Sign shop software and sign shop management from estimate to install
Good sign shop software, the kind sold as sign shop management software or sign company software, prices a job with your own materials and rates, sends a branded quote the customer can approve online, and carries the job through production, install and invoice. SignEstimator starts at the estimate, where margin is won or lost, and grows with your shop up to multi-location reporting.
Estimate this job
- Materials
- Machine time
- Install
- Pricing
What sign shop software should do for you
A sign shop is a small factory with a field crew. One job touches design, sheet stock, a router, a printer, a bender, a paint booth, a lift and an electrician. Software for that kind of business has to do more than store contacts. It has to know how signs are built.
- Price the job the way you build it, with materials, waste, machine time, labor, install and travel on separate lines.
- Use your numbers, not an industry average, for every material, machine and labor rate.
- Show the real margin before the quote goes out, not after the job is done.
- Turn the estimate into a quote the customer can approve and sign online.
- Hand the approved job to production with cut lists and machine time.
- Schedule installs with crews and lift or crane availability.
- Send accepted work to your accounting.
- Compare what the job cost with what you estimated.
Why most shops still quote in spreadsheets
Spreadsheets are fast to start and know your math. They break when a second person quotes, when a rate changes, or when nobody remembers which tab has the new acrylic price. Heavy shop systems fix that, but they can take weeks to set up and charge per user. SignEstimator sits between the two. It is sign shop management software that is ready to quote on day one and adds production, install and job costing when you need them.
From estimate to install in one place
| Stage | What happens in SignEstimator | Plan |
|---|---|---|
| Estimate | Sign type templates price materials, area, perimeter, waste, sheet nesting, LED modules, power supplies, machine time, labor, install, lift or crane class, travel, permits and subcontractors | Solo and up |
| Quote | Branded PDF quote and quote link with online approval and e-signature by name | Solo and up |
| Follow up | CRM with quote history, follow-up reminders and win rate by rep, good, better and best options, change orders | Shop and up |
| Accounting | Accepted quotes export to QuickBooks Online and Xero | Shop and up |
| Production | Jobs board, work orders with cut lists and machine time per station, purchase orders, inventory | Team and up |
| Installation | Install calendar with crews and lift or crane availability | Team and up |
| Job costing | Actual hours and materials against the estimate, real margin per job | Team and up |
| Branches | Shared master material library, branch price overrides, margin and win rate per branch | Multi-location |
The estimate engine at the center
Every stage starts from the estimate, so the estimate has to be right. SignEstimator has templates for channel letters (front lit, back lit and open face), cabinet and lightbox signs, monuments, pylons, dimensional letters, ACM panels, vinyl banners, window graphics, vehicle wraps and wayfinding. Each template knows its parts. Channel letters count returns, trim cap, LED modules per foot of stroke and power supplies. Panels nest on 4x8 and 5x10 sheets. Installs pick a boom lift or crane class by height. See it on a real job in pricing a channel letter sign.
AI drafts, your prices
Send a photo of a storefront, a drawing, a PDF or the text of a customer email. AI reads it into a draft spec with sign type, sizes and install details. Pricing always comes from your own material library and rates. You review every line before anything goes to a customer. AI drafts count as use in the billing period, and deleting a draft does not give the quota back. Read more about sign shop quoting software.
What sign company software covers on each plan
Every plan is a subscription with a self-serve checkout. Yearly billing saves 50 percent and is the default.
| Plan | Price | Seats | AI drafts | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | $24/mo billed yearly ($288/yr) or $49 monthly | 1 user | 60 per month, 10 per day | Estimate builder with all sign templates, material library with CSV import, install calculator, overhead and margin preview, branded PDF quote, quote link with online approval and e-signature |
| Shop | $74/mo billed yearly ($888/yr) or $149 monthly | Up to 5 user seats | 240 per month, 40 per day | Everything in Solo, roles, CRM with quote history and reminders, win rate by rep, good, better and best options, change orders, email-in quoting, price book per customer, QuickBooks Online and Xero export |
| Team | $199/mo billed yearly ($2,388/yr) or $399 monthly | Up to 20 user seats | 600 per month, 100 per day | Everything in Shop, jobs board, production work orders with cut lists, install scheduling calendar, purchase orders, inventory, job costing, SSO with Google and Microsoft, audit log |
| Multi-location | $449/mo billed yearly ($5,388/yr) or $899 monthly | Unlimited user seats, up to 5 locations | 1,400 per month shared, 240 per day | Everything in Team, shared master material library with branch price overrides, consolidated margin and win rate per branch, SAML SSO, custom roles, priority support with a 4 business hour response, invoice billing on the yearly plan |
There is no free plan and no trial. You can run one estimate on the homepage without an account. Upgrading charges only the difference right away. One subscription covers the whole shop. Cancel from the billing page anytime, and export your quotes and customers anytime. Full details are on the sign estimating software pricing page.
