Pool service software is the program a pool company uses to run its routes, record what happens at each pool, and bill for the work. If you still run the week from a paper route sheet, a spreadsheet and a stack of invoices, it is the thing that replaces all three. This guide explains what pool service software does, who needs it, what it costs, and how to choose one without losing a season to the wrong pick.
One note first. PoolStack publishes this blog, and PoolStack makes pool service software. We have kept this guide general. No other products are named in it, and every price we quote comes from a source we name.
What is pool service software?
Pool service software is one program that holds the whole weekly job: who gets serviced, on which day, by which tech, what was done at the pool, and what the customer owes for it. The office uses it on a computer. The techs use it on a phone.
You will also see it called pool route software, pool cleaning software, pool maintenance software or pool business software. Review sites often file it under field service software, which is the wider group of programs for companies that send people out to do work. The pool version adds the parts only a pool company needs, mainly water chemistry.
It is not the same thing as software for building pools, drawing them in 3D or running a retail store. Those are separate kinds, though some products cover more than one.
What does pool service software do?
Most products cover the same core jobs. Some add extras, such as stock counts for the truck or the shop, live tracking of each tech, or two way texting. Decide whether you need those before you pay for them.
The payoff shows up in two places. On the route, every tech works the same stop the same way, and you can see what was done without a phone call. In the office, the monthly invoice is created on its billing day without anyone typing it, so it goes out on time. A customer with a link to pay online, or on Auto Pay, does not leave you waiting on a check. That is how pool service software helps you get paid sooner.
Here is the core, in the order a week runs.
- Customers and pools. A record for each customer with the address, the gate code, and each body of water on the property: pool, spa or fountain.
- Recurring service. You set how often and which days once. The visits appear on the schedule without anyone adding them each week.
- Routes and dispatch. Each tech's stops for each day, on a list and on a map. Route optimization puts the stops in a shorter driving order. Dispatch is moving a stop when a tech is out or a customer calls.
- A technician app. The day's stops on the tech's phone, with navigation, the checklist for the stop, and a place for photos.
- Water chemistry. Readings such as chlorine, pH, alkalinity and salt are recorded at each visit. Many products work out the LSI, short for Langelier Saturation Index, and suggest how much of each chemical to add.
- Service reports. A message to the customer after the stop that shows the work done, the readings and the photos. It is the proof that someone came.
- Equipment. The pump, filter and heater on each pool, with make, model and warranty dates, plus reminders for work such as filter cleans.
- Quotes, repairs and work orders. Price a repair, get the customer's approval, and put it on the schedule as a job.
- Invoices and payments. The monthly invoice is created for you. Customers pay online by card or bank, or go on Auto Pay.
- A customer portal. A page where the customer sees visits and invoices and pays a bill.
- Reports and an accounting sync. What is owed, what was collected, chemical cost by pool, and a link to accounting software such as QuickBooks Online.
Who uses it, and does a small company need it?
Anyone who services pools on a schedule uses it. That includes one truck owner operators, companies with a handful of techs, and large companies with several branches.
Does a small company need it? A route sheet and a spreadsheet can carry a short list of pools. The trouble starts when you add a tech, or when billing day comes around. If you write invoices by hand each month, or a customer has ever asked whether the tech really came, that is the point where software starts to earn its price.
What you need from it changes with size.
- One truck. You are the office and the tech. You need the route on your phone, readings that take seconds to log, and invoices that go out without a night of paperwork.
- Two to ten techs. Now the problem is other people. You need routes you can hand out, a checklist so every tech does the stop your way, and a view of what got done today.
- More than ten techs. You need roles and permissions, reports by tech and by route, and billing that runs with very little typing.
Pool service software or a general field service app?
A general field service app is made for any trade: lawn care, cleaning, pest control, pools. It schedules jobs, sends invoices and takes payments. For a pool company, that covers only part of the job.
