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Construction · head to head

On-Screen Takeoff vs Trimble Pay

On-Screen Takeoff logo

On-Screen Takeoff

Construction

Digital quantity takeoff from drawings, now subscription only and bundled rather than sold alone

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Trimble Pay logo

Trimble Pay

Construction

Subcontractor billing and lien waiver automation, formerly sold as Flashtract

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: On-Screen Takeoff perpetual licensing is no longer offered on current releases, so long-standing users who paid once now face a recurring annual cost they never budgeted, and staying on an old version means no support for newer PDF formats; Trimble Pay the Flashtract name is being retired in favour of Trimble Pay, so existing documentation, comparison articles and integration listings are split across two names and buyers should confirm which contract entity and which support channel applies
  • They diverge on capability: On-Screen Takeoff covers Drawing takeoff, Trimble Pay covers Automated pay applications.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which On-Screen Takeoff and Trimble Pay actually diverge.

Attributes where On-Screen Takeoff and Trimble Pay differ
AttributeOn-Screen TakeoffTrimble Pay
PlatformsWindowsWeb, iOS, Android

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 On-Screen Takeoff

  • Drawing takeoff
  • Revision overlay
  • Condition libraries
  • Automatic scaling
  • Bid zones and phases
  • Quick Bid handoff
  • Excel export

Only in Trimble Pay

  • Automated pay applications
  • State-specific lien waivers
  • Waiver release on payment
  • Compliance tracking
  • Lower-tier tracking
  • Payments
  • ERP posting

What people use each for

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

On-Screen Takeoff

  • A drywall contractor measuring wall area and openings across a 300 sheet set where manual takeoff would take a weeknot Trimble Pay
  • An estimator who receives a late addendum and needs to know which rooms changed rather than re-measuring the whole floornot Trimble Pay
  • A flooring subcontractor maintaining reusable conditions with waste factors so quantities and material orders stay consistent between estimatorsnot Trimble Pay
  • A trade contractor that wants takeoff quantities split by phase so progress billing matches the way work is actually releasednot Trimble Pay

Trimble Pay

  • A general contractor whose accounts payable team rejects a third of subcontractor billings each month for arithmetic or form errorsnot On-Screen Takeoff
  • A contractor working across several states that needs the right statutory waiver language selected automatically rather than from a shared template foldernot On-Screen Takeoff
  • A company that has been quoted Oracle Textura and wants to compare the total cost when the fee falls on the contractor rather than on the tradesnot On-Screen Takeoff
  • A contractor that needs the unconditional waiver to be released only after funds clear, so it is not holding a waiver that a court would treat as ineffectivenot On-Screen Takeoff

Where each one falls short

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

On-Screen Takeoff

  • Perpetual licensing is no longer offered on current releases, so long-standing users who paid once now face a recurring annual cost they never budgeted, and staying on an old version means no support for newer PDF formats
  • ConstructConnect does not publish a price, and the product is increasingly sold inside a bundle with lead data and estimating, so buyers who want takeoff alone often find the quote priced around a package they do not need
  • It is Windows desktop only, with no macOS version and no meaningful browser or tablet workflow, which rules it out for firms standardised on Apple hardware
  • The interface has changed little in years and estimators coming from browser-based tools find the condition setup and layer management slow to learn, so onboarding a new estimator takes longer than the software cost would suggest
  • ConstructConnect sells lead data, takeoff and estimating as a portfolio and has consolidated several acquired products, so a buyer committing to On-Screen Takeoff should ask directly where it sits against the newer cloud takeoff products in the same portfolio

Trimble Pay

  • The Flashtract name is being retired in favour of Trimble Pay, so existing documentation, comparison articles and integration listings are split across two names and buyers should confirm which contract entity and which support channel applies
  • Pricing is not published, and because it is bought by the general contractor rather than charged to subcontractors, the whole cost lands in one budget line rather than being distributed across the supply chain
  • It is billing and compliance only, so a contractor still needs a project management system for drawings and RFIs and a construction ERP for the general ledger, and the value depends heavily on the quality of those two integrations
  • Lien waiver correctness is a legal question, and the system generates forms rather than giving advice, so a contractor operating in an unusual jurisdiction still needs counsel to confirm the templates match current statute
  • Under Trimble the product now sits alongside other Trimble construction financial assets, and buyers signing multi-year terms should ask directly how it is positioned against Viewpoint and the rest of the Trimble construction portfolio

