff that "suggests a classification for every wall and partition", measures wall runs by linear foot, room square footage and ceiling areas, and adds image, text and pattern search plus Togal.CHAT. Its Assemblies page is the standout: build a wall type once and it calculates studs, sheets, screws, crew hours and equipment from the measured walls. The same page says Assemblies "is built for drywall" with more trades to come, and that total project cost is "not yet" part of it.

Pricing: a Growth tier per user per month billed yearly, and a custom Business tier. Trial: you book a demo. On electrical, Togal counts a device by image search from a symbol you box; our Bildrix vs Togal.AI comparison goes row by row.

3. Who should pick Bobyard?

Bobyard covers six trades. Its pages, read in August and September 2026, describe device counts, panel schedules and riser counts for electrical, room and wall measurements with surface area for finishes, fixture detection for plumbing, and assembly templates with a cost database. Its Bobyard 2.0 post adds a review workflow with confidence levels, the one rival here whose pages describe that. If you want homeruns and conduit routed for you rather than drafted for you to edit, Bobyard describes that and Bildrix does not do it.

Pricing: not published. Trial: none described; you book a demo. An AI price lookup, AI-written assemblies or per-line provenance on the estimate are not described. The full comparison is in Bildrix vs Bobyard.

4. Is Drawer AI worth a look for electrical estimating?

Drawer AI is "built exclusively for the electrical trade", with security, communication and fire alarm contractors also named. Its home page describes detecting power devices, lighting fixtures and panel schedules on PDF drawings, generating conduit paths from each panel to every device, totalling conduit and wire footage by circuit, and sizing wire with voltage drop and derating. Output is an Excel report and a marked-up PDF. A separate product turns drawings into a Revit model.

Pricing: Starter and Enterprise annual plans, sized by team and project volume, prices not shown. Trial: book a demo; the page mentions a 30-day money-back guarantee. A priced estimate, change orders or invoices are not described; it hands you quantities.

5. When does Kreo make more sense?

Kreo is built for quantity surveyors, cost consultants and multi-trade estimating teams, in 2D and in BIM. Its pages describe Auto Count, search, Ask AI, an agentic takeoff and estimating workflow, drawing comparison that highlights added, removed and modified elements, multi-currency and BIM takeoff from IFC models. On electrical, wire runs and circuits were not described when we read it.

Pricing: per user per month billed annually, with AI on the Pro tier and cheaper tiers without it. Trial: 7 days on Pro. See Bildrix vs Kreo.

6. Is STACK still a good takeoff platform in 2026?

Yes, as an estimating platform. STACK has a mature worksheet with assemblies and cost types, plan management and overlay, roles, integrations and Excel and QuickBooks exports. Its AI is Floor Plan AI, a priced add-on for rooms and walls, plus autocount from a symbol you box. Wire is drawn by hand. E-sign and invoices are not described.

Pricing: per user per month billed annually, plus the AI add-on. Trial: a free account and a 7-day trial. See Bildrix vs STACK.

7. What is Beam AI, a tool or a service?

Both. Beam AI calls itself AI-based takeoff and estimating software and offers two modes: Done For You, where you upload plans and receive takeoffs that are checked before delivery, with a stated turnaround of 24 to 72 hours, and Do It Yourself, which it describes as instant AI takeoffs for some trades. Its trade pages include electrical, plumbing, concrete, steel, drywall, lumber and insulation.

Pricing: not published on the page we read. Trial: a free guided tour or a demo. If you would rather send plans out than run the takeoff yourself, Beam is the one on this list built for that.

8. Should you stay on PlanSwift?

PlanSwift is the long-running Windows desktop takeoff: trace and click, with assemblies, plugins, reports, proposals and an Excel link, and it reads DWG, JPG and TIFF beside PDF. Since May 2026 its Takeoff Boost tools add Auto Takeoff, which works a page at a time and which PlanSwift calls "a head start, not a finished bid", and Auto Count, which finds a symbol you pick once across up to 10 pages. A confidence flag is not described, and it runs on Windows only. If your estimators are fast in it and your bids are not bottlenecked on counting, there is no emergency.

Pricing: per license per year. Trial: 14 days, no card. See Bildrix vs PlanSwift.

9. Does Bluebeam Revu do AI takeoff?

Not as a whole-set first pass. Bluebeam's estimating page describes measurements that live as markups on the drawing, Quantity Link into Excel, Compare Documents for revisions, and VisualSearch, which "scans a set for a symbol and returns counts the estimator confirms". Its pricing page lists four plans per user billed annually; the Max plan adds AI drawing reviews, AI drawing comparisons and AI integration via MCP. Automatic counting or AI takeoff is not mentioned there.

Trial: a free trial is linked; its length is not stated. Many estimators keep Revu for markup and run takeoff elsewhere.

10. Is Houzz Pro's takeoff enough for a remodeler?

Houzz Pro is an all-in-one remodeler suite: CRM and marketplace leads, proposals, invoicing, a client dashboard and a 3D floor planner. Its AutoMate takeoff runs on simplified floor plans and elevations. Takeoffs sit under its Custom tier. Trial: 30 days on Pro. For full commercial plan sets, see Bildrix vs Houzz Pro.

Which AI takeoff software should you choose?

• You bid electrical, architectural or plumbing work from PDF sets and want one thread to the invoice: Bildrix.
• Your bids are mostly drywall and you want stud and board math from the walls: Togal.AI.
• You need conduit routed and wire sized automatically: Drawer AI.
• You work from BIM models or across currencies: Kreo.
• You want a mature estimating worksheet first and AI second: STACK.
• You want takeoffs delivered, not run: Beam AI.

Trade-specific versions of this list: the best AI takeoff software for electrical contractors and the best AI takeoff software for drywall and framing.

Frequently asked questions

The bottom line

We think Bildrix is the best AI takeoff software for contractors who bid from plan sets and want to see what the AI doubted before a number goes in a bid. You do not have to take our word for it: upload a real plan set free, or book a call and we will run your first takeoff with you.