TradesWork vs FieldEdge (2026): an honest comparison

This compares our own product with FieldEdge, so weigh it with that in mind. FieldEdge facts come from its pricing page, company pages and the service terms its site links to, checked October 15, 2026. Where FieldEdge doesn't publish something, we say so rather than guess.

The deciding question for most shops is accounting. If your books are in QuickBooks Desktop and staying there, FieldEdge supports it on every plan and TradesWork doesn't support it at all. If you're on QuickBooks Online, the comparison turns on price visibility, mobile licenses, contract terms and which tier you need for the selling tools you use.

Where FieldEdge is stronger

Start here, because for some shops these points settle it.

QuickBooks Desktop. FieldEdge's pricing table lists "QuickBooks Online & Desktop" as included on Select, Premier and Elite.¹ Its QuickBooks hub claims "the only real-time sync between QuickBooks and a field service management software."² That's a vendor claim we can't test, but Desktop support itself is real and uncommon. TradesWork connects to QuickBooks Online only. If your bookkeeper won't leave Desktop, stop here and stay with FieldEdge.

Inventory tied to QuickBooks. Elite includes warehouse inventory management, available only if you use QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise with Advanced Inventory.¹ Shops that run stock through that setup have something TradesWork doesn't replace.

History in the trades. FieldEdge's company page says the Slay brothers founded Coastal Computer Corporation in Fort Myers in 1980, and that the company released the first electronic dispatch board and was first to fully integrate QuickBooks with field service software.³ It also sells and supports ESC, the older product from when the company was called dESCO.⁴ That's decades of HVAC, plumbing and electrical customers. TradesWork launched in 2026.

Guided onboarding and named support. Every plan includes an onboarding specialist, and FieldEdge's FAQ says onboarding moves your business data into your new account. Support is chat on Select, email or phone on Premier, and a dedicated customer success rep on Elite.¹ If you want someone else to do the setup, that's a real plus.

Service agreements on every plan. Basic service agreements are on Select and advanced ones on Premier and Elite.¹

Where TradesWork is stronger

You can see the price. FieldEdge's pricing page shows Request Pricing on all three plans and says cost varies by team size and add-ons.¹ TradesWork publishes Essentials $79, Pro $99 and AI $139 per tech a month billed annually, or $91, $114 and $160 month-to-month.

No license math. FieldEdge includes 2 mobile app licenses on Select, 4 on Premier and 6 on Elite, and lists additional licenses without a price.¹ An 8-tech shop is past every tier's included count. TradesWork charges per technician, and office staff, helpers and apprentices are free.

Selling tools without the top tier. Select quotes are single-option. Multi-option quotes start at Premier, and Proposal Pro, MarketingEdge and the Consumer Management Portal are included on Elite and call-for-pricing below it.¹ TradesWork builds good, better and best options from your price book on Pro, with a monthly payment shown under each.

Reports you can keep. Select has no saved reports and Premier has 10.¹ TradesWork reports show the jobs behind each number on every plan, and you can ask plain-English questions like why Tuesday was slow.

Shorter commitment. TradesWork is month-to-month, and annual billing never auto-renews at a higher price. FieldEdge refers to annual memberships, and downgrades wait until the end of the contract period.¹ More on terms below.

A trial before you commit. FieldEdge's FAQ says it doesn't offer a free trial.¹ TradesWork gives you 14 days with no card, so you can run real jobs before anyone sells you anything.

Contracts and renewal: read the terms

FieldEdge's legal link on its home page redirects to Xplor's US SaaS Terms of Service (Xplor is FieldEdge's parent company; the document is marked last updated October 2023).⁵ Three clauses matter if you're comparing:

• Auto-renewal: after the initial license period, the agreement "will automatically renew for successive periods of 12 months" unless either side gives written notice at least 60 days before it ends (section 2.2).⁵
• Price increases: Xplor can raise fees with at least two months' notice. If the increase is above CPI and you don't agree, you can terminate without penalty by giving written notice within 10 days (section 2.3).⁵
• Early termination: leave before the period ends and you owe the monthly fees multiplied by the months remaining (sections 1.2 and 13.4).⁵

Your signed order form can set different terms, so read yours before relying on these. The practical point is simple: mark the date 60 days before your renewal on the calendar now.

Day to day

Office. FieldEdge covers call booking, dispatching (basic on Select, advanced above), custom forms, automated alerts, lead tracking and integrated texting on every plan.¹ TradesWork shows the caller's history, open jobs, balance and membership before you answer, and gathers website and referral leads into one inbox.

Techs. FieldEdge's tech time tracking and mobile app are on every plan, subject to the license count. TradesWork walks each visit step by step, lets techs talk instead of type, and keeps saving estimates, notes, photos and forms when there's no signal.

Owners. FieldEdge adds performance and commission tracking from Premier and outbound call recording on Elite.¹ TradesWork includes alerts when something looks off and job profit and commissions (Pro), and its AI plan adds an AI receptionist for after hours, in early access.

Gaps on our side. TradesWork has no QuickBooks Desktop connection, no connected financing lenders yet, and no route-day scheduling for lawn, pest or pool work. It's new, so you won't find the long list of FieldEdge shops to call for references.

Questions to ask in each evaluation

Ask FieldEdge, in writing:

• What does each plan cost for our tech count, including mobile licenses beyond the included 2, 4 or 6?
• Do helpers or apprentices who use the app need a license?
• Which add-ons (Proposal Pro, MarketingEdge, Academy, the customer portal) are in our quote?
• What is the initial term, and what notice do we give to not renew?
• How do we export our data if we leave, and in what format?

Ask TradesWork:

• How will our FieldEdge service agreements come across, and when does membership billing start?
• What happens to QuickBooks history when we connect our QuickBooks Online company?
• Which FieldEdge files do you need, and what doesn't import?
• How do customers apply for financing until lenders are connected?

Switching from FieldEdge to TradesWork

TradesWork imports files you export. It doesn't log in to FieldEdge and has no API connection to it. The importer reads customers, locations, equipment, work orders as job history, invoices, service agreements as memberships (billing held until you switch it on) and your flat rate price book, including member prices when that column is present. You preview everything before it's saved and can import into a separate sandbox company first.

Getting the files out is the harder half. FieldEdge's own help content sits behind a customer login, and the public step-by-step instructions we found are written by competitors, including ServiceTitan's help center.⁶ Our FieldEdge export guide covers what's documented and what to request from FieldEdge support in writing. The migration guide covers the side-by-side run, cards, phone numbers and the QuickBooks cutover.

Two caveats. The FieldEdge file layouts were built from vendor help pages and common column names and are still being validated against real exports, so keep your original files. And saved cards never transfer: customers re-save a card on their next payment or through a link.

Which should you choose?

FieldEdge if your books are in QuickBooks Desktop, you rely on Advanced Inventory, or you want a long-established vendor with guided onboarding and a dedicated rep.

TradesWork if you're on QuickBooks Online, want to see prices and try the product first, have outgrown a tier's mobile licenses, and want memberships and good/better/best estimates on a mid-tier plan.

Score both on your own priorities with the field service software scorecard, and compare 12-month totals, not monthly headlines.