Pricing, plan by plan

On-Screen Takeoff

On request
  • On-Screen Takeoff$undefined/year
    • Annual subscription per seat on version 4 and later
    • Sold increasingly as part of a ConstructConnect takeoff and estimating bundle
    • Perpetual licensing not offered on current releases

Trimble Pay

On request
  • Trimble Pay$undefined/year
    • Bought by the general contractor, typically priced by project volume or contract value under management
    • Subcontractors are not charged a per-project usage fee
    • ERP integration and onboarding scoped separately

Which should you pick?

Choose On-Screen Takeoff if

  • You need drawing takeoff.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want revision overlay.
On-Screen Takeoff review

Choose Trimble Pay if

  • You need automated pay applications.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want state-specific lien waivers.
Trimble Pay review

Questions people ask

Is On-Screen Takeoff or Trimble Pay better?
Neither clearly leads. On-Screen Takeoff starts at On request and Trimble Pay at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, On-Screen Takeoff or Trimble Pay?
On-Screen Takeoff starts at On request and Trimble Pay at On request.
Does On-Screen Takeoff or Trimble Pay run on more platforms?
On-Screen Takeoff runs on Windows. Trimble Pay runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is On-Screen Takeoff best used for?
On-Screen Takeoff is most often used for a drywall contractor measuring wall area and openings across a 300 sheet set where manual takeoff would take a week, an estimator who receives a late addendum and needs to know which rooms changed rather than re-measuring the whole floor, a flooring subcontractor maintaining reusable conditions with waste factors so quantities and material orders stay consistent between estimators, a trade contractor that wants takeoff quantities split by phase so progress billing matches the way work is actually released. Of those, a drywall contractor measuring wall area and openings across a 300 sheet set where manual takeoff would take a week and an estimator who receives a late addendum and needs to know which rooms changed rather than re-measuring the whole floor are not what Trimble Pay is typically brought in for.
What can On-Screen Takeoff do that Trimble Pay cannot?
On-Screen Takeoff covers Drawing takeoff, Revision overlay, Condition libraries, Automatic scaling. Trimble Pay covers Automated pay applications, State-specific lien waivers, Waiver release on payment, Compliance tracking.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

On-Screen Takeoff: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

No. Current releases are annual subscription. Older perpetual licences continue to run but do not receive updates.

Trimble Pay: Is Flashtract still sold under that name?

No. Trimble acquired Flashtract and now sells it as Trimble Pay. The flashtract.com content redirects into the Trimble product pages.

On-Screen Takeoff: Is it sold separately from Quick Bid?

It can be, but ConstructConnect increasingly quotes it as part of a takeoff and estimating package. Ask explicitly for standalone pricing if that is what you want.

Trimble Pay: Do subcontractors pay to use it?

No. The general contractor buys it. This is the main commercial difference from Oracle Textura, where subcontractors are billed a percentage of their contract value per project.

On-Screen Takeoff: Does it run on a Mac?

Not natively. It is a Windows application and Mac users run it under virtualisation, which is unsupported in practice for large drawing sets.

Trimble Pay: Does it replace my accounting system?

No. It generates and approves the billing and the waivers, then posts to your construction ERP. You still need the ledger.

On-Screen Takeoff: Will it read a scanned drawing?

Yes, but measurement accuracy on a scanned raster set depends entirely on the scan quality and on setting scale from a verified dimension.

Trimble Pay: Does it handle lower-tier subcontractors?

Yes, it tracks sub-tier amounts and sworn statements against the prime commitment, which is the usual source of surprise lien exposure.

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