The right quoting app can save a sole trader electrician five or more hours of admin work every week. The wrong one adds friction and gets abandoned after a fortnight. Here's an honest look at the main options available to UK electricians in 2026 — what they do well, where they fall short, and which type of electrician each one suits best.
Before comparing specific apps, it's worth being clear about what the job actually demands. A quoting tool for a UK electrician needs to:
With that in mind, here are the main options available in 2026.
Zipflow is the only quoting app built around voice input. You speak the job on site — "Install a new 18-way consumer unit, full RCBO protection, main bonding, testing and Part P certificate" — and receive a fully itemised quote in under 10 seconds. The AI detects over 200 specific electrical job types, asks trade-specific follow-up questions, and applies your own rates automatically.
It also includes job scheduling, status tracking, invoicing and a CSV export for your accountant — all in one app. At £12.99 per month it's significantly cheaper than most alternatives.
Tradify is a comprehensive trade management platform covering quoting, job scheduling, timesheets, invoicing and supplier integrations. It's been around since 2012 and has a large user base among UK electricians. The quoting interface is form-based — you add line items manually from a catalogue — which is thorough but slower than AI generation.
Jobber is a field service management tool with strong customer communication features — automated follow-ups, customer portals, review requests. The quoting feature is solid but form-based and manual. It's popular in the US and growing in UK adoption. The price point makes it a harder sell for sole traders.
Still the most common quoting method among UK electricians, particularly sole traders and older business owners. A well-structured spreadsheet template can produce decent quotes, but it requires manual entry of every task and material, takes 30 to 90 minutes per quote, and has to be emailed as an attachment rather than sent as a professional link.
| Feature | ⚡ Zipflow | Tradify | Jobber | Spreadsheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice/AI quoting | ✓ Yes | ✗ No | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Quote time | Under 10 sec | 15–30 min | 15–30 min | 30–90 min |
| Send via WhatsApp | ✓ Yes | ✗ No | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Invoicing included | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Job scheduling | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Monthly cost | £12.99 | ~£35+ | ~£49+ | Free |
| Free trial | 30 days, no card | 14 days | 14 days | N/A |
If you're a sole trader or work with one other person: Zipflow is the clear choice. It's the fastest, the cheapest, the only one with voice quoting, and it includes everything you need. The 30-day free trial means you can test it on real jobs with no risk.
If you run a team of 4 or more: Tradify or Jobber offer more team management features — timesheets, supplier catalogues, multi-user scheduling. These features justify the higher price for larger operations, though they don't offer AI quoting.
If you're doing 2–3 jobs a week: A good spreadsheet template may be sufficient if you have the time. But for anyone quoting more regularly, the time saving from a dedicated app pays for itself within the first week.
The 2026 shift: AI voice quoting is the biggest change in trade quoting software since mobile apps replaced desktop-only tools. In 2024 and 2025, quoting on site was technically possible but slow. In 2026, with tools like Zipflow, it takes under 10 seconds. Tradespeople who adopt AI quoting early have a meaningful competitive advantage — faster quotes, higher acceptance rates, and significantly less evening admin.
Whatever tool you choose, prioritise these factors:
30-day free trial — no credit card. Generate your first electrical quote in under 10 seconds.