Free field service software that runs your shop
Most "free" field service software is really a 14-day trial that ends with a bill. This guide explains what a real free plan should include, where the trials draw the line, and why a low flat plan like Claver ($19/mo, no per-seat fees) often beats them in practice.
Trial vs free plan: what's the difference?
The word "free" hides two very different deals. Knowing which one you're signing up for saves you a surprise bill two weeks in.
A free trial
- Full access, but only for a set window (often 14 days)
- Converts to a paid plan automatically when time's up
- Usually needs a card on file to start
- Great for evaluating, not for running a shop long-term
A real free plan
- Permanent: run your business on it indefinitely
- Enough features to quote, schedule, invoice & get paid
- No card required to start
- Upgrade only when you choose to, never on a timer
What "usable" requires
- Unlimited (or generous) customers & jobs
- Quotes / estimates and invoicing
- Online card payments
- A customer portal or online booking
- A mobile app for the field
What Claver's Starter plan includes
Claver's Starter plan is $19/mo flat, no per-seat fees, no annual lock-in. It's built to run a real solo or owner-operator business end to end. On Starter you get:
- Unlimited jobs and customers, no caps that force an upgrade as you grow
- Quotes / estimates your customers can review and approve
- Invoicing with professional, branded invoices
- Stripe card payments so you get paid online, not chasing checks
- A customer portal where clients see their quotes, invoices, and history
- Online booking via an embeddable widget on your site
- Arrival windows so customers know when to expect you
- Financing options to offer on larger jobs
- A mobile PWA, install it on any phone and work from the field, no app-store download required
That's a full quote-to-cash loop for $19/mo flat. For a solo operator, it can genuinely be the only plan you ever need.
Why most competitors only offer trials
It's worth being straight about the landscape: a permanently free plan is the exception, not the norm. The major field-service tools generally offer a free trial and then bill monthly:
- Jobber: free trial, then plans start at $49/mo month-to-month ($29/mo billed annually, Core). See getjobber.com/pricing.
- Housecall Pro: free trial, then $79/mo (Basic) and up. See housecallpro.com/pricing.
- Workiz: 7-day free trial, then quote only, no public pricing. See workiz.com.
- BookingKoala: paid plans from $27/mo (Starter). See bookingkoala.com/pricing.
- ServiceTitan: enterprise, quote-only; no free plan. See servicetitan.com.
None of that makes those tools bad; a trial is a perfectly reasonable way to evaluate software. It just means that if your goal is to run on free indefinitely, your options narrow quickly. (Pricing verified September 2026; confirm at each vendor's page, since plans change.)
When you'd upgrade and when you wouldn't
Start on Starter at $19/mo, and move up only when you outgrow the basics:
- Crew ($39/mo, 8 users): dispatch, SMS reminders, GPS, the tools you need once you've got help in the field.
- Business ($79/mo, 20 users): the built-in phone system, AI receptionist, and the full team toolkit.
The difference from a trial: there's no countdown and no surprise bill: Starter is a flat $19/mo, and your data exports to CSV whenever you want, so there's no lock-in either way. If you're weighing total cost across tools, see the pricing guide; to compare full feature sets, see the best-for-small-business roundup.
Where these numbers come from
These are the sources we read for this guide, and the date we last read them. Vendor prices come from each vendor's own pricing page.
- Jobber pricing, Jobber. Accessed September 5, 2026.
- Housecall Pro pricing, Housecall Pro. Accessed September 5, 2026.
- GorillaDesk pricing, GorillaDesk. Accessed September 5, 2026.
Software pricing changes often. Check each vendor's pricing page before you buy.
Free field service software FAQ
Is there genuinely free field service software?
What's the difference between a free trial and a free plan?
What should a real free field service plan include?
When should I move up a tier?
Keep going
Numbers first, software second. When you're ready to compare plans, see what Claver costs.
Start at $19/mo: flat, no countdown
Claver Starter is $19/mo flat: unlimited jobs and customers, quotes, invoices, Stripe payments, a customer portal, online booking, and a mobile app. Move up only if and when you want to.