Comparison
Still quoting jobs in a spreadsheet?
Excel and Google Sheets get you started. They are free and everyone knows the basics. But the spreadsheet breaks down once you need satellite acreage, rate card pricing, job tracking, photos, and invoicing in one place.
Side by side
| Feature | Spreadsheet | MulchDeck |
|---|---|---|
| Satellite acreage | Manual measurement or guesswork | Draw polygon, get acreage |
| Rate card pricing | Formula or manual lookup | Automatic from density and terrain |
| Job tracking | Separate file per job | Built in. Hours, fuel, teeth per day. |
| Photos | Phone camera roll | GPS-tagged, attached to the job |
| Invoicing | Copy-paste into Word | Generate from estimate line items |
| Offline | Google Sheets needs signal | Works offline on rural acreage |
| Profitability | Rebuild formulas per job | Automatic. Estimated vs actual. |
| Cost | Free | $149/mo, unlimited users |
What the spreadsheet still does fine
Spreadsheets are good for quick one-off math, tracking expenses for your accountant, and anything where a single person owns the file. MulchDeck does not replace your accounting spreadsheet or your tax prep. It replaces the quoting spreadsheet, the job tracking spreadsheet, and the camera roll full of unmarked photos.
Where the spreadsheet falls apart
- You guess acreage from Google Earth instead of drawing a polygon.
- Rate card formulas break when someone edits the wrong cell.
- Job tracking lives in a separate file nobody updates after day two.
- Photos are in the camera roll with no job context or GPS data.
- Invoicing means copy-pasting numbers into a Word template.
- Profitability is a Sunday night rebuild that never actually happens.
Common questions
Can I import my existing spreadsheet data?
Not yet. MulchDeck is a fresh start. Set up your rate card, create jobs, and you are running. Most operators are quoting within the first hour.
Do I still need a spreadsheet for anything?
MulchDeck does not do payroll or accounting. Keep QuickBooks or your accounting spreadsheet. MulchDeck handles estimating, job tracking, and invoicing.
What if I only do a few jobs a month?
MulchDeck is $149/month flat regardless of volume. If you do 3 jobs a month, that is $50 per job for satellite estimating, tracking, photos, invoicing, and profitability reports.
Does it work offline?
Yes. Everything saves locally and syncs when you get signal. Spreadsheets in Google Sheets need cell service. MulchDeck does not.
$149/month flat. Unlimited users. 14-day free trial.
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