Tillage vs MarkateThe field service and invoicing alternative
Updated . Every Markate fact links to its source.
Tillage
Markate
Monthly price
$0, unlimited users, quotes and invoices
No free plan; $49.95/mo, or $45.95/mo billed yearly, plus $5 per employee a month
Online payment fees
Your client can cover them
Set by Square or PayPal; Square invoices 3.3% + 30¢ on cards and 1% on ACH on its free plan
Margin on quotes
Variance buffer and profit margin on every line
Hidden markup by percentage or fixed amount, set on desktop; job costing; no variance buffer
The short answer
Markate is field service software for contractors and home service businesses. It covers leads, scheduling and dispatch, GPS tracking, a crew app with time clock, estimates, invoices, QuickBooks Online sync and marketing, from $49.95 a month plus $5 per employee. Tillage is free quote-to-cash software, with margin and a variance buffer on every quote line, contracts from approved quotes and payment schedules, and no scheduling at all. If you run crews in the field and want your marketing in the same tool, Markate does far more. If you mainly need to quote, sign and get paid, Tillage does that for $0 and your clients can cover the fees.
Choose Tillage if
- YesYou quote and bill projects and don’t need scheduling or dispatch
- YesYou want $0/month instead of $49.95/mo plus $5 per employee and add-ons
- YesYou want clients to cover card and ACH fees at checkout
- YesYou want contracts generated from approved quotes
Choose Markate if
- YesYou schedule and dispatch crews and want to see where they are
- YesYour team needs a mobile app with a time clock, offline access and job photos
- YesYou want leads, SMS and email campaigns, postcards and review requests in one tool
- YesYou want QuickBooks Online sync today
Tillage vs Markate, feature by feature
| Feature | Tillage | Markate |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly price | Yes$0, unlimited users, quotes and invoices | PartlyNo free plan; $49.95/mo, or $45.95/mo billed yearly, plus $5 per employee a month |
| Online payment fees | YesStripe 2.9% + 30¢ (cards) or 0.8% capped at $5 (ACH), plus 1% capped at $50 per invoice | PartlySet by Square or PayPal; Square invoices 3.3% + 30¢ on cards and 1% on ACH on its free plan |
| Pass fees to clients | YesBoth Stripe and platform fees, set team-wide | PartlyMarkate says it may allow processing fees where permitted; no setup guide found |
| Quotes and estimates | YesHours × rate, or itemized with units and sections | YesItemized estimates with taxes, discounts and price-list items; converts to an invoice or work order |
| Variance and profit margin on quotes | YesVariance buffer and profit margin on every line | PartlyHidden markup by percentage or fixed amount, set on desktop; job costing; no variance buffer |
| Contracts with e-signatures | YesGenerated from approved quotes | PartlyE-signatures captured in the mobile app; terms on estimates; no contracts from estimates found |
| Deposits and milestone payment schedules | YesPercentages triggered by signing, dates or milestones | YesDeposits and payment schedules by amount or percentage on estimates and invoices |
| Recurring invoices and retainers | YesWeekly, monthly, quarterly, every six months or yearly | YesDaily, weekly or monthly recurring invoices, set up on desktop; automatic card payments |
| Client pages with no login | YesSecure links to approve, sign and pay | PartlyCustomer portal by unique link with no login; a $10/mo add-on |
| Time tracking | NoNot a time tracker | YesClock-in time tracking in the app, with payroll reports |
| Full accounting and bookkeeping | NoUse alongside your accounting software | NoExpenses, profit and loss and sales tax reports; syncs to QuickBooks Online |
| QuickBooks or Xero sync | NoComing soon: QuickBooks Online, Xero, Mercury and Puzzle | YesExports to QuickBooks Online; not QuickBooks Desktop; Xero not found |
| AI quote drafting | YesDrafts line items, hours and rates with your OpenAI or Claude key | YesKate AI Estimator drafts estimates from requests or photos; usage-based pricing |
| Claude and ChatGPT through MCP | YesQuotes, contracts and invoices | NoNo MCP server found; REST API by approval, a $50/mo add-on |
| Scheduling, dispatch and routing | NoNot a scheduling or dispatch tool | YesDrag-and-drop calendar, dispatch, live GPS locations and recurring work orders |
Markate pricing
Markate has no contract and saves 8% on yearly billing. It charges no processing fee of its own: card and ACH rates are set by Square, its preferred processor, or PayPal. Square’s invoice rates are 3.3% + 30¢ on cards and 1% on ACH ($1 minimum) on its free plan, and 2.9% + 30¢ on cards and 1% on ACH capped at $10 on its paid plans.
- Owner Operator
- $49.95/mo, or $45.95/mo billed yearly ($551.40 a year)The owner’s account, with the full feature list and a 14-day free trial with no credit card
- Team
- Base price plus $5/mo per employeeEmployee access to the app. Only active employees are billed
- Add-ons
- $10/mo eachCustomer portal, online booking, proposal templates, CompanyCam, Zapier, review requests, a business phone number and more
- Connect API
- $50/moAPI and developer access, granted after approval
- Kate AI
- AI Receptionist $1 per call; AI Estimator usage-basedMarkate doesn’t publish an AI Estimator price
- Tillage, for comparison
- $0/month with unlimited users1% when paid online, capped at $50 per invoice. Your client can cover it. See pricing
Where Markate is better
No tool is right for everyone. Here is where it may suit you better.