Flat plans instead of per user fees
Plan prices are flat. Shop covers up to 5 user seats for one price, and Team covers up to 20. You do not pay more each time you add an estimator or a sales rep within your plan. For a side by side view with per user pricing, see the shopVOX alternative page.
Set up sign business software in one afternoon
You do not need a project plan to start. Most of the work is telling the software what your shop pays and charges.
- Hour 1. Set your shop labor rate, machine rates for router, laser, printer and bender, overhead percent and target margin.
- Hour 2. Check the starter material library for acrylic, ACM, aluminum coil, trim cap, LED modules, power supplies, vinyl and substrates. Change unit costs, sheet sizes and waste factors, or import your price list from CSV.
- Hour 3. Add your logo, colors and quote terms for the branded PDF.
- Hour 4. Quote a job you priced last week and compare. Adjust a rate if a line looks off, and quote the next real job.
Shop and Team plans add seats, roles and the QuickBooks Online or Xero connection. Team adds crews, equipment and stations for production and install. You can add those when you are ready, without starting over.
What it does not ask you to change
You keep your rates, your margin rules and your way of building signs. SignEstimator does the math the same way every time and shows it line by line. An estimator can check every quantity, unit, waste percent and rate before the quote leaves the shop.
Set up your shop
-
Shop rates
Labor, machine, overhead and target margin
-
Material library
Import your costs from a CSV file
-
Logo and quote terms
Your colors on every PDF quote
-
Install crews and lifts
Crew size, lift and crane classes
-
Invite your team
Owner, estimator and sales roles
Built for the shop you run today
- An owner who quotes at night after production picks Solo and sends branded quotes from one login.
- A sign company with a few estimators and sales reps picks Shop for the CRM, email-in quoting and accounting export.
- A fabrication and install company picks Team for the jobs board, work orders, install calendar and job costing.
- A sign group with branches picks Multi-location for one material library, branch pricing and margin by branch.
Not sure what to compare? Read best sign shop software for a checklist you can use with any vendor.
Jobs board
This weekApproved
Channel letters
Raceway, 18 ft
ACM panels
4 x 8 ft, 3 pcs
In production
Monument sign
Router, paint
Vinyl banners
Print, hem
Install
Pylon cabinet
Crane, 30 ft
Your data stays yours
Roles control who can see costs and margins. Team adds SSO with Google and Microsoft and an audit log. Multi-location adds SAML SSO and custom roles. You can export quotes and customers at any time. Questions go to [email protected]. Details are on the sign shop software security page.
Frequently asked questions
[email protected]Sign shop software is a system that helps a sign company estimate, quote, produce, install and bill sign jobs. SignEstimator focuses on sign-specific estimating and quoting, and on higher plans adds production, install scheduling and job costing.
Most shops quote a real job the same afternoon. You set labor and machine rates, overhead and margin, check the starter material library or import a CSV, and add your logo and terms.
No. Plans are flat. Solo is 1 user, Shop covers up to 5 user seats, Team up to 20 and Multi-location has unlimited user seats.
Yes, on Shop and above. Accepted quotes export to QuickBooks Online and Xero as invoices.
There is no free plan and no trial, but you can run one estimate on the homepage without an account, and plans start at $24 per month billed yearly.
You can export quotes and customers anytime. Cancel from the billing page whenever you want, and your plan stays active until the end of the paid period.
See your next job priced with your own rates
Run one estimate on the homepage without an account. When the numbers look like your shop, pick a plan and quote your next job today. Plans start at $24 per month billed yearly.