You're pricing a 40-unit apartment building. The window schedule says 212 openings, the floor plans show 218, and the window supplier's quote covers only the 212. At an illustrative $900 installed per opening, those six extra openings are $5,400 you either absorb or fight over in a change order.
That gap is the real test of window estimating software. Measuring tools are table stakes. What matters is whether the tool handles opening counts, schedule-to-plan reconciliation and window package buyout, not just linear takeoff.
Most takeoff software roundups stop at the count. For a GC, the count is only half the job. The other half is getting a window package out to subs and comparing bids that never quite match.
Quick Picks: Window Estimating Software by Use Case
These are the picks by situation. The full reasoning follows in the reviews.
- STACK: Best for dedicated cloud takeoff with counts and reusable assemblies.
- PlanSwift: Best if your estimators will build and maintain their own window templates.
- Autodesk Takeoff: Best for teams already working in Autodesk Construction Cloud.
- Procore Estimating: Best for teams already running projects on Procore who want estimating in the same platform.
- Struvia: Best for AI-assisted takeoff from plan PDFs plus window sub bid packages and bid leveling.
Why Window Takeoff Breaks Generic Estimating Tools
A window isn't a square foot of anything. It's a counted item with a type mark, a size, a glass spec and a rough opening, and it ties back to a schedule. Then it gets priced across supply, install, flashing, sealants, interior trim and lead time.
Most window estimating advice is written for replacement contractors measuring a single house. This article takes the GC's view: multi-unit, commercial and mixed-scope work, where a miscount repeats across 40 units.
The Schedule vs Plan Count Problem
On most sets, you can get three different counts. The window schedule gives one number. The floor plans, with their tags, give a second. The elevations give a third, because a revision touched one sheet and not the others.
Nobody publishes a clean rate for how often these disagree, but any estimator who has done multifamily work has hit it. A Des Moines-based estimator told us: "I don't lose money on windows because I can't count. I lose it because the schedule says one thing, the elevation says another, and the quote says a third."
FMI and PlanGrid's 2018 *Construction Disconnected* study tied 48% of U.S. rework to poor project data and miscommunication. A count nobody reconciled is exactly that kind of data problem.
Supply-Only, Supply-and-Install and Glazing Scope Gaps
A 20% price spread between window bids is often scope, not price. One bid is supply-only. Another includes install, flashing and sealants. A third carries a different glass type or a 16-week lead time.
Software that only produces a count can't help here. You need a way to put the bids side by side after you've sent them. That's covered below.
How We Scored Window Estimating Software
The Criteria
We scored each tool on seven things:
- Speed from plan set to priced quantities
- Whether counts trace back to the sheet and the schedule
- Pricing transparency
- Plan and takeoff workflow
- Bid management fit
- Integrations
- Support
Why We Don't Publish Accuracy Scores
No vendor in this comparison, including Struvia, has a published accuracy rate we can verify. Anyone quoting "98% accurate" on window counts is quoting a number you can't audit. We scored the workflow instead: can you trace a count back to the sheet it came from, and can you check it against the schedule?
Window Estimating Software Comparison Table
Cost figures are list prices where the vendor publishes them; everything else says quote-based.
| Tool | Best For | Key Strength | Key Limitation | Est. Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| STACK | Dedicated cloud takeoff | Count tool and reusable window assemblies | You build the assemblies; no sub bid leveling | $2,999/yr single seat; free tier available |
| PlanSwift | Estimators who maintain their own templates | Deep custom assemblies and templates | Windows desktop software; manual counting | $1,595 one-time or ~$1,749/yr |
| Autodesk Takeoff | Teams on Autodesk Construction Cloud | 2D and 3D takeoff tied to ACC documents | Most of the value needs the wider ACC stack | $1,250/user/yr list |
| Procore Estimating | Teams running projects on Procore | Estimating, bidding and project data in one platform | Priced as part of Procore, not a standalone tool | Based on annual construction volume; quote required |
| Struvia | GCs who sub out windows | AI takeoff, priced estimate and window sub bid leveling | Works from plan PDFs; no field measuring for replacement work | Usage-billed credits; 600 free to start |
Window Estimating Software Reviewed
STACK: Best for Dedicated Cloud Takeoff
STACK is a cloud takeoff and estimating platform with a count tool and assemblies you can reuse across jobs. For windows, that means you can build an assembly per window type that carries the unit, install labor, flashing, sealant and trim, then click each opening to count it.
Pricing is published: $2,999 a year for a single seat, lower per-seat pricing for larger teams, and a free tier for light use. Best fit: teams that self-perform or want detailed window assemblies. Poor fit: GCs whose real problem is comparing window sub bids, since STACK stops at the takeoff and estimate. Switching trigger: you're counting openings by hand on PDFs and retyping them into a spreadsheet. For more on the platform, see our STACK review.
