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Construction · head to head

Cubit Estimating vs GCPay

Cubit Estimating logo

Cubit Estimating

Construction

Australian estimating and on-screen takeoff in one window, priced openly per user per month

From
167/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
GCPay logo

GCPay

Construction

Subcontractor pay application and lien waiver exchange for general contractors in North America

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Cubit Estimating every subscription carries a minimum twelve month term, so a firm that hires an estimator for one tender period pays for the full year regardless.; GCPay the subcontractor is a compelled user who did not choose the tool, so adoption friction and support load fall on the general contractor, and small trades with one bookkeeper resent every extra portal.
  • They diverge on capability: Cubit Estimating covers Integrated takeoff and estimate, GCPay covers Pay application workflow.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cubit Estimating and GCPay actually diverge.

Attributes where Cubit Estimating and GCPay differ
AttributeCubit EstimatingGCPay
Starting price167/monthOn request
Pricing modelPer user per monthquote
PlatformsWindowsWeb

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Construction).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Cubit Estimating

  • Integrated takeoff and estimate
  • Calculation and rate sheets
  • Price list management
  • Bills of quantities
  • BIM and IFC takeoff
  • Revision management
  • AI Estimating add-on
  • Job collaboration

Only in GCPay

  • Pay application workflow
  • Lien waiver exchange
  • Compliance tracking
  • Change order management
  • ePayments
  • Retainage handling
  • ERP integration
  • Subcontractor portal

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cubit Estimating

  • An Australian commercial builder that wants takeoff and estimate in one file rather than exporting quantities from a separate measurement toolnot GCPay
  • A quantity surveying practice producing trade-structured bills of quantities to local conventionnot GCPay
  • A subcontractor pricing repeat work from maintained supplier price lists rather than rebuilding rates each tendernot GCPay
  • A small estimating team that needs to know the annual cost before booking a demo, because the rate card is publishednot GCPay

GCPay

  • A general contractor in a strict lien state that has been burned by a missing unconditional waiver and needs waiver status tied to each payment rather than filed in a shared drivenot Cubit Estimating
  • A contractor whose accounts payable team spends the first week of every month rekeying pay applications from PDF emails into Sage or Viewpointnot Cubit Estimating
  • An owner-facing GC that must produce a clean audit trail of who was paid what and when, with insurance compliance evidence attachednot Cubit Estimating
  • A construction group standardising on Autodesk Construction Cloud that wants payment application data in the same estate as the project recordnot Cubit Estimating

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cubit Estimating

  • Every subscription carries a minimum twelve month term, so a firm that hires an estimator for one tender period pays for the full year regardless.
  • BIM and IFC takeoff sits only in Enterprise at $250 per user per month, meaning a builder who receives models rather than PDFs is pushed to the top tier whether or not it needs collaboration features.
  • The product is Windows only with no macOS or browser client, which excludes practices standardised on Macs unless they run virtualisation.
  • Rate libraries, measurement conventions and BOQ structures follow Australian practice, so buyers outside Australia and New Zealand inherit a method that does not match their local standard forms.
  • The AI Estimating add-on is priced at an explicitly temporary introductory rate, so a firm building the feature into its workflow is accepting an unspecified future increase on top of the seat price.

GCPay

  • The subcontractor is a compelled user who did not choose the tool, so adoption friction and support load fall on the general contractor, and small trades with one bookkeeper resent every extra portal.
  • Pricing is entirely quoted and keyed to annual subcontracted construction value, which means a contractor with a few very large subcontracts can pay far more than one with many small ones for identical functionality.
  • The ePayment fee structure is decided per general contractor, so a subcontractor cannot predict its cost of getting paid across clients and may be charged on one job and not another for the same work.
  • It is a payment and compliance system, not job costing; commitments still have to reconcile against the ERP, and integration gaps mean many contractors run a manual check anyway.
  • Autodesk acquired parent Payapps in 2024, and the strategic direction is convergence with Autodesk Construction Cloud, so buyers on Procore or a non-Autodesk stack should ask directly what the roadmap commitment to their platform is.