Scheduling and dispatch
A drag-and-drop calendar with team availability, job assignment, SMS and email job reminders, and recurring and multi-day work orders. Tillage has none of this.
A crew app with GPS and a time clock
Employees clock in on iPhone or Android, see work orders offline, and show up on a live map. Payroll reports and QuickBooks Payroll come from the same time logs.
Leads and marketing in one place
A lead pipeline, automated follow-ups, email and SMS drip campaigns, postcards, ringless voicemail, review requests and online booking, several as paid add-ons.
QuickBooks Online sync today
Markate exports customers, invoices, estimates, payments and expenses to QuickBooks Online. Tillage’s QuickBooks and Xero sync isn’t live yet.
Lower card fees on most jobs
Through Square, card payments on invoices cost 3.3% + 30¢, or 2.9% + 30¢ on Square’s paid plans. Stripe plus Tillage’s 1% platform fee costs more on any card payment under $12,500, and on every card payment against Square’s paid plans.
Job costing and field extras
Job costing, change orders, checklists and photos, a mileage log, tip collection, and Wisetack financing through an integration.
Where Tillage is better for contractors
$0 instead of a monthly plan
Markate is $49.95 a month for the owner plus $5 per employee, and the customer portal, online booking and proposal templates are $10 a month each. Tillage is free with unlimited users, quotes and invoices.
Clients can cover the fees
Markate says it may let you add processing fees where the law allows, but we found no guide to setting it up. In Tillage, clients can cover the Stripe and platform fees at checkout, so you receive the full amount.
Lower fees on big ACH payments
On Square’s free plan, ACH is 1% with no cap listed, so a $20,000 job costs $200. In Tillage, ACH is 0.8% capped at $5 plus a 1% platform fee capped at $50, so $55 at most. Square’s paid plans cap ACH at $10, which is lower than Tillage.
Contracts from approved quotes
Markate captures e-signatures in its mobile app and adds terms to estimates. Tillage generates a contract with e-signatures from the approved quote, and clients sign from a link.
Margin and a buffer on every line
Markate adds a hidden markup to the estimate, by percentage or fixed amount. Tillage adds a variance buffer for job risk as well as your profit margin to each line, so overruns don’t come out of your profit.
Client pages included
Markate’s customer portal is a $10 a month add-on. Every Tillage quote, contract and invoice has a client page with no login, for free.
Switching from Markate
- 1
Get your customer list out of Markate as a CSV. We didn’t find a Markate guide to exporting it, so ask Markate support if there’s no export in your account.
- 2
Import the clients into Tillage from CSV, then add your services and materials as items with variance and margin. Tillage imports items from CSV too.
- 3
Connect Stripe in Tillage, choose which clients cover the fees, and set up your usual deposit and progress split as a payment schedule.
- 4
Keep Markate or another tool for scheduling, dispatch and marketing if your crews rely on it, and quote, sign and invoice in Tillage.
Related guides and tools
Invoicing software for contractors
Itemized estimates, deposits and progress billing in one free tool.
Contractor estimate template
Labor and materials laid out for a client to approve.
Contractor invoice template
Line items and units for a job, ready to fill in and send.
Markup calculator
Turn your cost and markup into a selling price.
Sources
Checked Nov 3, 2026. Pricing and features change, so if something here is out of date, email support@tillage.ai and we will fix it.
- Markate pricing and features
- Markate: Get paid faster (payments FAQ)
- Markate Academy: Accept ACH payments via Square
- Markate Academy: Set up online payments
- Square fees (US)
- Markate Academy: Estimates FAQ
- Markate Academy: Add a markup on an estimate
- Markate Academy: Invoice FAQs
- Markate customer portal
- Markate Academy: Customer portal FAQ
- Markate Academy: QuickBooks integration FAQs
- Markate integrations
- Markate Kate AI Estimator
- Markate for developers (Connect API)
- Markate scheduling and dispatching
- Markate for maid and janitorial services (GPS and routing)
Tillage vs Markate questions
Does Tillage schedule or dispatch crews?
No. Tillage has no scheduling, dispatch, GPS tracking or field app. If you need those, Markate is the better fit, or you can use a scheduling tool alongside Tillage.
Is Markate or Tillage cheaper to take payments with?
On cards, usually Markate. Square charges 3.3% + 30¢ on invoices on its free plan, while Stripe plus Tillage’s platform fee is 3.9% + 30¢ until the $50 cap. Tillage is cheaper on card payments over $12,500, and on ACH payments over $5,500 against Square’s free plan. In Tillage, clients can also cover the fees, so you keep the full amount.
Does Markate have a free plan?
No. Markate has a 14-day free trial with no credit card. After that it’s $49.95 a month, or $45.95 billed yearly, plus $5 per employee. Tillage is $0/month with unlimited users.
Do both take deposits and progress payments?
Yes. Markate supports deposits and payment schedules by fixed amount or percentage on estimates and invoices. Tillage schedules deposits and milestones too, triggered by signing, dates or milestones.
Can I use Markate and Tillage together?
Yes, though you’d enter clients and jobs in both. Some contractors keep a field service tool for scheduling and use Tillage for quotes, contracts and invoices.