PlanSwift: Best for Custom Window Templates
PlanSwift is long-standing Windows desktop takeoff software built around assemblies and templates. An estimator who wants full control can build a window template that breaks every opening into unit, glass, install and trim lines.
Pricing runs $1,595 for a one-time license or about $1,749 a year on subscription. Best fit: an experienced estimator willing to build and maintain templates. Poor fit: teams that work across offices or want cloud access. Switching trigger: your window templates have outgrown spreadsheets but you still want manual control. For a side-by-side, see STACK vs PlanSwift.
Autodesk Takeoff: Best for Autodesk Construction Cloud Teams
Autodesk Takeoff, now being folded into the Autodesk Forma brand, runs 2D and 3D takeoff inside Autodesk Construction Cloud. When the architect's model is available, window counts can come from the model as well as the sheets, and the takeoff sits next to the same documents your project team uses.
List price is $1,250 per user per year. Best fit: teams already on ACC. Poor fit: a GC not on Autodesk, since most of the value comes from the connected platform. Switching trigger: your document control already lives in ACC and estimating lives somewhere else.
Procore Estimating: Best for Teams Already on Procore
Procore's estimating tools put takeoff, cost catalogs and bid management in the same platform as your projects. For a GC already running jobs on Procore, keeping the window takeoff and the buyout in one system removes an export step.
Procore doesn't publish a rate card; pricing is based on annual construction volume and requires a quote. Best fit: Procore shops. Poor fit: a small GC shopping for estimating alone, since it isn't sold as a standalone takeoff tool. Details are in our Procore estimating pricing guide.
Struvia: Best for GCs Who Sub Out Windows
Struvia runs AI-assisted takeoff on your uploaded plan PDFs, prices the estimate from your own price book, and delivers it in your own Excel estimate template. For windows, the bigger piece is buyout: you send the window package to subs, and bid leveling lines up supply-only, supply-and-install and glazing bids against the same scope, with gaps and exclusions flagged.
Pricing is usage-billed credits with no seats or subscription. Reading the plan set is free, and new accounts start with 600 free credits, no card. Poor fit: replacement contractors measuring existing openings in the field, since Struvia works from plan sets. Switching trigger: your window bids never match each other and you're leveling them in a spreadsheet the night before bid day.
How to Reconcile Window Counts Before You Buy Out
Whatever tool you pick, run the same check before the window package goes out:
- Count from the schedule first. List every type mark and its quantity.
- Count the tags on the floor plans by type mark and floor, then on the elevations.
- Reconcile every difference. Check revision clouds and addenda; the newest sheet usually explains the gap. Send an RFI for anything you can't resolve.
- Send subs the reconciled count with the type marks, so every bid prices the same openings.
- Level the bids by scope before you compare price: supply, install, flashing, sealants, trim, glass spec and lead time.
Back to the opening example: 212 on the schedule, 218 on the plans. Step 3 is where you find the six openings, and step 4 is where you stop them from becoming a change order.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best window estimating software for general contractors?
It depends on where your time goes. STACK is a strong dedicated takeoff tool for window counts and assemblies, PlanSwift suits estimators who maintain their own templates, and Struvia fits GCs who want plan-based takeoff and window sub bid leveling in one workflow. Teams already on Autodesk or Procore usually do best staying in that platform.
How do you do a window takeoff from construction plans?
Start with the window schedule, then count tagged openings by type mark on the floor plans and elevations. Reconcile any differences against revisions and addenda before pricing, and price each type across supply, install, flashing, sealants, trim and glass.
Why do window bids from different subs vary so much?
Most of the spread is scope. One bid may be supply-only, another may include installation, flashing and sealants, and a third may carry a different glass spec or lead time. Level the bids line by line against the same scope before comparing totals.
How much does window estimating software cost?
Published prices include $1,250 per user per year for Autodesk Takeoff, $2,999 a year for a single STACK seat, and $1,595 one-time or about $1,749 a year for PlanSwift. Procore is quote-based on construction volume, and Struvia bills on usage with 600 free starting credits.
Can AI count windows on construction plans?
AI takeoff can count tagged openings and read schedules on clean plan sets, which saves time on large multifamily and commercial jobs. You still need to reconcile the count against the schedule and elevations, because the drawings themselves often disagree.
Window estimating software earns its keep when the count matches the schedule and every bid covers the same openings. Pick the tool that fits where your time goes, and reconcile before you buy out. To run the takeoff and level your window bids in one place, upload a plan set free or book a demo.
*Reviewed by Baylor Jeppsen, Construction Estimating Expert and Founder of Struvia.*
