6 Top ServiceM8 Alternatives for Field Service Businesses [2025]

1. ServiceTitan

Source: ServiceTitan

ServiceTitan, like ServiceM8, is a field service management tool tradespeople use. They both share some essential features that trade companies need for successful field service management, including:

• Centralized customer detail directory

• Routing and technician GPS tracking

• Dispatch map

• Scheduling and Dispatching

• Detailed employee and business performance reports

• Call booking management

• Online 24/7 booking

• Inventory management

• Payment collection

• Streamlined communication

Both tools have extended capabilities through APIs and integrations. ServiceTitan has collaborated with multiple complementary digital solutions to create integrations for importing, exporting, and viewing data.   

Key integrations: 

• Google Local Services Ads

• Thumbtack

• iPERMIT

• Trane

• XOi

However, on closer inspection, ServiceTitan offers features that set it apart from ServiceM8 and make it a more capable field service management tool. They include:

• Advanced scheduling and dispatch features for better efficiency and maximum profitability.

• Native pricebook functionality with unique automation and direct access to top industry supplier catalogs.  

• Integration with Google Local Services Ads for seamless online booking.

• Accessing property data to facilitate sales and business growth.

• Easy access to customer call recordings.

Advanced scheduling and dispatch features for better efficiency and maximum profitability

No home service company can do without efficient scheduling processes, considering the volume of calls and job bookings they field daily. Technicians must be assigned to the right jobs, customers need accurate updates, and dispatchers need a system that lets them react to unforeseen circumstances, such as accidents and traffic delays.

Field Service Management tools, like ServiceM8, facilitate seamless scheduling processes. However, they do so to varying degrees, helped by several extra features.

Due to our experience in the home service industry, we fitted ServiceTitan with some extra features to enhance scheduling efficiency: Adjustable Capacity Planning and Live Chat.

1. Adjustable Capacity Planning

Service business owners' top challenges include reducing missed, rescheduled, and canceled appointments. They also face the hurdles of maximizing technician productivity and reducing downtime.

ServiceM8 partially resolves this challenge with its Booking Suggestions and Instant Dispatch features, which assign jobs to techs based on their schedule and location. 

However, that’s not enough to boost scheduling efficiency. CSRs still have to rely on manual processes to book appointments in a way that maximizes efficiency and productivity.

ServiceTitan, on the other hand, goes a step further to fully resolve the scheduling headaches by providing the Adjustable Capacity Planning feature. This allows service businesses to create strategies that optimize their job schedules for profitability.

With Adjustable Capacity Planning, business owners can set rules to automatically underbook or overbook to capitalize on current realities. As such, resources are distributed to projects and jobs that will generate more revenue for the company.

For example, you can program your scheduling system to create more capacity for emergency repairs during peak seasons and recurring maintenance visits during slow seasons.

With this dynamic schedule adjustment, technicians will spend more time on jobs and projects bound to generate the most revenue, increasing cash flow.

2. Live Voice

Wish you could get more job bookings? Every business owner does. 

One way to boost job booking is to operate 24/7. The obvious way to achieve this is to divide employees into 24-hour shifts or reroute service calls outside work hours to an external call service that lacks knowledge of how your business operates.

Both methods are obviously impractical, considering the cost implication of hiring multiple employees. Also, agnostic call services may not answer questions correctly or convince customers to book appointments, causing you to lose dollars in missed opportunities.

ServiceTitan's Live Voice feature is a less painful way to generate job bookings outside working hours.

That's because whenever customers call outside office hours, the tool automatically transfers them to Schedule Engine’s support agents, who are trained to understand your industry’s inner workings and empathize with customers. They will answer customer questions, take down notes, transfer every job booking and its associated information to your dashboard so you can access them later, and escalate emergencies to the right tech. 

This ensures you take advantage of every opportunity and don’t leave potential revenue on the table. Responding promptly to customers’ emergency calls outside work hours proves your dedication to resolving their issues.

“The thing that really sets Schedule Engine Live Voice apart from your typical answering service is our integration, our industry training, and our escalation services,” says Savannah McDermott, Head of Customer Success for Schedule Engine. “It's not just a standalone answering service. It's actually a fully integrated service that stacks right on top of your scheduler.”

