Jobber bills per seat. Paythepoolman bills a $50 base plus $15 per technician. Those meters are not interchangeable, so this page does not name a cheaper product or a winner. Figures are from vendor pages checked 2026-09-09. We have not tested either app.
Two different meters
Verified fact: Jobber is general field-service software. It publishes a pool service software industry page. That page is marketing for a general FSM, not a pool-native spec. Live Jobber pricing bills per seat.
Verified fact: Paythepoolman publishes a homepage calculator of $50/mo base + $15/mo per technician. One technician is $65/mo on that calculator (2026-09-09). Technician count is the meter. Location count is not.
You cannot subtract a seat dollar from a technician dollar and get a breakeven. A Jobber user is not a Paythepoolman technician.
See each Jobber and Paythepoolman profile for documented functions, still without a field test. Third-party operator snippets already on those profiles are not new quotes and not a PoolProStack test.
How you pay
Verified fact: Live Jobber pricing for 1 user, 2026-09-09. The page title still says plans from $29/mo. Core, Connect, and Grow 1-user rows were visible in the fetched HTML:
| Plan (1 user) | No commitment | 1-year monthly | Billed annually |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core | $49 | $39 | $29 |
| Connect | $139 | $119 | $99 |
| Grow | $199 | $169 | $149 |
The same page lists 5, 10, and 15-user prices on Connect, Grow, and Plus. This page quotes the 1-user row unless a same-shop cell names a 5-user card. A per-additional-user add-on is not published on the fetched pricing HTML. Extra seats appear as those team-size cards, or as a “Let’s chat” custom row. Core shows a 1-user card plus the custom row. There is no published 3-user card.
Verified fact: Card processing on Jobber pricing: cards 2.9% + 30¢, Tap to Pay 2.7% + 30¢, ACH 1%, instant payouts an extra 1%.
Verified fact: Jobber’s trial is 14 days on Grow, no credit card (pricing FAQ).
Verified fact: Public Paythepoolman homepage calculator, 2026-09-09.
| Line | What the page publishes |
|---|---|
| Base | $50/mo |
| Per technician | $15/mo |
| 1 technician total | $65/mo |
| Pool Junction customer app | $25/mo optional |
| Convenience fee | $1.50/transaction advertised |
| Processor percentage | Unpublished |
| Trial | 30-day free trial advertised |
| Payroll | Custom pricing |
| Support | Mon–Fri 8:00am–4pm EST, free |
Worked examples use only $50 + $15 × technicians. They omit Pool Junction, the convenience fee, and payroll. Ignore third-party pages that still say $10/tech. The homepage calculator is $15/tech.
| Technicians | Published math | Monthly software |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50 + $15 | $65 |
| 3 | $50 + $15 × 3 | $95 |
| 5 | $50 + $15 × 5 | $125 |
Unverified: The homepage says the Orenda calculator is included FREE with Plus. The features page repeats Orenda free with Plus. Those fetched pages do not publish a separate Plus price. Ask the vendor what Plus costs on your quote.
Units side by side
| Jobber | Paythepoolman | |
|---|---|---|
| Billable unit | Seat / user | Technician (base + per-tech). Headcount meter. |
| What counts as one unit | One user on the published plan cards | One technician on the homepage calculator |
| Published 1-unit rate | Core $49 / $39 / $29. Connect $139 / $119 / $99. Grow $199 / $169 / $149 | $50/mo + $15/mo per technician ($65 at 1 tech) |
| What moves the bill | Each additional published seat card, or a custom quote | Each additional technician |
| What does not move the bill | Customer count; extra stops at one account | Location count |
| Office / admin seats | Count as users on the seat meter | Not separated on the fetched calculator |
| Public calculator presets | 1, 5, 10, 15-user cards on named plans. Core 1-user plus a custom row | Technician stepper. No location meter |
| First-month offer | 14-day Grow trial, no credit card | 30-day free trial advertised |
| Feature gate on price | QBO listed on Connect, not Core. Chemistry tools are not claimed on the pool page | Orenda free with Plus; Plus dollars unpublished |
| Processor / payment fee | Cards 2.9% + 30¢; Tap to Pay 2.7% + 30¢; ACH 1%; instant payouts +1% | $1.50/transaction advertised. Processor percentage unpublished |
| Support hours | Not locked from the fetched pricing HTML | Homepage: Mon–Fri 8:00am–4pm EST, free |
Same-shop cells
These cells apply published formulas to the same headcount. Jobber “users” and Paythepoolman “technicians” are different units. Optional Pool Junction (+$25/mo), Jobber add-ons, and card fees are excluded.
| Shop | Jobber published | Paythepoolman published |
|---|---|---|
| 1 person in the field | Core 1-user: $49 / $39 / $29. Connect 1-user: $139 / $119 / $99. Grow 1-user: $199 / $169 / $149. | $65 ($50 + $15) |
| 3 people in the field | Gap. No published 3-user card. Do not invent a per-extra-user add-on. | $95 ($50 + $15 × 3) |
| 5 people in the field | Connect 5-user: $199 / $169 / $149. Grow 5-user: $299 / $259 / $229. Those are seat cards, not a tech meter. | $125 ($50 + $15 × 5) |
Editorial judgment: Read the cells as unit arithmetic, not a ranking. At one person, Jobber publishes Core at $49 / $39 / $29 and Paythepoolman publishes $65. At three people, Paythepoolman publishes $95 and Jobber does not publish a 3-seat checkout. At five people, Jobber publishes 5-user Connect and Grow cards and Paythepoolman publishes $125. Chemistry, offline, payments, and QuickBooks copy still differ. Get both quotes.