The rest is the water. A pool specific product keeps each body of water on the account with its own readings. It checks the readings against a target, works out the LSI, logs the chemicals and their cost, and brings a filter clean due on its own. It also knows that a pool route repeats every week, which is different from a calendar of one time jobs.
A general app can be a fair choice if pools are a small part of what you do. If pools are the business, start with products made for pools, and look wider only if none of them fits.
How much does pool service software cost?
It depends on how the product charges and how big you are. Published figures vary and some are old, so treat any range as a rough guide.
Tech.co, a business technology site, said in an article last updated on May 19, 2023 that pool service software can cost anywhere from $20 a month to $300 a month, depending on the provider, the size of the company and the features.
Capterra, a software review directory, sorts the lowest priced plan of each product into three bands, from prices it found on vendor websites on February 15, 2022: $0 to $25, $25 to $65, and $65 and up. It says most products in the category are priced per user, per month. Prices today may be different.
PoolStack is a flat $79 a month, all access, with the whole product in one tier and a 30 day free trial. Early adopters lock that rate for life.
The pricing model matters as much as the number. These are the ones you will meet.
| Pricing model | How you are charged | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Flat monthly | One price for the whole company | Check that every feature you need is in it |
| Per pool or per customer | An amount for each account you service | The bill rises with every pool you add |
| Per technician or per user | A fee for each person who logs in | Hiring a tech raises your software bill |
| Tiered plans | Low, middle and high plans | The feature you need may sit in the top plan |
| Custom quote | No public price | You cannot compare until you take a sales call |
What else goes into the real cost?
The monthly fee is only part of it. Before you compare two products, add up the items below for each one. Use your real numbers: your pools, your techs and your office staff. Then do it again for the size you expect to be in two years.
- Payment processing. Card and bank payments carry a processing fee. Ask for the rate in writing, and ask when the money reaches your bank.
- Setup or onboarding fees. Some products charge to get you started or to import your data.
- Add ons. Texting, route optimization, extra reports or an accounting sync may be priced apart from the base plan.
- Contracts. A yearly contract can lower the monthly number and make it costly to leave. Ask whether you can pay month to month.
- Your time. A product your techs will not use costs more than any fee. Count the hours it takes to set up, train and switch.
How to choose pool service software
A short process beats a long feature comparison. These steps work for a company of any size.
- Write down your numbers: pools on service, techs, office staff, and what you spend on software each month now.
- List the three problems you most want gone. Invoices that go out late, missed stops and skipped water tests are common ones.
- Decide what you must have and what would only be nice. Be strict. Most owners use a handful of features every day.
- Pick two or three products that fit your size, and price each one at your real numbers.
- Take the free trial. Load ten real customers and run one real route day on it.
- Put the app in a tech's hands. If the tech cannot finish a stop on it without help, keep looking.
- Check the money side last and with care: how invoices are created, how customers pay, and how payments reach your books.
What should you ask before you sign?
Ask these of every vendor, and write the answers down so you can compare them later.
- What will I pay each month at my size, with everything I need turned on?
- Are there setup fees, and does the price go up after the first year?
- Is route optimization included?
- Is the technician app on both iPhone and Android?
- Can it record readings, work out the LSI and suggest a dose?
- What does my customer see after each visit?
- Does it sync with my accounting software, and what exactly crosses over?
- Can you import my customers, routes and service history?
- Who answers when I need help, and how fast?
- Can I export my data, and can I cancel at any time?
How hard is it to switch?
It is less hard than most owners fear, if you plan it. The usual way is to run the new product next to the old one through a full billing cycle. Bring the customers over first, then the routes. Turn on billing in the new product once you have seen a month of invoices match.
Ask each vendor what they will import for you. PoolStack imports customers, routes, service history and chemical readings during the trial, and you can keep your current software running until you are ready.
Pick a quiet time of year if you can. Changing systems in the middle of the busy season is hard on the office and on the techs.