Softwr

Construction · head to head

Kojo vs RIB CostX

Kojo logo

Kojo

Construction

Materials procurement and inventory for speciality trade contractors

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
RIB CostX logo

RIB CostX

Construction

2D and BIM quantity takeoff with live-linked estimating workbooks for quantity surveyors and estimators

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kojo benefits depend on distributors providing electronic catalogues and pricing, and a contractor whose main supplier will not participate is left keying quotes by hand.; RIB CostX pricing is not published anywhere and is quoted per package and per seat through regional resellers, so two firms of similar size routinely pay materially different rates for the same configuration.
  • They diverge on capability: Kojo covers Field material requests, RIB CostX covers 2D drawing takeoff.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kojo and RIB CostX actually diverge.

Attributes where Kojo and RIB CostX differ
AttributeKojoRIB CostX
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWindows

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), 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 Kojo

  • Field material requests
  • Multi-supplier quoting
  • Purchase order management
  • Inventory and warehouse
  • Committed cost visibility
  • Enterprise resource planning integration

Only in RIB CostX

  • 2D drawing takeoff
  • BIM and 3D takeoff
  • Live-linked workbooks
  • Drawing revision comparison
  • Bill of quantities production
  • Rate libraries
  • Subcontractor comparison
  • CostX Viewer

What people use each for

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

Kojo

  • An electrical or mechanical contractor where materials are close to half of job cost and buying happens dailynot RIB CostX
  • A trade contractor that cannot see committed material cost against a job until the invoice arrivesnot RIB CostX
  • A contractor consolidating purchasing across branches to negotiate better distributor pricingnot RIB CostX
  • A subcontractor tracking warehouse stock and job transfers that currently live in a spreadsheetnot RIB CostX

RIB CostX

  • A quantity surveying practice that must issue a formatted bill of quantities under NRM or SMM7 and cannot do so from a generic takeoff toolnot Kojo
  • A contractor tendering a job where the client reissues drawings mid-tender, needing revision comparison so only changed areas are remeasurednot Kojo
  • An estimating department moving from paper and Excel to model-based measurement while keeping the same rate library and bill structurenot Kojo
  • A cost consultant producing early-stage elemental cost plans from partial models, then refining the same workbook as design detail arrivesnot Kojo

Where each one falls short

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

Kojo

  • Benefits depend on distributors providing electronic catalogues and pricing, and a contractor whose main supplier will not participate is left keying quotes by hand.
  • It serves speciality trade contractors; general contractors procure subcontracts rather than materials and get almost nothing from it.
  • Enterprise resource planning integration quality varies by system and version, so confirm the depth for your exact configuration rather than accepting the logo on the website.
  • Field adoption is the whole game, and foremen who lose signal in a plant room or basement revert to phoning the office within days unless offline capture genuinely works.
  • It changes purchasing process as well as software, so contractors whose buying authority is informal have to formalise who can commit money before the system produces clean data.

RIB CostX

  • Pricing is not published anywhere and is quoted per package and per seat through regional resellers, so two firms of similar size routinely pay materially different rates for the same configuration.
  • It is Windows desktop software with heavy graphics demands; there is no meaningful macOS or browser option, which rules it out for practices standardised on Apple hardware.
  • The learning curve is steep enough that firms typically budget formal training, and an estimator productive in a rival tool takes weeks rather than days to reach the same output here.
  • RIB is owned by Schneider Electric, whose strategic interest is the wider RIB construction cloud, so a buyer choosing CostX today is betting on continued investment in a desktop estimating product inside a group focused elsewhere.
  • BIM takeoff is only as good as the model, and on projects where the model is modelled for coordination rather than measurement the automatic quantities need enough manual checking that the time saving largely disappears.

Pricing, plan by plan

Kojo

On request
  • Kojo$undefined/year
    • Materials procurement workflow
    • Supplier quoting and purchase orders
    • Inventory tracking

RIB CostX

On request
  • CostX Quantify$undefined/year
    • 2D and BIM takeoff
    • Measurement export
    • No integrated estimating workbook
  • CostX Core$undefined/year
    • Takeoff plus live-linked workbooks
    • Rate libraries
    • Standard reporting
  • CostX Complete$undefined/year
    • Full BIM takeoff
    • Advanced workbooks and bills of quantities
    • Subcontractor comparison

Which should you pick?

Choose Kojo if

  • You need field material requests.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want multi-supplier quoting.
Kojo review

Choose RIB CostX if

  • You need 2d drawing takeoff.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want bim and 3d takeoff.
RIB CostX review

Questions people ask

Is Kojo or RIB CostX better?
Neither clearly leads. Kojo starts at On request and RIB CostX at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kojo or RIB CostX?
Kojo starts at On request and RIB CostX at On request.
Does Kojo or RIB CostX run on more platforms?
Kojo runs on Web, iOS, Android. RIB CostX runs on Windows.
What is Kojo best used for?
Kojo is most often used for an electrical or mechanical contractor where materials are close to half of job cost and buying happens daily, a trade contractor that cannot see committed material cost against a job until the invoice arrives, a contractor consolidating purchasing across branches to negotiate better distributor pricing, a subcontractor tracking warehouse stock and job transfers that currently live in a spreadsheet. Of those, an electrical or mechanical contractor where materials are close to half of job cost and buying happens daily and a trade contractor that cannot see committed material cost against a job until the invoice arrives are not what RIB CostX is typically brought in for.
What can Kojo do that RIB CostX cannot?
Kojo covers Field material requests, Multi-supplier quoting, Purchase order management, Inventory and warehouse. RIB CostX covers 2D drawing takeoff, BIM and 3D takeoff, Live-linked workbooks, Drawing revision comparison.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Kojo: Is this for general contractors?

No. It is built for speciality trade contractors buying materials. General contractors procure subcontracts and would get little from it.

RIB CostX: How much does RIB CostX cost?

RIB does not publish prices. It is quoted per package (Quantify, Core or Complete) and per seat, usually through a regional reseller.

Kojo: What if our suppliers will not connect?

You lose most of the quoting benefit and keep only the internal workflow. Check distributor participation before purchase, because it determines the return.

RIB CostX: Is a perpetual licence available?

RIB has historically offered both perpetual and subscription licensing, with subscription now the default push. Ask explicitly, because the perpetual option is not advertised.

Kojo: Does it work without signal on site?

Field requests are designed for site use, and offline behaviour should be tested with your own crews in your worst locations, because that is where adoption is won or lost.

RIB CostX: Does it do BIM takeoff or just 2D?

Both. Complete handles IFC and Revit models; Quantify and Core differ in workbook capability rather than measurement.

RIB CostX: Who is it for?

Quantity surveyors and estimators in markets that use bills of quantities: UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, the Middle East and South Africa above all.

RIB CostX: Can we open estimates without a licence?

A free CostX Viewer lets others open and inspect measured drawings and workbooks without a full seat.

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