Chemistry, offline, payments, and accounting
These are published claims, not a field test.
Verified fact: Jobber’s pool page documents field notes for chemicals and pool dimensions. It does not claim LSI, Orenda, or LaMotte. Connect lists job-documentation checklists on the pricing matrix. Checklists are field notes, not an LSI calculator.
Verified fact: Paythepoolman’s homepage and features page advertise the Orenda calculator as free with Plus. The features page claims LaMotte SpinTouch integration in the Plus app. Plus is not separately priced on those fetched pages.
Verified fact: Jobber’s pool page does not claim offline. Offline is not claimed.
Unverified: Paythepoolman offline mobile behavior is not claimed on the fetched home or features pages. Treat offline as unknown until the vendor writes it down.
Verified fact: The live Jobber pricing feature matrix lists QuickBooks Online sync on Connect, not Core.
Unverified: Paythepoolman QuickBooks copy conflicts. The homepage expense section says “Say Goodbye to QuickBooks.” The features page has “QuickBooks Integrations Beta,” claiming send invoices, customers, payments, and items to QuickBooks Online, plus Desktop import. The homepage feature comparison table also lists “QuickBooks Integrations.” This page does not publish a confirmed sync or a sync direction. Ask for a written quote and see the QuickBooks guide.
Editorial judgment: If daily work is Orenda, LSI, or LaMotte, Paythepoolman publishes those claims on Plus with no public Plus price, and Jobber does not claim them. If daily work is quotes, a client hub, and mixed trades, Jobber’s published surface is the general FSM. If the constraint is one person in the field, Jobber publishes Core and Paythepoolman publishes $65. Confirm chemistry, offline, payments, and QuickBooks in a trial.
Who each product is for
These are fit notes against published units and documented claims. They are not awards.
Jobber is for a shop that sells pool work as one line among other home-service trades, wants client-hub booking, and can pay by seat. Core is the 1-user floor. Connect is the plan that lists QBO on the public matrix.
Jobber is not for a pool-only route that needs a claimed LSI/Orenda/LaMotte workflow or documented offline field use. Those are not claimed on Jobber’s pool page.
Paythepoolman is for a pool-only shop that can live with a $50 base plus $15 per technician and wants published chemistry tools on Plus. Model the calculator, then ask what Plus costs. Do not treat the $1.50 convenience fee as a processor percentage.
Paythepoolman is not for a mixed-trade shop that wants one general FSM and seat-based billing, or a shop that needs a confirmed QuickBooks sync in writing tonight. Each new technician raises the published formula even if stop count stays flat.
Seat versus location is a different comparison: Jobber vs Skimmer. Headcount versus location: Paythepoolman vs Skimmer. Seat versus technician: Jobber vs Pool Brain. Seat versus technician-and-customer-cap: Jobber vs Poolside. Base-plus-tech versus active-field-tech: Paythepoolman vs Pool Brain. Technician-and-customer-cap versus headcount: Poolside vs Paythepoolman. Per-user versus base-plus-tech: Pool Office Manager vs Paythepoolman. Solo-operator notes, forever-free plans, and QBO object lists stay on the solo-operator guide, free software guide, and QuickBooks guide.
Questions for sales or a trial
- Jobber: at my real user count, which published card am I on, and is month two still the no-commit / 1-year / annual row above?
- Jobber: does QBO stay on Connect for my account, and what objects move?
- Jobber: is there an LSI, Orenda, or LaMotte workflow in writing, or only field notes?
- Paythepoolman: at my technician count, is the monthly total still $50 + $15 × technicians, and is Plus a separate paid tier for Orenda and LaMotte?
- Paythepoolman: which QuickBooks sentence applies to my account, the homepage goodbye line or the Features Beta, and can I have objects and direction in writing?
- Paythepoolman: what is the processor percentage behind the $1.50/transaction convenience fee?
- Both: which offline workflows (photos, invoices, signatures) work without cell service, and what happens to my data if I cancel?
What we are not claiming
This page does not rank a winner. We have not tested either app. We are not treating a Jobber seat as a Paythepoolman technician. We are not inventing a Jobber 3-seat checkout or a per-extra-user add-on. We are not using third-party $10/tech figures. We are not inventing a Plus price. We are not inventing Orenda, LSI, or LaMotte for Jobber. We are not inventing Jobber offline. We are not confirming Paythepoolman offline. We are not confirming a QuickBooks sync or inventing a sync direction. We are not inventing a Paythepoolman processor percentage. We are not using the homepage 80% promo or the “avg competitor $160” savings pitch as list price. We do not earn commissions from these vendors.
Ask for written totals at your seat count and your technician count. Then trial the chemistry step, the offline stop, and the QuickBooks objects on the same week of invoices. Buying notes: Jobber, Paythepoolman, small-team guide, QuickBooks guide, chemical tracking guide. Other meters: Jobber vs Skimmer, Paythepoolman vs Skimmer, Jobber vs Pool Brain, Paythepoolman vs Pool Brain, Poolside vs Paythepoolman, Pool Office Manager vs Paythepoolman.