ArcSite vs. PlanGrid – How Do They Differ?

Many PlanGrid users find ArcSite’s features more specifically tailored to their needs, and others can integrate ArcSite into their workflow for greater efficiencies on a project from start to finish

Overview

We hear PlanGrid come up a lot in discussions. While ArcSite and PlanGrid share some similarities, they differ in key ways. ArcSite is a great tool for drawing site plans and performing the early-stage roles of a building project. For those teams already using PlanGrid, integrating ArcSite into the workflow creates additional efficiencies and flexibility.

PlanGrid’s Strengths

PlanGrid is best utilized in the active construction phase of a project for construction management. It allows a team of people to communicate and collaborate using the most up-to-date set of plans, punch lists, and daily reports.
Users of PlanGrid tend to be contractors, foremen, and project managers—the people needed to keep building in progress once construction has already begun. Its PDF markup features lend it to the logging of problems and assigning tasks.

ArcSite’s Strengths

ArcSite’s greatest strength is the combination of intuitive mobile-first drawing capabilities with excellent PDF markup and collaboration features. ArcSite is better suited than PlanGrid to the early stages of a project—sales, surveying and collection of field data, discussing plans with customers, and drawing site plans in real-time.

PlanGrid users cannot draw up site plans. Nor can they perform takeoffs or provide project estimates. PlanGrid simply isn’t useful as a sales tool. In contrast, ArcSite is an excellent sales tool that transitions seamlessly from the planning to execution stages of a project.

ArcSite works well with designers—using their work as an input, and/or exporting an output. The shape libraries—integral to the easy-to-use drawing features of ArcSite and notably absent from PlanGrid’s feature list—allow for the efficient creation of site plans so teams can move on to the next stage of a project.

Work Smarter, Not Harder

For professionals involved in the early stages of a building project, ArcSite is perfectly tailored to your needs:

• Draw a site plan with as much precision as you need
• Utilize a shape library to flesh out your drawing
• Perform takeoffs with the click of a button
• Provide plans and quotes while still on-site, rather than reworking your notes back at the office
• Mark up PDFs and embed photos right within the plan

For teams who already use PlanGrid in the post-sales, active construction phase, ArcSite can enhance workflow efficiencies by improving the sales and planning stages of a project:

• Collaborate with designers to create a site plan
• Provide quotes on building materials and costs—and update them in real-time as a site plan shifts
• Export to a variety of file formats (PDF, DXF, DWG)
• Transition easily from design to implementation

Are you ready to put ArcSite to work for you? Try ArcSite free for 14 days or request a demo.