Stairkey vs Jobber
Jobber wins on polish, brand, payments, and its app marketplace — it's the safer pick if you want a mature ops tool and don't mind running QuickBooks or Xero alongside it. Stairkey wins if you want estimating, scheduling, invoicing AND real double-entry books (with native HST/GST) in one capped-price workspace instead of two subscriptions.
Jobber is the tool most one-truck field-service owners hear about first, and for good reason: the quoting-to-payment workflow is polished, the mobile app is mature, and the integration marketplace is large. What it doesn't do is keep your books — Jobber syncs to QuickBooks Online or Xero, which means a second subscription, a second login, and sync hygiene to maintain. Stairkey's bet is the opposite: one smaller, younger tool where the ledger is native.
Full disclosure: this page is written by the Stairkey team — we make one of the two products being compared. So instead of a rigged table that wins every row, we keep every Jobber number matched to its published pricing, concede plainly where Jobber is ahead, and tell you who each tool is actually for.
At a glance
| Jobber | Stairkey | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $49/mo (Core, monthly) or $29/mo billed annually, 1 user | $20/mo, capped at $100 |
| Pricing model | Published tiers; seats extra ($29/user/mo) | Flat core + optional add-ons, usage-capped |
| Built-in accounting | No — two-way sync to QuickBooks Online/Xero | Yes — native double-entry GL (+$20/mo add-on) |
| Sales tax (HST/GST) | Line-item rates, passed through the sync | Native HST/GST, year-end package |
| Estimating & takeoff | Quotes — strong, polished workflow | Line items OR measured takeoff + approvals |
| Payments processing | Built-in (2.9% + $0.30) | Via Stripe — no in-house processor |
| Built-in telephony / SMS | AI Receptionist add-on | None |
| AI features | AI Receptionist (add-on) | Photo/voice → tasks, workspace AI |
| Real estate / deal module | No | Yes — buying, listing, deal P&L |
| Integration marketplace | Large | Smaller, newer |
| Best for | Polished field-service ops + QBO/Xero books | One tool with the books included |
Who each one is for
you want the most polished, well-supported quoting-to-payment workflow in field service, built-in card processing, and a large app marketplace — and you're fine paying for and maintaining QuickBooks Online or Xero alongside it for the actual books.
you're a one-truck owner or small crew that would rather run estimating, scheduling, invoicing AND real double-entry accounting (native HST/GST) in one workspace with a hard monthly cap — especially if you're in Canada or you also touch real estate.
Pricing
Prices verified July 2, 2026. Quote-gated vendors change pricing without notice — confirm before you buy.
Tiers climb with seats and features (Connect $139/mo, Grow $199/mo monthly); extra seats $29/user/mo — and QuickBooks or Xero is a separate bill for the books.
Usage is capped at $100/mo so there are no surprise bills; the accounting add-on is +$20/mo (=$40/mo) for native double-entry books. First month free, no credit card.
Where the others win
Jobber genuinely beats us in several places. It has a far stronger brand, a longer track record, and a much larger third-party integration marketplace. Its built-in payment processing has posted rates (2.9% + $0.30) where Stairkey relies on Stripe. Its mobile quoting-to-payment flow is the most polished in the category, and its two-way QuickBooks/Xero sync is mature if you're already committed to that stack. Jobber also offers an AI Receptionist add-on — Stairkey has no telephony or SMS at all. And Stairkey is the newer, smaller product: no payroll (we do contractor tax slips and year-end, not pay runs), North-America focus, strongest on Canadian HST/GST. If brand, marketplace, or phone handling top your list, buy Jobber.
Common questions
Is Stairkey cheaper than Jobber?
On sticker, yes: Stairkey's core is $20/mo capped at $100/mo, with accounting +$20/mo. Jobber Core is $49/mo monthly ($29/mo annual) for one user, and most Jobber shops also pay for QuickBooks Online (from $38/mo) or Xero for the books — so the realistic comparison is $40/mo all-in vs roughly $67–$87+/mo for Jobber + accounting software.
Can Stairkey replace both Jobber and QuickBooks?
For a small operation, that's exactly the pitch: estimates, scheduling, invoicing, expenses, and a real double-entry ledger with HST/GST live in one workspace, so there's no sync to maintain. The honest caveats: Stairkey doesn't run payroll, has no built-in phone/SMS, and its integration marketplace is much smaller than Jobber's.
Which is better for a Canadian contractor?
Stairkey handles HST/GST natively, includes Canadian year-end workflows and contractor tax slips, and prices in a flat capped subscription. Jobber (a Canadian company itself) works well in Canada too, but leaves tax filing and the ledger to QuickBooks/Xero — so the difference is whether you want the books in the same tool.