Yamate vs ServiceM8 at a glance
We're biased and we'll say so: we make Yamate. Every price below is dated and linked to their own pricing page, and the table names the row where they beat us.
| Yamate | ServiceM8 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $19/mo flat | Free plan, then A$29 → $349/mo across tiers inc GST, as at September 2026 (see pricing) |
| Built for | Solo tradies first — and crews, one price per business | Sole traders up to larger field teams |
| Phones | Any phone, nothing to install (web app) | Full app on iPhone/iPad and Android, as at September 2026 (see their update) |
| Setup | Minutes — no setup weekend | More features means more to set up |
| Chasing payments | Automated SMS chasing built in | Available, depending on plan/add-ons |
| Depth | Quote, schedule, invoice, chase, suppliers & purchase orders, stage billing, tax, crew pay, SWMS — no dispatch board | Detailed scheduling, dispatch, forms, add-on ecosystem |
| AU-native | GST, ABN, PayID & bank details baked in | Australian-made, GST-ready |
When ServiceM8 is the better choice
Two things it does that Yamate does not:
- Depth for a field-service team. Detailed scheduling, dispatch, forms and an add-on ecosystem, earned over years in the field. It is a strong, mature choice if your week genuinely runs on dispatch.
- A free plan. A real perk for a low-volume sole trader. If you'll use the free or a higher tier, that beats paying us anything.
Where Yamate wins for a solo tradie
- One price per business, not per job. The solo plan covers you and up to three people — there is no per-job metering, so a busy month costs the same as a quiet one. A bigger crew moves to the Company plan at $59/mo for eight.
- Nothing to install. Yamate's a web app, so it opens on any phone with no app store, no download and no update to chase.
- Dead simple. Quote, invoice, get paid, chase late payers, and not much else to wade through. You're running in minutes.
- Chasing built in. Overdue invoices get chased by text automatically, with your PayID or bank details on every invoice.
- Built solo-first. Not a scaled down version of team software. And the same app still runs the crew, a login each, when you put people on.
- Works with no signal. Quote in a basement, invoice in the driveway — core records are stored locally on the device, not fetched from a website you have to reach. Exactly what works offline.
- $19/mo while you stay subscribed if you sign up before 30 November 2026 — the price rises after that. No lock-in, cancel anytime.
Simple on the screen, deep in the plan
Dead simple is how it drives, not how much is in it. The plan carries the parts that are add-ons or missing elsewhere,
- Deposits, part payments and stage billing on big jobs, tracked on the job with billed and to-go.
- Suppliers and purchase orders, recorded against the job so materials hit the job's profit.
- Tax while you work. GST and end-of-year summaries, tax put aside as estimates while money lands, expenses with receipt photos, and old invoices photographed straight in.
- Crew pay prepared. Pay runs with PAYG and super worked out, payslips included. Estimates, Yamate prepares and you lodge.
- Safety paperwork. SWMS drafted from the job's own words for you to review and sign, licence and insurance expiry reminders, your certificate of currency sent in a tap.
- Missed-call text-back and two-way texts. A missed call gets a text with your booking link, and the customer's reply lands in the app.
All of it is on the feature list with its honest limits beside it, in the one flat price.
30 days free to try it properly — ServiceM8’s trial is 14 days. No card, cancel anytime.
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We ran both, same job, September 2026
Not off the brochure. Same made up business, same week of work in each, measured 22 to 24 September 2026. ServiceM8 scored 47.5 on the standard ease of use scale against Yamate’s 77.5, where 68 is average. Its home screen opened on a trial banner, a promo and an ad for a phone call rather than the day’s work, deposits and job costs are paid add ons, a booking never tells the customer it exists, and our internal note once became the subject line of the customer’s email. The part that gets jobs to a crew is genuinely solid. Every snag we hit in it is published on the scorecard page, with ours beside it.
FAQ
Is there a cheaper alternative to ServiceM8?
For a solo tradie, Yamate is a flat $19/mo for quoting, invoicing, getting paid and auto-chasing late payers. ServiceM8 has a free plan with limits, then paid tiers up to several hundred dollars a month — so the cheapest option depends on your volume and which features you need.
Does ServiceM8 work on Android?
Yes — checked September 2026. ServiceM8 shipped a full Android app that month; before that, Android only had a cut-down "Lite" app. Their own help centre says it "offers almost all the same functionality as the iOS app". Yamate runs in any phone's browser, so there is nothing to install either way.
Can I switch from ServiceM8 to Yamate?
Yes — Yamate is built to be set up in minutes. You can run a few jobs through it alongside your current tool to see if it fits before you commit.
See also
Yamate vs Tradify vs ServiceM8 (3-way) · Tradify alternative · Fergus alternative · hipages alternative · Getting paid as a tradie · What Yamate does
Sources and the fine print
Competitor details as of September 2026 — check servicem8.com for current pricing and features. Pricing verified September 2026 against servicem8.com/au/pricing — see their link for current rates. General information only. ServiceM8 is a trademark of its owner; Yamate is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by ServiceM8. Pricing and features change — verify on their site.