ServiceM8 is usually the cheapest of the three for a team, because it charges by the job with unlimited staff logins, from $29 a month. Tradify charges $48 to $62 per user per month and has the better Android app. Fergus starts at $53 a month and wins on job costing. All NZD, as at July 2026.
Before anything else: I am a ServiceM8 Certified Partner, so I have a bias and you should know it up front. That is also exactly why I know where the other two beat it. If Tradify or Fergus is the better fit for how you work, I will say so on the call rather than sell you a setup you do not need.
Is ServiceM8 better than Tradify?
For most trade businesses with staff, yes, and the reason is the pricing model rather than the feature list. ServiceM8 charges by the number of jobs you create each month and gives you unlimited staff logins on every paid plan. Tradify charges per user per month. So a four-person team running 120 jobs a month pays $79 on ServiceM8’s Growing plan and $208 on Tradify Pro for the same month (servicem8.com/nz/pricing and tradifyhq.com/nz/pricing, as at July 2026).
Flip the numbers and it flips the answer. A two-person maintenance outfit closing 400 small jobs a month pays $149 on ServiceM8 Premium and $104 on Tradify Pro. Job volume against headcount is the whole decision, so count both before you sign up to anything.
Tradify wins on two things that are not about price. First, phones. The full ServiceM8 app is iOS only, and ServiceM8 recommends iPhones and iPads to get the most out of it. Android staff get ServiceM8 Lite, built for technicians and subcontractors who just need the basics (servicem8.com/nz, as at July 2026). Tradify runs a full app on iPhone, Android and web. If your team is on Android and you are not about to buy everyone an iPhone, that is a real reason to pick Tradify.
Second, Tradify is simpler to learn. ServiceM8 has more depth, and depth is only an advantage if somebody switches it on and trains the team.
Is ServiceM8 any good?
Yes, and here is the honest version rather than the partner version. What it does well: quoting, scheduling, dispatch and invoicing from a phone on site, unlimited staff on every paid plan, forms and certificates you build once, online booking, automated reminders and follow-ups, and a clean connection to Xero or MYOB. It publishes NZD pricing for New Zealand, handles GST, and texts NZ mobile numbers.
What annoys people, in the order it comes up:
- The job caps. A busy month can push you into the next plan. Count your jobs, not your staff, when you budget.
- The Apple bias. Covered above. It is the single most common reason a business rules ServiceM8 out.
- Support is Australian. ServiceM8 is an Australian-built product, so vendor support runs on Australian hours. That is exactly why having a New Zealand partner to ring is useful.
- Depth nobody uses. The most common thing I see on an audit is a business paying for a higher plan and using a fraction of the product. Badges, forms, online booking and automations sit switched off.
- Long builds. ServiceM8 thinks in jobs. If your work is six-month builds with variations, progress claims and cost-to-complete reporting, that is Fergus territory, not ServiceM8’s.
Is Tradify expensive?
Not for one or two people. It gets expensive once you have five on the tools. Tradify Pro is $52 NZD per user per month ex GST (tradifyhq.com/nz/pricing, as at July 2026), so five users is $260 a month and $3,120 a year before add-ons. The same team on ServiceM8 Growing pays $79 a month.
Here is how the three actually charge. All figures NZD, from the vendors’ own New Zealand pricing pages as at July 2026.
| Tool | How it charges | Entry price per month | Top published plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| ServiceM8 | Per job created each month, unlimited staff logins | Free $0 for 30 jobs, Starter $29 for 50 jobs | Premium Plus $349 for 1,500+ jobs |
| Tradify | Per user per month, ex GST | Lite $48, Pro $52 per user | Plus $62 per user, then Custom |
| Fergus | Per month, scaling with how many users and what type | Basic from $53 | Professional from $75, Enterprise 10+ on quote |
Fergus publishes a starting price rather than a per-seat price, and the plan scales as you add people, so get a quote for your actual headcount at fergus.com/nz/pricing. It lists timesheet users from $26 a month each and contractor users at $4 per user per day (as at July 2026).