Native pricebook functionality with unique automation and direct access to top industry supplier catalogs

Home service business owners know all too well the vital role accurate and up-to-date pricebooks play in ensuring employees create invoices and estimates with accurate prices that ensure profitability. Still, ServiceM8 fails to provide a robust pricebook functionality, relying instead on third-party integrations, which may not work with the rest of your tool stack.

Having worked in the home services industry for years before starting ServiceTitan, we know the importance of an organized pricebook. We know the struggle of rummaging through unorganized pricebooks or clipboards to find the cost of one item. We know how unorganized pricebooks make it hard to quote and bill customers, invariably leading to disagreements and revenue loss. So, we did something about it: we built comprehensive pricebook features into our comprehensive field service management software.

One such feature is Pricebook Connect, which links your pricebook to the catalogs of top manufacturers and suppliers. Whenever manufacturers or suppliers update their prices, photos, or product descriptions, ServiceTitan automatically implements the changes (if you’ve activated Auto update). You can also manually make the updates from one location using the Update menu, which has a seamless display interface.

Furthermore, our pricebook allows users to divide their items into services, materials, equipment, and categories. This creates an organized interface that every employee can understand and use to create accurate estimates and invoices.

Lastly, our pricebook supports client-specific pricing. This comes in handy when pricing complex projects, negotiating contracts, or giving volume discounts to repeat clients. This makes meeting your obligations and maintaining long-term relationships with loyal clients easier.

Integration with Google Local Services Ads for seamless online booking

Few lead generation channels rival the lead generation potential of Google Local Services Ads since they allow you to appear when people in your area search for your services online. Even better, you’re only charged when someone calls or sends a message from the ad, unlike other online advertising channels that charge for clicks and views.

Given the channel's potential, home services providers dedicate a significant portion of their ad dollars to Google Local Services Ads. However, managing leads generated by the channel can become burdensome for solopreneurs and small businesses with few employees, including those using ServiceM8. When people call, CSRs will have to pick up and manually:

• Create a new job record.

• Record the caller’s information and description of the issue.

• Jump between calendars to find open appointment slots to schedule the customer.

• Set a time to follow up with the caller if they fail to book an appointment.

You’ll agree that this long process inconveniences customers who prefer seamless booking processes with as few steps as possible, especially when reporting emergencies. They expect to click on the ad, describe their issue, and select a convenient time slot. Enter ServiceTitan, which provides a seamless booking process.

Our Scheduling software’s integration with Google Local Services Ads lets business owners add calendar booking widgets to their Local Services Ads.

Whoever clicks on the widget is automatically redirected to an interface where they can select a drop-down menu that best explains the issue they wish to report.

From there, ServiceTitan automatically redirects prospects to a calendar with highlighted available dates and time slots. They will then select a preferred time for the appointment and fill in their details in the Smart Google Form on the next screen.

Once they’ve completed the necessary forms, prospects will receive a brief email summary of the information they provided. Your CSRs will also receive a notification of the job booking so they can follow up with the prospect and confirm if the details they’ve provided are accurate.

This seamless process allows service providers to take full advantage of a valuable channel like Google Local Services Ads and still have time to dedicate to other tasks.

Accessing property data to facilitate sales and business growth

Employees can learn a lot about customers’ needs by looking at their property data. Customers living in an old house may need painting services. Homeowners in a storm-prone zone may need a roofing inspection. Properties in remote areas may need smart security system upgrades.

Yet, ServiceM8’s users lack access to clients’ property data. This restricts their ability to suggest relevant upsells and craft contextual offers.

Conversely, you can use ServiceTitan’s call booking feature and mobile application to view clients’ property details, such as remodel year, gross area, square footage, garage size, and more. This lets you and your team members suggest services relevant to customers’ needs and plan service visits better. 

Easy access to customer call recordings

There are many reasons why home service providers will need a tool that records intake calls:

• Quality assurance: Call recordings help confirm whether CSRs adhere to quality standards, communicate effectively, and suggest the correct solutions to customers’ issues.

