- →RoofGenius — best for retail + supplement automation
- →Xactimate — still the standard for insurance, slow on retail
- →Roofr — clean proposal builder, weak on supplements
- →JobNimbus — strong CRM, weak estimating
- →AccuLynx — full ops platform, expensive
- →Symbility — carrier side, contractor adjacent
- →ServiceTitan — overkill unless multi-trade
- →Excel — free, doesn't scale
What 'best' actually means here
There is no single best estimating tool because retail and insurance restoration have different jobs. Retail wants fast door-to-bid with branded proposals. Insurance wants Xactimate-priced line items the carrier will accept. The best stack pairs an AI-driven estimator with a CRM and either Xactimate or a supplement automation layer on top.
1. RoofGenius — best end-to-end for retail + supplements
AI-driven retail estimates (Good/Better/Best in under five minutes), AI insurance supplement audits that recover $800–$3,400 per closed claim, and instant satellite measurements. Pricing from $149/month. Best fit: contractors doing both retail and storm work who want one tool instead of three.
2. Xactimate
The carrier-side standard. If you write insurance estimates, you almost have to use it for the carrier-accepted pricing database. Slow on retail because it was never designed for it. Pair it with RoofGenius for supplement audits to recover what carriers omit.
3. Roofr
Clean proposal UX, decent measurements, weak on insurance work. Best fit: retail-only shops that want a polished proposal output and don't care about supplement automation.
4. JobNimbus
Strong roofing-specific CRM with pipeline, photo storage, and basic estimating. Estimating is functional but not best-in-class — most production shops pair JobNimbus with a dedicated estimator.
5. AccuLynx
Full ops platform — CRM, estimating, scheduling, production. Expensive (often $200+/user/month). Best fit: 5+ rep shops that want a single source of truth and can absorb the cost.
6. Symbility
Owned by CoreLogic. Used heavily by carriers. Contractors who write estimates against Symbility-priced claims sometimes use it to mirror the carrier's database.
7. ServiceTitan
Built for HVAC and plumbing, expanded into roofing. Overkill for roofing-only operations. Worth evaluating if you're a multi-trade home services company.
8. Excel + Google Drive
Free. Doesn't scale past a one-rep shop. The labor cost of building, updating, and chasing version drift on Excel templates eats more time than a $149/month tool would cost.
The recommended 2026 stack
- CRM: JobNimbus or AccuLynx
- Retail estimating + supplement audits + measurements: RoofGenius
- Insurance pricing database: Xactimate (when carrier requires)
- Proposal output: built into RoofGenius or Roofr
See the RoofGenius retail estimator or start the free trial.