What that means in monthly dollars for four typical New Zealand trade businesses:
| Your business | ServiceM8 | Tradify Pro | Fergus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo, 40 jobs a month | $29 Starter | $52, one user | From $53 |
| 4 staff, 120 jobs a month | $79 Growing | $208, four users | Quote for four users |
| 2 staff, 400 small jobs a month | $149 Premium | $104, two users | From $53 plus users |
| 8 staff, 450 jobs a month | $149 Premium | $416, eight users | Quote, Enterprise above 10 staff |
If your headcount is bigger than your job count, ServiceM8 wins on price. If your job count is bigger than your headcount, check Tradify first.
Then there are the extras, which nobody includes in the comparison and everybody pays. ServiceM8 charges 10c an SMS beyond your plan allowance and 2.49 to 3.10 per cent plus 30c on card payments depending on plan. Tradify charges $0.20 a message and $19 a month for its Instant Website add-on. Fergus charges $15 per 100 texts, 2.95 per cent plus 30c on card payments, and $50 for compliance certificates on 1 to 9 staff. Sources are the three pricing pages named above, as at July 2026.
Setup is the other line item. You can do any of them yourself over a few evenings, and plenty of tradies do. Paying someone to do it is a one-off cost, separate from your subscription, and it covers the price list, templates, forms, accounting connection, automations, training and any data coming across from your old system. What it comes to depends on the size of your business and how much history is moving, so we give you a fixed number on the call rather than a rate card. The full scope is on our ServiceM8 setup and training page, and the 15-minute intro call is free.
Who are Tradify’s competitors?
In New Zealand the honest shortlist is ServiceM8, Fergus and NextMinute, with Simpro and AroFlo sitting above them for larger operations, and a spreadsheet plus Xero sitting below.
- ServiceM8. Australian built, per-job pricing, unlimited users. Best for high job volume with staff on iPhones.
- Fergus. Auckland based, with plumbing and electrical heritage. Strongest of the three on job costing, purchase orders, health and safety and reporting, and it imports supplier invoices from the merchants NZ trades actually buy from, including Plumbing World, Mico, Corys, PlaceMakers and ITM (fergus.com, as at July 2026).
- NextMinute. Aimed at builders and carpenters, with takeoff imports and cost tracking. Check current pricing on nextminute.com because it is quoted by region.
- Simpro and AroFlo. More capable, more setup, more money. Worth a look once you are running multiple crews and real project accounting.
- Tradify. New Zealand founded and Auckland based, and the most polished app of the lot for a small team.
Fergus says it is used by more than 25,000 trade businesses and Tradify cites 4.8 out of 5 from over 9,000 Trustpilot ratings, both on their own sites as at July 2026. Take vendor numbers as vendor numbers. What matters is which one your team will open on a wet Tuesday afternoon. If you want the full rundown across every option, we keep one at job management software for NZ trades.
Which one should you pick for your trade?
Electricians
ServiceM8 if you run maintenance work across a couple of vans, because job volume is high, headcount is low and the per-job plans stay cheap. Certificates decide it for some sparkies: Tradify includes electrical and gas safety certificates on its Pro and Plus plans, Fergus charges $50 for certificates on 1 to 9 staff, and ServiceM8 handles them as forms you build once and reuse. A crew of six on Android phones should look at Tradify first.
Plumbers and gasfitters
ServiceM8 suits maintenance-heavy plumbing well. Recurring jobs, badges to flag what type of work it is, online booking for the small stuff and per-job pricing all line up with how the work arrives. If you do larger installs with supplier bills, progress payments and margin you need to watch mid-job, Fergus will save you more admin than ServiceM8 will, and the supplier invoice import is the reason.
Builders
Fergus or NextMinute more often than ServiceM8. A build is not a job, it is months of variations, purchase orders, progress claims and cost-to-complete. ServiceM8 thinks in jobs, so a six-month build is one job, which makes the subscription cheap and the costing thin. If you are a builder doing small renovations and maintenance rather than new builds, ServiceM8 is back in the running.
If you already pay for ServiceM8 and use a third of it, or you are moving off Tradify, Fergus, paper or a spreadsheet, that is the work I do. Book the free 15-minute call and we will look at your job numbers, your team and your phones, then decide. Details on ServiceM8 setup and support, including what migrates across and what does not.