• Training and improving customer service: Recordings can be analyzed to spot areas for improvement and create better sales pitches.

• CSR performance assessment: Managers can use call recordings to quantify CSRs’ problem-solving ability and understanding of service offerings.

• Dispute resolution: Call recordings can be used to resolve misunderstandings with customers and legal disputes.

At the moment, ServiceM8 doesn’t record intake calls. The best it provides are features for writing notes, taking photos, and accessing customer information. In contrast, ServiceTitan offers all the above advantages and a call-recording feature with settings that allow you to adhere to local call-consent policies.

Our mobile application allows technicians to listen to call recordings to better understand customers’ challenges, preferences, and special requirements. For this reason, they can better serve customers and arrive at job sites ready to handle whatever issue the customer complained about.

2. Fergus

Source: Fergus

Fergus is a job management tool that helps tradespeople reduce the time spent on rote tasks, track jobs, and manage their businesses on the go. The platform consolidates details associated with a specific job, such as photos, notes, job scope, and history, into a card.

The platform has a visual calendar that provides an overview of all booked and unbooked jobs, assigned and unassigned jobs, and the technicians available to handle them. With a simple drag-and-drop, dispatchers can instantly assign jobs to techs, and the system ensures they're notified on their mobile devices. This way, no customer is left unattended.

Key features:

• Color-coded dashboards that show the state of all jobs at a glance.

• A quoting feature that tracks the progress and different versions of a quote.

• A job card that lets you manage projects from one location.

• GPS and timesheet tracking show where techs have been, how long they’ve spent in a location, and the amount a job costs in work hours.

• Multiple payment options and an invoicing feature that lets you create and schedule staggered payments for large projects.

• Real-time financial and employee performance reports.

Key integrations: 

• Xero, QuickBooks, and MYOB for financial reporting.

• Integration with top suppliers such as Reece, Corys Electrical, Mico, and many more. 

• Ground plan for creating attractive estimates and takeoff plans.

However, when compared to Fergus, ServiceTitan offers:

• Integration with Google Local Services Ads, Google Ads, and Google Analytics for streamlined lead generation and revenue attribution.

• Support for various marketing channels, including direct mail and email, reputation management, and search advertising. 

• Channels that facilitate direct communication between business owners and their customers.

• Access to call recordings for coaching employees and spotting improvement opportunities.

• Advanced reporting capabilities that can be used to dissect data to uncover trends.

3. Jobber

Source: Jobber

Jobber is a digital solution that offers a broad range of tools applicable to home service companies' basic field service management needs, including invoice creation, job scheduling, route optimization, and financial reporting.

The platform offers functionalities for creating quotes, invoicing, business management, job management, and providing quality customer service. Using Jobber, employees can communicate with customers, manage work orders, follow up on prospects, and process payments.

Key features:

• Automated follow-ups based on customers’ interactions with submitted quotes.

• Location and time-tracking features reveal where technicians are and their time spent on a specific job.

• A special portal customers can use to pay for jobs, request assistance, approve quotes, etc.

• A job calendar you can use to view available technicians, assign jobs, reschedule appointments, etc.

Key integrations: 

• QuickBooks, Wisetack, and Xero for financial management

• Hatch, SendJim, AdCritter, Toolsey, Thumbtack, Street Fair, and Google Local Services Ads for lead generation

• FleetSharp GPS tracking for route optimization

However, when compared to Jobber, ServiceTitan offers:

• Robust native pricebook functionality integrated with top supplier catalogs.

• Advanced marketing and financial reporting features that reduce the need for extra hires and integrate with tools used for other business tasks.

• A more developed scheduling feature that supports capacity planning.

• Access to property data and call recordings.

For more details on these differences, check out our complete comparison article: ServiceTitan vs. Jobber.

4. BuildOps

Source: BuildOps

BuildOps is a platform that helps commercial contractors collect payments faster and manage large-scale construction and maintenance projects from a single hub. It features tools that streamline lead generation, customer management, equipment repairs, project design, and a mobile application for managing your business on the road.

