Stairkey

Stairkey combines contractor and real estate tools in one workspace, including CRM, scheduling, estimates, invoicing, portals, email, websites, storage, accounting, and administration. An approved quote can create a job with tasks, a schedule, a crew, and a materials list. Contractors can use the Takeoff Builder to calculate quantities from room dimensions, openings, finishes, and formulas. Realty features include property records, listing history, showings, open-house sign-in, listing presentations, condition templates, and deal context. Optional double-entry accounting supports invoices, expenses, reconciliation, and reporting. Its AI assistant can draft quotes, tasks, expense entries, and messages, but content is not saved or sent until approved. AI is disabled until enabled and is priced per use; reading a receipt is shown as a 15¢ example. Team controls include two-factor authentication, recovery codes, device management, and session controls, and administrators can export tenant data. Quotes and invoices support HST and GST, with year-end exports including T5018 and T4A summaries and a T2125-mapped package. It works on Android, iOS, and the web, and the first month is free with features unlocked and no credit card required.

It suits contractor or real estate teams that want estimates, scheduling, client or subcontractor portals, and administrative tools in one workspace. Its mobile access may also suit people who quote and invoice from a job site.

The first month is free with every feature unlocked and no credit card required. Ongoing access is paid: owner seats start at $20 CAD per month and are capped at $100 CAD per month, while member seats are $10 CAD per month and capped at $30 CAD per month; AI is separately priced per use.

Stairkey combines estimating and job coordination with accounting, realty tools, and administrative features. Its first month is free, but review the seat and add-on pricing as well as the per-use AI charges before adopting it.

Stairkey is a contractor workspace that also includes real-estate tools, with mobile apps and a web version. It suits Canadian businesses that want estimates, job coordination, and property workflows together. Its broad scope is useful, but seat costs, add-ons, and metered AI make the full bill worth checking before you commit.

Overview

The strongest case for Stairkey is continuity: an approved quote can become a job with tasks, a schedule, a crew, and a materials list. That connects estimating to delivery instead of leaving the team to rebuild the plan after a sale. The trade-off is that Stairkey reaches well beyond contractor operations, so a small painter who needs only estimates and invoices may be paying for breadth they will not use.

Key features

The Takeoff Builder calculates quantities from room dimensions, openings, finishes, and formulas. That makes it relevant to contractors estimating measured work, while businesses that do not build estimates from room-level inputs may get less from it. Calendar scheduling, change orders, and client and subcontractor portals extend the workflow into project coordination.

Stairkey also includes property records, listing history, showings, open-house sign-in, listing presentations, condition templates, and deal context. This mix is a real differentiator for a company spanning realty and contracting, but it is not a reason on its own for a paint contractor to choose the platform.

Optional double-entry accounting covers invoices, expenses, reconciliation, and reporting. The AI assistant drafts quotes, tasks, expense entries, and messages, but requires user approval before saving or sending. AI is off until enabled and billed per use; receipt reading is given as an example at 15¢, so frequent use can add variable costs. Team security controls include two-factor authentication, recovery codes, device management, and session controls. Administrators can export tenant data for backups or migration. Canadian tax support includes HST and GST on quotes and invoices, plus year-end T5018 and T4A summaries and a T2125-mapped package.

Pricing

The first month is free with every feature unlocked and no credit card required. After that, Stairkey uses a seat-and-add-on model rather than a single flat team price:

• Accountant role: 0.00 CAD per month, with a $20 a month. usage room and metered usage billed up to $20 a month. It does not count toward the seat limit, which suits an accountant who needs access without taking a regular seat.
• Member seat: 10.00 CAD per month, with a $10 a month floor, a $30 a month cap, and $10 monthly usage included. It has the same features as an owner seat, making it the lower-cost route for additional team members, though its usage cap still matters.
• Owner seat: 20.00 CAD per month, starts at $20 a month and is capped at $100 a month. It includes every core feature and $20 monthly usage; price rises with the storage plan. This is the core account for an owner, but storage can raise the bill.
• Website add-on: 10.00 CAD per month while active, prorated when active, with $10 shared team usage. Choose it only if the public website is needed.
• Accounting add-on: 20.00 CAD per month while active, prorated when active, with $20 shared team usage. It unlocks double-entry books, so it is relevant to teams wanting that accounting workflow inside Stairkey.

The included usage amounts and caps are important: seats are not the only possible cost, and AI is separately charged per use. Work out the likely seat count, storage plan, add-ons, and usage before adopting it.

Platforms

Stairkey runs on Android, iOS, and the web. Its mobile workflow is aimed at quoting, checking the day's work, and sending invoices from a job site. The team says it replies to support requests within one business day and can arrange a guided demo.

Who it's for

Stairkey is best for Canadian contractors or businesses that combine property and project work, need the quote-to-job handoff, and will use several of its coordination tools. Canadian tax support and the data export option also help teams managing their own records. A solo painter looking for a narrow, low-cost estimating tool should compare simpler options before paying for seats and add-ons.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Approved quotes can flow into scheduled jobs with crews and materials, reducing a manual planning handoff.
• Pro: Takeoffs, portals, change orders, and calendar scheduling cover estimating and coordination in one workspace.
• Pro: Canadian tax outputs and full tenant export address practical accounting and recordkeeping needs.
• Con: The realty and administrative breadth may be unnecessary for contractors focused only on painting estimates and jobs.
• Con: Usage-based AI and storage-sensitive owner-seat pricing make the eventual cost less predictable than the base seat prices suggest.

Alternatives

For a wider comparison, see Remodeling contractor software.

• Buildxact is worth considering if a free plan and complimentary credits for AI estimating and proposals matter more than Stairkey's combined contractor and realty workspace.
• Houzz may suit a reader who wants a free plan with a 3D Floor Planner, estimates, and invoicing.
• Workhand is a more constrained free starting point, capped at one active job, one teammate, three estimates, and three invoices per month.
• Buildshop offers a free Basic plan with estimates, invoices, to-do lists, contact management, messaging, a project portfolio, and a bid center.
• BuildBook is another freemium option for readers comparing contractor software.
• Clear Estimates is a paid alternative with a free trial and a Standard annual plan at $59 a month for unlimited estimates and customers with one login.
• Build Method suits a reader comparing paid plans that include unlimited projects, customers, and vendors for one user.
• Buildern is a paid option to compare if a two-seat annual Starter plan is a better fit.

Verdict

Choose Stairkey if your business needs measured takeoffs, connected job coordination, and Canadian accounting or tax workflows, especially alongside real-estate work. The main reason to choose it is how much of that operation can sit in one workspace; the main reason to look elsewhere is the layered cost of seats, storage, add-ons, and AI usage. For a painting business that will use only estimates and invoices, a narrower alternative is likely the more sensible starting point.