Customer-reported benchmark

A second estimate within about 5% of the builder’s own pricing

After spending over a week pricing a complex job, a small building company used Quotify to get another estimate to review against its own figures.

UK general building · complex projectEvidence from 8 September 2026For: Main contractors reviewing a complex job against their own estimate
Illustrative residential extension model beside estimating sheets and a scale ruler
AI-generated editorial illustration. Not a photograph of the customer’s project.
≈5%reported difference from the builder’s estimate
>1 weekspent preparing the original quote
1 projectcustomer-reported comparison

The task, the review and the action

The task

Review a complex job the builder had already spent over a week pricing.

The review

The builder inspected most of the Quotify estimate alongside his own costs and reported an approximate difference of about 5%.

The action

Scope review was still underway: windows needed to be excluded, and the builder wanted to understand how to adapt the output for his quote.

The starting point

A large, complex job can occupy a small building company for months. Pricing it takes significant work before the builder knows whether the project will go ahead.

In this case, the builder had spent over a week preparing a quote. He then reviewed most of a Quotify estimate alongside his own pricing to see how the two compared.

How Quotify was used

The builder used Quotify as a second estimate to inspect against a job he had already worked through. In the follow-up call, the focus was on whether the output reflected his estimated costs and how he could adapt it for the quote.

That review was still underway. Windows needed to be excluded, and the builder wanted to understand how to change the output to suit the project.

“And your system is probably within about 5% of what my estimated costs were.”

A small UK building company · follow-up call, 8 September 2026

What came out of the review

The builder reported that Quotify was probably within about 5% of his estimated costs. That gave him a useful second reference after the work he had already put into the job.

He said he expected to use Quotify again, particularly for bigger and more complex projects. At the time of the call, the project had not yet been secured.

About this result

An encouraging comparison, with scope still to reconcile

The 5% figure is the builder’s approximate assessment against his own estimated costs. Exact totals and the final window exclusions were not reconciled for this story. It is a comparison between estimates, rather than final construction costs.

What another builder can take from it

Start with a job you know well. Compare the total, then inspect the inclusions and exclusions before deciding what to use in your client quote. A close headline figure is a reason to review the detail, not a substitute for it.

A product example you can inspect

See the scope and pricing detail

Academy product example showing scope basis, quantity source, labour and materials in line details
Product example from the Academy, showing a line’s scope, labour, materials and review questions. This is a training example, separate from the customer’s project and results.
Open the Academy explanation ↗

Try this review on your own project

  1. Choose a job you have priced and compare the same included work.
  2. Reconcile important exclusions such as windows before comparing the overall totals.
  3. Inspect the largest quantity and rate differences and record any change you make to the final price.

Your next step

Get a second estimate for a familiar job

Your first complete project is free. Use the breakdown to compare scope and prices with your own estimate.

Compare my project