BuildOps delivers real-time performance insights from every aspect of your business operations via custom dashboards designed to simplify data reporting for even the most complex metrics. These dashboards show technician performance by job and customer segment, each unit’s contribution to revenue, open invoices, profitability of each customer, etc.

With its dispatch board, users can view technician availability and job statuses and assign open projects to technicians while answering calls. The board’s intuitive interface displays all appointments for an entire week and highlights all open slots on a given day, making it easy to schedule jobs ahead of time.

Key features:

• A mobile application that makes it easier to collect and record data, communicate with office staff, capture information from paper documents, and collect customer signatures in the field.

• Estimating tool for creating estimates and running customer surveys.

• Seamless access to customer data and individual sales performance reports via an intuitive customer relationship management system (CRM).

• Direct access to technicians’ real-time locations using GPS technology.

• Reliable system for collecting payments via checks and credit cards.

• The maintenance agreement management system allows users to apply custom prices for the entire duration of a contract, see upcoming service visits, and track profit margins.

Key integrations: 

• Intuit, Sage Intacct, and QuickBooks for financial reporting

• NetSuite and Viewpoint to enhance project management

However, when compared to BuildOps, ServiceTitan offers:

• Organized pricebook that integrates with catalogs of reputable manufacturers and suppliers.

• Multiple native features and integrations for marketing and lead generation on various channels.

• A mobile application that can work without an internet connection.

• Access to financial institutions that provide financing options to customers for high-ticket projects.

• An AI-powered schedule assistant that suggests the best technicians to handle a job and the time slots available.

• Ability to record and listen to intake calls.

5. Kickserv

Source: Kickserv

Kickserv is feature-light business management software designed to cater to the needs of home service providers across various industries. It helps small businesses eliminate the hassle of paper documents, spreadsheets, and emails and build automated workflows for key processes, even without integrating multiple tools.

Its mobile application allows technicians to view all customer details and communication history, upload job-related photos, record notes, and create estimates. The application also allows technicians to create brand-aligned invoices that customers can sign digitally.

Key features:

• Special portal for customers to request jobs and view upcoming service visits, invoicing history, previous communication with the company, and job history.

• GPS-enabled route optimization that assigns jobs to technicians, taking into account their current location and workload.

• Automated messages to remind customers of appointments and notify them when a technician is on the way to their location, reducing no-shows.

• Consolidated view of all customer data, service history, and previous interactions so every employee has sufficient context to respond to all inquiries.

• A tracking feature that shows the current status of an estimate (opened, unopened, and signed) helps you know when to send a follow-up message.

• Invoicing and payment processing system that allows businesses to collect different forms of payment and collect digital signatures.

Key integrations: 

• Mailchimp and Customer Lobby for marketing.

• Podium for AI-powered lead generation.

• QuickBooks and Stripe for financial accounting and payment processing.

However, when compared to Kickserv, ServiceTitan offers:

• Well-developed native marketing functionalities and integrations with Google platforms.

• A pricebook integrated with the catalogs of top suppliers, manufacturers, and vendors facilitates up-to-date equipment pricing.

• Features for monitoring, managing, and selling maintenance agreements.

• Payroll processing tool that accommodates performance-based payments and unique salary structures.

• Access to a dedicated team of support agents available to answer customer calls 24/7.

For more details on these differences, check out our complete comparison article: ServiceTitan vs. Kickserv.

6. Housecall Pro

Source: Housecall Pro

Housecall Pro is a one-stop software solution for home service businesses who wish to move away from paper documents, eliminate inefficiencies, and automate repetitive tasks. The software has invoicing, scheduling, dispatching, and review management tools designed specifically for tradespeople.

Business owners who use Housecall Pro’s pricebook worry less about what to charge customers since the tool automatically suggests profitable flat rates. These rates incorporate a healthy markup, updated material and overhead costs, and current industry averages, ensuring you’re continually operating profitably.

Considering prospects’ tendency to use online reviews to justify their purchases, Housecall Pro fitted its software with a review management tool. The tool notifies users whenever there’s a new review from the platforms they selected when setting up their accounts. With it, business owners can solicit, send, and respond to reviews from one place.

