Quotiqa vs PlanSwift for interior fit-out: where each one fits

Disclosure: we make Quotiqa. We have a bias. We are also estimators ourselves and have worked with PlanSwift on real projects, so this is not a strawman comparison.

PlanSwift and Quotiqa are not the same kind of tool. Knowing the difference is the whole post.

What PlanSwift is good at

PlanSwift is a general-purpose digital takeoff tool. Its strengths:

• Handles every trade — roofing, civil, mechanical, electrical, drywall, finishes, the lot.
• Years of feature accumulation — assemblies, point counting, plug-ins, custom formulas.
• Strong export to Excel for downstream pricing.
• Trusted by GCs and big estimating firms.

If you do multi-trade general construction estimating, PlanSwift earns its money.

Where it gets in the way

For interior fit-out specifically, the same generality becomes friction:

• The pricing model is "rate × quantity." There is no native cost / markup / sell separation. Margin is something you compute downstream in Excel.
• Custom assemblies are powerful but require setup. Most fit-out teams do not have a dedicated estimator with time to maintain a PlanSwift template library.
• The output is quantities, not quotes. You still need a separate document for the client.
• Desktop-only on Windows. Field-side review needs an export or a remote session.

The pattern we saw in interviews: estimators who use PlanSwift for the takeoff and Excel + a Word template for the quote. Two artifacts, one job.

Where Quotiqa fits

Quotiqa is fit-out specific and quote-first. Strengths and limits:

• Browser-based, local-first. PDFs and project data stay in the browser unless you choose to share them.
• Pricing model is cost × markup → sell with live margin. The quote and the takeoff are the same artifact.
• Built-in item library for fit-out trades — partitions, ceilings, finishes, doors, carpentry — with custom items per project.
• Branded PDF + CSV + XLSX export goes straight to the client. No Word template assembly.

Limits:

• Not multi-trade general construction. If you are quoting roofing, structural steel, or civil works, this is not the tool.
• No vector / wall-edge auto-detection. You measure on the PDF — fast, but manual.
• No multi-user collaboration yet. One estimator at a time.
• No DWG / DXF import. PDF-only.

A side-by-side

	PlanSwift	Quotiqa
Scope	All construction trades	Interior fit-out
Workflow	Takeoff → Excel → Word/PDF quote	PDF plan → live quote → branded PDF
Pricing model	Rate × quantity	Cost × markup → sell, live margin
Output	Quantities + Excel	Client-ready PDF, CSV, XLSX
Custom items	Possible, requires setup	Built into the inspector
Platform	Windows desktop	Browser, local-first
Setup time	Hours to days	Under five minutes
First-quote target	Multi-hour	Under five minutes

Which to pick

Pick PlanSwift if:

• You quote multiple trades beyond fit-out.
• You already have a maintained assembly library.
• You have the time and bandwidth to operate desktop tools and an Excel pipeline alongside.

Pick Quotiqa if:

• You do interior fit-out, mostly.
• The bottleneck on your quotes is the spreadsheet rebuild, not the takeoff itself.
• You want one artifact (the PDF plan) to drive both quantities and the priced quote.
• Speed and a defensible margin chip matter more to you than every-feature parity.

If you read this and were already half-leaning toward Quotiqa, the 14-day no-card trial is probably the fastest way to know. Open one of your real PDFs, calibrate, draw a few partitions, see whether the quote that falls out is closer to the one you would have built in Excel.

If it is not, the trial costs nothing and you go back to PlanSwift. If it is, you have just compressed your quoting time.

A note on price

Quotiqa is S$99/month for one estimator and S$249/month for three. PlanSwift's pricing is quoted per seat, currently around US$1,895 for the first user and ~US$895 for additional users on standard licenses (verify directly with PlanSwift).

The price gap exists because Quotiqa is narrower. We are not trying to be PlanSwift on a discount — we are trying to be the tool that makes the quote fast for fit-out specifically. Different product, different price.

What this post does not say

We are not saying PlanSwift is bad. It is the leading takeoff tool for a reason. We are saying it is the wrong shape for fit-out estimators whose actual bottleneck is the priced quote, not the measurement.

Right tool for the job. The job is not the takeoff.