How to migrate from Kickserv to TradesWork: an honest plan

Moving from Kickserv to TradesWork is a step up in both capability and cost, so the first question isn't how. It's whether. Kickserv's Start plan is $60 a month for 5 users.¹ A 3-tech shop on TradesWork Essentials pays $237 a month on annual billing. If you don't sell memberships or bigger replacement jobs, stay where you are.

If you do, here's the honest plan: customers and your price list come across by spreadsheet, history stays in your Kickserv files, and you set up the pieces Kickserv never had. The import screens below are real TradesWork screens. Kickserv facts come from its help center, pricing page and terms, checked October 15, 2026.

Is the move worth it?

Put numbers on it before you spend a week on setup.

Say you have 6 techs. Kickserv Run is $119 a month for 10 users.¹ TradesWork Pro is 6 × $99 = $594 a month on annual billing. The difference is about $475 a month, or $5,700 a year. If your average membership earns, say, $150 a year in gross margin, you'd need around 38 new members to cover it, or a handful of extra replacement jobs. These are example figures; use your own.

The whole move on one page

1. Week -2

   Export and verify

   Every Kickserv export run, opened and checked. Copies stored outside Kickserv. TradesWork trial started, phone port requested.

2. Week -1

   Sandbox and setup

   Customers and items imported into a sandbox company. Memberships, good/better/best and the AI receptionist configured.

3. Week 1

   One crew live

   Import into your real company. One crew on TradesWork. QuickBooks connected with a cut-over date.

4. Week 2

   Office and cards

   Office books new work in TradesWork. Card links sent to customers who pay by saved card.

5. Week 3

   Everyone

   All crews move. Fresh customer export re-dropped.

6. Week 4

   Final export, then cancel

   Port shows done. Last exports pulled and stored. Cancel at the end of the billing term, or move to a free plan if Kickserv still offers it.

What moves, what stays, what you build

Do the exports first. Our Kickserv export guide illustrates each one. The short version, as the account owner:

• Settings, Account & Billing: the help center says you can export data here; only the account owner sees this tab.²
• Settings, Items: export your products and services.²
• Reports: Customers, Jobs Completed, Account Aging, Customer Balances and Payments.³

Open every file and check row counts. Kickserv's help center doesn't publish what the Account & Billing export contains, so list anything missing and ask support in writing.

Bring it into TradesWork

Start a 14-day TradesWork trial with no card. Open Settings, Integrations and go to the import page; you need the Owner or Admin role.

1Choose Another system or a spreadsheet2Confirm what each file is3Match the columns4Import into a sandbox first5Fix the rows that didn't import

1. Choose Another system or a spreadsheet

The source buttons sit across the top of the import page; press Another system or a spreadsheet. Drop CSV, Excel or a ZIP, up to 50 MB per drop. TradesWork never logs in to Kickserv.

app.tradeswork.app · TradesWork importer with another system or a spreadsheet selected

Real TradesWork screen, sample export files.BackNext step

Tips for Kickserv files:

• Use the fullest customer file. If the Account & Billing export has more contact fields than the Customers report, drop that one, or build a custom report with every address field.
• Prices. "$149.00" is fine; text like "quote" isn't an amount and lands on the leftovers list.
• Second phone numbers go into the customer's notes, so nothing is lost.
• Spot-check twenty customers you know. If something's off, fix the spreadsheet and drop it again.

What you set up by hand

This is the part that pays for the switch, so do it properly:

• Memberships. Create your plan types and prices, then enroll customers who had recurring maintenance jobs in Kickserv. Dues bill themselves and visits come due on schedule.
• Good, better, best. Group your price book items into three-option estimates for your most common repairs and replacements.
• AI receptionist. Set your hours, emergency rules and booking windows, and test it with a few calls of your own.
• Equipment. Add units for members first. Techs fill in the rest on the next visit.
• Templates and reminders. Rebuild the ones you actually use.

The side-by-side run, and re-importing newer exports

Put one crew on TradesWork for two to four weeks, with Kickserv still live for everyone else. Book that crew's new jobs in TradesWork. When their week looks normal, move the office, then everyone else.

While both run, the office may still add customers in Kickserv. Re-run the Customers report and drop it again. Customers are matched by a Customer ID column if your file has one, or by name and address, so a re-drop updates existing records instead of duplicating them, and it never deletes anything. If a name or address changed between exports, check for a duplicate.

Payments, phones and QuickBooks

Cards. Kickserv's terms say payments run through a third-party processor under a separate agreement.⁴ Card data stays there. Send customers who pay by saved card a secure link to save one in TradesWork, starting with members.

Phones. Your business numbers move by porting. In TradesWork go to Settings, Phones, Numbers, Routing and Texting and choose Bring your numbers. Ports take one to two weeks; keep the old service active until the port shows done.

QuickBooks. TradesWork syncs with QuickBooks Online. Kickserv supports Online and, on Run, Desktop.¹

• On QuickBooks Online: pick a cut-over date. Invoices before it stay as they are; collect those balances where they were billed. Invoices after it come from TradesWork, and imported customers never post to accounting. Turn off Kickserv's sync on the cut-over date and watch for duplicate customers.
• On QuickBooks Desktop: TradesWork isn't a fit until your books move to QuickBooks Online. Talk to your bookkeeper first.

Cancel last

Kickserv's terms set your term at one month or one year, renewing for the same length, with termination taking effect at the end of the current term.⁴ On a monthly term, time your cancellation to the end of a billing month. Cancellation is on the Cancel tab under Settings, Account & Billing, where the account owner chooses Change to free plan or Continue with the cancellation; the second permanently deletes customer and job records.⁵

The real cost of switching

When to stay on Kickserv

If you're under about 3 techs, if you don't sell memberships, if you run QuickBooks Desktop, or if price is the main thing, Kickserv is the better tool for you. Compare both honestly on TradesWork vs Kickserv, and use the buyer's guide to weigh other options.