Key features:

• Centralized customer records are accessible to all team members.

• Scheduling calendar that delivers a snapshot of available time slots and notifies technicians whenever they’re assigned a job.

• Time-tracking functionality that allows technicians to clock in and out via the mobile app and monitor the time they spend on each job. Managers use it to track the actual amount each job costs in work hours and the status of each project.

• Payment processing feature that supports various payment methods, delivers detailed financial reports, and automatically deposits check payments.

• An answering service that handles customer calls 24/7, even on weekends and holidays.

Key integrations: 

• QuickBooks for financial accounting.

• Wisetack and Fundbox for financing high-ticket purchases.

• Zapier for connecting Housecall Pro to other applications.

• Google Local Services, Convertr, Mailchimp, and Swell for lead generation.

However, when compared to Housecall Pro, ServiceTitan offers:

• Integration with top manufacturer product catalogs.

• Multiple marketing tools, including review management.

• A payroll management system that can be used to create customized payment structures and monitor employee productivity.

• AI-powered sales coaching platform.

• Call booking interface with drop-down menus for efficient data capture and programmable sales scripts for boosting conversion rates.

• More detailed reports that track employee performance, revenue generation, and financial status.

• Adjustable booking feature that prevents overbooking and optimizes for profitability.

For more details on these differences, check out our complete comparison article: ServiceTitan vs. Housecall Pro.

What is the best free ServiceM8 alternative?

For many business owners, investing in a tool is a huge investment, and they can’t afford to get it wrong. Investing in or switching to the wrong tool increases the time employees spend figuring out the location of key features, button placements, and other subtleties, which reduces the time available for their regular tasks.

Additionally, no business owner would want to train their employees to use a tool and then force them to change to another one immediately after because its features don’t meet their expectations.

Besides reading guides like this one, one way to ensure you invest in the right tool is to take advantage of free trials. Before the trial elapses, you can verify if the features match your needs and offer what’s promised.

As such, here are some ServiceM8 alternatives with free trials:

• Fergus (trial lasts 14 days)

• Housecall Pro (trial lasts 14 days)

• Jobber (trial lasts 14 days)

• Kickserv (unlimited free trial)

• ReachOut Suite (trial lasts seven days)

• Workever (unlimited free trial)

What is the best ServiceM8 alternative for small businesses?

Fewer employees, simplified workflows, and limited budgets usually characterize small home service businesses. Conversely, large home service businesses have complex workflows, multiple employees, and expanded data handling requirements. Both types of businesses have contrasting needs, prioritizing different functionalities when picking a tool.

For example, while small businesses may consider subscription costs a fundamental limitation, a large one would be prepared to pay good money for a premium tool.

Here are some examples of tools small home service companies and solopreneurs can use to streamline their operations:

• ServiceTitan: It’s comprehensive software with features small business owners can use for all management tasks, including marketing, scheduling, dispatching, and invoicing. This makes it far cheaper than using separate tools for various tasks.

• Kickserv: It possesses only the vital features a small business needs to operate optimally and costs significantly less than other tools with similar functionalities. 

• Jobber has almost everything a small business owner needs to run a successful home services company. It also has integrations that help pull in data from various platforms, so you don’t have to hop between tools.

Over to You

While ServiceM8 offers many benefits, it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. Like any other software, it has its strong and weak points. What makes it the best tool for a specific business may make it the worst for another company with a different priority, growth stage, market segment, and industry.

So, take a look at the various alternatives we’ve suggested and the features they possess, and then choose one that matches your needs. 

Better still, invest in ServiceTitan, which we built to cater to home service companies belonging to various industries. Whether you’re a small business, a one-person operation, a large company, or a franchise, ServiceTitan is built for you.

ServiceTitan is a comprehensive software solution built specifically to help service companies streamline their operations and substantially elevate the trajectory of their business. Our comprehensive, cloud-based platform is used by thousands of roofing, HVAC, electrical, garage door, and plumbing companies nationwide—and on average they reported a 25 percent revenue increase in just their first year with us.