Houzz Pro vs Charlie · for contractors
Houzz Pro VS Charlie Estimator iconCharlie

Houzz Pro wins the showroom. Charlie wins the bid.

Houzz Pro is built around design and homeowner leads. Charlie is built around the estimate and the business behind it — talk through the job, hand over a branded proposal, keep the billing and the crew straight. Works the same on a kitchen remodel or a commercial build, and adds certified payroll and AIA billing when a job calls for it.

See the difference Tour the Estimator
Voice estimating · qualify-first · $149/mo · 30-day money-back guarantee

It comes down to what you need it to do. Houzz Pro grew out of the Houzz marketplace, so it's strongest where design and homeowners meet — 3D floor plans, mood boards, a client portal, and leads that come to you. If that's your business, it's a genuinely good fit. Charlie is for the other half of the job: pricing the work and running it. Talk through an estimate instead of typing it, hand the client a clean branded proposal, and keep the billing, job costs and crew straight — whether it's a bathroom remodel for a homeowner or a commercial build. And when a job needs certified payroll or AIA billing, that's built in too.

Feature by feature

Where each one earns its keep.

 
Houzz Pro
Charlie Estimator
Homeowner leads from a marketplace
✓ Its strength
—
3D floor planner & design tools
✓ Its strength
—
Estimating & branded proposals
✓
✓ By voice
Pre-bid "should I bid this?" screen
Not native
✓ Built in
Certified payroll — WH-347
Not native
✓ Built in
AIA G702 / G703 progress billing
Not native
✓ Built in
Do it by voice, from the field
Type it in
✓ Talk it
Crew seats
Per plan
✓ Free, unlimited
Starting price
~$65+/mo
$149/mo
Comparison reflects standard Houzz Pro plans as of 2026; features and pricing vary by plan and change over time. Houzz and Houzz Pro are trademarks of Houzz Inc. Charlie / Ground Up AI is not affiliated with or endorsed by Houzz.
Credit where it's due

Two good tools for two different jobs.

Houzz Pro is great for

Design-forward remodels.

  • 3D floor planner and mood boards that sell the vision
  • Homeowner leads straight from the Houzz marketplace
  • A polished, client-facing dashboard and portal
  • Residential remodelers and designers who live on presentation
Charlie is built for pricing and running the job

Voice estimating & compliance.

  • Talk through the estimate — cost library, margin-floor protection, alternates
  • Qualify-first "should I bid this?" pre-bid screen
  • Clause drafting and branded proposals
  • Certified payroll, AIA billing & lien waivers when you want them
The part nobody else in your lane does

Estimate by talking. Keep your own prices.

Charlie holds your cost library and your margins — we never ship prices, and we don't sell price data. You talk through the job, Charlie rolls it up against your numbers with a margin floor that stops you bidding underwater, drafts the clauses and the branded proposal, and — if you take commercial or prevailing-wage work — files the certified payroll and AIA billing behind it. Design software won't do that. This is the lane Charlie is built for.

Simple pricing · $0 setup

Estimate by voice for $149/mo.

Estimator
$149/mo
  • Voice estimating with your own cost library & margin floor
  • Alternates, clause drafting & branded proposals
  • Qualify-first "should I bid this?" pre-bid screen
  • Free, unlimited crew seats
  • Upgrade to Full Charlie for certified payroll & AIA billing
Buy Estimator
$0 setup · month-to-month · 30-day money-back guarantee
Straight answers

Questions, answered.

Is Charlie a replacement for Houzz Pro?

Only if what you need is estimating and running the job, not design and leads. Houzz Pro is genuinely strong for design-forward remodelers — 3D floor plans, mood boards, homeowner leads and a polished client portal. Charlie doesn't do 3D design or marketplace lead-gen. If you'd rather talk through your estimates and keep the proposals, billing and crew straight yourself — on residential remodels or commercial jobs — Charlie is the better fit.

Does Charlie do 3D design or floor planning?

No — that's Houzz Pro's turf, and it does it well. Charlie stays in its lane: voice-driven estimating, a qualify-first pre-bid screen, and the certified-payroll and AIA back office. If your business runs on selling a design vision to homeowners, keep Houzz Pro for that.

What does "we never ship prices" mean?

Charlie holds your own cost library and your own margins — it doesn't come pre-loaded with someone else's pricing, and it never sells your numbers as data. Your estimates are built on your costs, with a margin floor that warns you before you bid underwater. That's a trust point: your pricing stays yours.

Can Charlie handle prevailing-wage and commercial work?

Yes. Houzz Pro is built around design and leads, so it doesn't produce certified payroll (WH-347), prevailing-wage fringe, AIA G702/G703 progress billing or construction lien waivers. Charlie does all of that natively — so whether you're a residential remodeler who takes the occasional prevailing-wage job or a commercial contractor who lives on them, the compliance is covered when you move up to Full Charlie.

What does it cost, and can I start small?

The Estimator app is $149/mo standalone — voice estimating, qualify-first pre-bid, proposals, and free unlimited crew seats. When you want the compliance back office too, Full Charlie is $349/mo, same data, no migration. $0 setup, month-to-month, 30-day money-back guarantee.

Ready when you are

Bid the job by talking through it.

Get the Estimator — $149/mo
30-day money-back guarantee