Pricing, plan by plan

Cubit Estimating

167/month
  • Standard$167/month
    • Integrated estimating and takeoff
    • Calculation sheets, rate sheets and price lists
    • Basic job management
  • Professional$222/month
    • Everything in Standard
    • Code grouping
    • Custom reporting
  • Enterprise$250/month
    • Everything in Professional
    • BIM and IFC takeoff
    • Multi-user job collaboration
  • AI Estimating add-on$20/month
    • Automated element recognition
    • Works with any edition
    • Introductory rate the vendor says will increase

GCPay

On request
  • GCPay for General Contractors$undefined/year
    • Priced on project count, subcontractor count and annual subcontracted volume
    • Unlimited free subcontractor accounts
    • Lien waiver and compliance tracking
  • ePayments and Waiver Exchange$undefined/month
    • Per-transaction fee disclosed at submission
    • General contractor may absorb the fee or pass it to the subcontractor
    • Subcontractor must acknowledge the fee before submitting

Which should you pick?

Choose Cubit Estimating if

  • You need integrated takeoff and estimate.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want calculation and rate sheets.
Cubit Estimating review

Choose GCPay if

  • You need pay application workflow.
  • You also want lien waiver exchange.
GCPay review

Questions people ask

Is Cubit Estimating or GCPay better?
Neither clearly leads. Cubit Estimating starts at 167/month and GCPay at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cubit Estimating or GCPay?
Cubit Estimating starts at 167/month and GCPay at On request.
Does Cubit Estimating or GCPay run on more platforms?
Cubit Estimating runs on Windows. GCPay runs on Web.
What is Cubit Estimating best used for?
Cubit Estimating is most often used for an australian commercial builder that wants takeoff and estimate in one file rather than exporting quantities from a separate measurement tool, a quantity surveying practice producing trade-structured bills of quantities to local convention, a subcontractor pricing repeat work from maintained supplier price lists rather than rebuilding rates each tender, a small estimating team that needs to know the annual cost before booking a demo, because the rate card is published. Of those, an australian commercial builder that wants takeoff and estimate in one file rather than exporting quantities from a separate measurement tool and a quantity surveying practice producing trade-structured bills of quantities to local convention are not what GCPay is typically brought in for.
What can Cubit Estimating do that GCPay cannot?
Cubit Estimating covers Integrated takeoff and estimate, Calculation and rate sheets, Price list management, Bills of quantities. GCPay covers Pay application workflow, Lien waiver exchange, Compliance tracking, Change order management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cubit Estimating: What does Cubit actually cost?

Standard $167, Professional $222 and Enterprise $250 per user per month on annual billing, in Australian dollars excluding GST. Monthly billing is about 16 per cent more.

GCPay: Who pays for GCPay, the GC or the sub?

The general contractor pays the subscription. Subcontractor accounts are free. Only the optional ePayment and waiver exchange transaction fee can be passed to the subcontractor, and only with their acknowledgement.

Cubit Estimating: Can I get BIM takeoff without the Enterprise tier?

No. IFC model takeoff is an Enterprise feature only.

GCPay: How much is the ePayment fee?

It is a flat per-transaction fee, disclosed at the point the pay application is submitted. GCPay has published a $15 figure for the ePayments and waiver exchange service, and the GC decides who bears it.

Cubit Estimating: Is there a perpetual licence?

No. Cubit Estimating is subscription only with a minimum twelve month commitment.

GCPay: Is GCPay owned by Autodesk?

Yes. Autodesk agreed to acquire Payapps, which trades as GCPay in North America and Payapps elsewhere, in January 2024.

Cubit Estimating: Does it suit contractors outside Australia?

It works, but rate libraries and BOQ conventions follow Australian standards, so buyers elsewhere do more setup than a locally built alternative would need.

GCPay: Does it replace our construction accounting system?

No. It handles the application, approval and compliance workflow and then pushes approved payments into your ERP.

GCPay: Can subcontractors export their own records?

Subcontractors can download their submitted applications and waivers, but the project record belongs to the general contractor's account, so a sub should keep its own copies rather than rely on continued portal access.

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