Construction & Remodeling · shops of 3 to 25

General contractor software for change orders, draws and the paperwork between them

A remodel is a contract value that moves. TradesBackbone tracks it: the deposit, the change order the client approves before the framing changes, the draw at each stage, the retainage at the end, and the lien waiver status beside the permit — with purchase orders and job costing on Pro so you know whether the kitchen made money.

The General Contracting / Remodeling pack is pre-selected when you start from this page.

How a construction shop runs on TradesBackbone

5 workflows your crews and subs and your office share on one record. Everything below exists today.

Change orders the client approves from a link

Raise the change order on the job with its own line items, send it, the client approves from their phone, and the contract value is revised before the work happens. The Change Order Log report lists every one against the job.

Deposit, draws and retainage release

Invoices can be a deposit, a draw with percent complete, or a retainage release, each against the revised contract value. The Draw Schedule Status report shows what has been billed and what is still to come. Card and ACH links on every invoice.

Permit, lien waiver, retainage and architect on the job

The general contracting pack adds Permit #, Lien Waiver Status, Permit Required, Architect Contact and Retainage % to each job. The WIP Summary Report reads from the jobs in progress.

Purchase orders, vendor bills and job costing

Pro and up

Raise purchase orders to vendors, record their bills against the job, track crew hours with the time clock, and the job costing report shows the margin on the kitchen once the last bill is in. Double-entry books and QuickBooks Online sync are on the same tier.

Crews, checklists and photos by stage

Pro and up

Assign a crew to the job, complete the Site safety check and Job completion sign-off checklists on the phone, and upload photos at each stage. Photos, checklists and change orders stay on the job the client and the office both see.

What the General Contracting / Remodeling pack sets up on day one

Choosing General Contracting / Remodeling at signup configures the app for construction. It is configuration, not a separate product — you can change it in Settings.

Price-book categories

  • Materials
  • Labor
  • Subcontractors
  • Permits
  • Equipment

10 starter items seeded

Licensing & compliance fields

  • Permit # (per job)
  • Lien Waiver Status (per job)

Fields added to the record

  • Permit Required (job)
  • Architect Contact (job)
  • Retainage % (job)

Starter checklists

  • Job completion sign-off
  • Site safety check

Reports

  • WIP Summary Report
  • Draw Schedule Status Report
  • Change Order Log

Words the app uses

  • Jobs → Projects
  • Customers → Clients

One flat price, seats included

3, 10 or 25 users included with the plan, then $40/mo per extra user. No annual contracts, no implementation fees. Every plan starts with a free trial.

Starter
$99/mo
$82/mo billed annually
Up to 3 users, then $40/mo each
For the owner-operator
Pro
$249/mo
$208/mo billed annually
Up to 10 users, then $40/mo each
For growing teams
Elite
$499/mo
$416/mo billed annually
Up to 25 users, then $40/mo each
For established operators

Construction & Remodeling questions, answered

Straight answers about how TradesBackbone runs a construction business.

How do change orders work for a remodel?+

A change order is raised against the job with its own line items, sent to the client as a link, and approved there. On approval the job's contract value is revised and later draws read from the revised figure. The Change Order Log report lists them per job.

Does TradesBackbone do progress billing with retainage?+

Yes. Alongside ordinary invoices you can issue a deposit invoice, draw invoices with a percent complete, and a retainage release at the end. The Draw Schedule Status report shows what has been billed against the contract.

Can I track lien waivers?+

The general contracting pack adds a Lien Waiver Status field to every job, next to Permit # and Retainage %. It is a record on the job; generating the waiver documents themselves is not something TradesBackbone does.

Does it do job costing with subcontractor bills?+

On Pro and Elite. Purchase orders go to vendors, bills are recorded against the job, crew hours come from the time clock, and the job costing report shows revenue against cost per job. QuickBooks Online sync is on the same tier.

Is TradesBackbone a replacement for full construction management software?+

For a shop of 3 to 25, it is the office: customers, estimates, change orders, draws, POs, bills, costing and follow-ups. It is not scheduling software for a 200-person builder and does not do plan takeoffs or Gantt charts.

Guides for construction businesses

Other trades

Run your construction & remodeling business on one system

Set up in about 15 minutes. The trade pack is pre-selected when you start from this page, and you can change it later in Settings.

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