How does Surfacely's quote engine differ from PaintProjex's?

Fundamentally different approach. Surfacely is a calculation engine: measure → production hours → litres → cost → cost-plus formula → sell, derived every time from current cost and target margin. Sell prices are never stored. PaintProjex is a price-list / pricing-matrix engine — the painter configures per-square-foot or per-piece prices and applies them to bids. Practical difference: when labour or material costs change, Surfacely auto-adjusts every new quote to preserve margin; PaintProjex requires the painter to refresh stored prices manually.

Does Surfacely include personal onboarding?

No — Surfacely is self-guided. The onboarding flow walks the painter through company setup, locale config, labour cost rate, surface library defaults, and quote settings without a phone call or implementation consultant. PaintProjex includes setup support for commercial estimating workflows. If you want white-glove implementation, PaintProjex is the better fit; if you want to start in your own time without a sales call, Surfacely is materially cheaper and faster to first quote.

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Surfacely vs PaintProjex: Painting Software Comparison

Q: Should a painting contractor use Surfacely or PaintProjex?

Use Surfacely if you want a full painting project lifecycle in one tool with locale-aware safe work plans (SWMS for AU, JHA for US, RAMS for UK, SSSP for NZ) at a low monthly price point with a free tier, plus a mobile-first capture surface and AI intelligence engine. Use PaintProjex if you do high-volume commercial painting estimating and value its commercial-painting depth — particularly the per-square-foot pricing matrices and bid management for tendered work. Both are Australian-built; PaintProjex also operates in the US market.

Q: Does PaintProjex generate SWMS or JHA documents?

PaintProjex focuses on commercial painting estimating and bid management. Locale-aware safe work plan generation (SWMS, JHA, RAMS, SSSP) is not a core feature — painters using PaintProjex typically build safety documentation in a separate tool. Surfacely auto-generates the right document for the painter's country with painting-specific hazards derived from project data.

Q: How does Surfacely compare to PaintProjex for residential painting?

PaintProjex is built around commercial painting workflows — bid sheets, square-foot pricing matrices, multi-stage projects with detailed labour and material lines. Surfacely covers both residential and commercial work with the same surface-measurement-and-cost-plus engine. For residential repaint workflows where speed and simplicity matter, Surfacely is closer to the work shape; for high-volume commercial bid management, PaintProjex has more depth in that specific area.

Q: Which is better for international painting businesses?

Surfacely is built for five locales — Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada — with locale-aware tax (10% GST AU, 15% GST NZ, 20% VAT UK, provincial GST/HST CA), unit display (metric or imperial), labour on-cost defaults, and safe work plan documents. PaintProjex is Australian-built with US market presence; for painters in the UK, New Zealand, and Canada, Surfacely's locale coverage is broader.

Q: Which has a free tier?

Surfacely has a permanent free tier — 5 buildings, full feature access including measurement, quoting, proposals, crew briefs with safe work plans, client portal, and Stripe payments. No trial clock, no card required. PaintProjex's pricing is published on paintprojex.com — verify whether a free tier or trial is currently offered.

PaintProjex is a Gold Coast, Australia-built painting estimating platform (Projex SAAS Pty Ltd, founded 2022) with strength in commercial and tendered painting work — bid sheets, per-square-foot pricing matrices, multi-stage project management. PaintProjex operates in both Australian and US markets. Surfacely is also Australian-built, painting-specific, covering the full residential-to-commercial lifecycle with three structural differences: it's materially cheaper with a permanent free tier, it's self-guided (no implementation consultant), and it's mobile-first — the painter measures and tracks on their phone in the field, then refines the quote detail on desktop in the office. Surfacely also auto-generates locale-aware safe work plans (SWMS for AU, JHA for US, RAMS for UK, SSSP for NZ) directly from project data. For high-volume commercial painting bid management with implementation support, PaintProjex has more depth in that specific area. For full lifecycle, locale-aware compliance across AU/US/UK/NZ/CA, mobile-first capture, AI intelligence throughout, and self-serve onboarding, Surfacely covers more of the work at lower cost.

Side-by-side

Comparison reflects publicly available product information. Verify PaintProjex's current feature set on paintprojex.com.

Feature	Surfacely	PaintProjex
Painting-specific surface library (18 types)	Yes	Painting-focused
Production rate calculation (8 speed steps)	Yes — measurement-driven	Per-sq-ft / hour matrices
Cost-plus margin protection (sell derived, never stored)	Yes	Configurable
Locale-aware SWMS / JHA / RAMS / SSSP	Yes	No
AI intelligence engine (photo analysis, voice notes, hazard derivation)	Integrated throughout	Not a core feature
Homeowner self-scope portal (lead qualification + data capture)	Yes — unique	No
Auto-hazard engine (12 painting hazards)	Yes — derived from project data	No
Branded client proposal builder	Yes	Yes
Client portal (acceptance, variations, payments)	Yes	Limited
Stripe payments integration	Yes	Varies
Crew brief with QR-code sign-off	Yes	No
Permanent surface register	Yes	No
Commercial bid management depth	Standard	Strong
Post-completion review drip (Day 7/14/30)	Yes	No
Mobile-first design (capture on phone, refine on desktop)	Primary capture surface is mobile	Desktop-first commercial estimating
Locale support	AU / US / UK / NZ / CA	AU + US (Gold Coast HQ)
Free tier	Free forever — no trial needed	Verify
Pricing	From A$0 free; A$49/mo Solo	Higher price point — verify on paintprojex.com
Onboarding	Self-guided (no kickoff call)	Setup support included
Quote engine	Calculation — sell derived from cost + margin	Pricing matrix — per-sq-ft / per-piece rates

Choose Surfacely if

You want a materially lower monthly cost — free tier is free forever (5 buildings, no trial clock); paid plans start at AUD $49/mo Solo (1 user).
You're comfortable with self-guided onboarding (no kickoff call, no consultant) — most painters send their first quote within an hour.
You run a residential or mixed-segment painting business and want one tool for the whole job lifecycle.
You want a calculation engine (cost + margin → sell, derived every time) rather than a pricing matrix you maintain manually.
SWMS / JHA / RAMS / SSSP compliance is part of your sale.
You operate outside Australia and the US — UK, New Zealand, Canada — and need locale-aware tax, units, and document names.

Choose PaintProjex if

You want personal setup support — someone helping you configure pricing matrices and bid templates.
You do high-volume commercial painting and value the commercial-bid management depth.
Your pricing model is per-square-foot matrices rather than measured cost-plus.
You're a high-volume commercial painter in Australia or the US and prefer an established Australian-built tool focused on commercial bid management.
Safety and crew documentation are handled in separate tools.
The higher monthly price is the right trade-off for the white-glove implementation.

Key differences explained

Locale-aware compliance

Surfacely auto-generates SWMS (Australia, WHS Act 2011), JHA (US, OSHA 29 CFR 1926), RAMS (UK, HSWA 1974), SSSP (NZ, HSWA 2015), or province-specific safety plans (Canada). The locale also drives lead-paint and asbestos hazard cutoffs (1970/1978/1992 lead; 2003/1999/2016 asbestos), tax handling, and on-cost defaults. PaintProjex is Australian-built and operates in both AU and US markets — both jurisdictions are well-supported. For UK, NZ, and Canadian painters, Surfacely's locale coverage is broader.

Measurement-driven cost-plus vs per-sq-ft matrix

Surfacely calculates labour hours for each surface from the area, the coat count, and the production rate — using an 8-step speed scale (intricate heritage work at the slow end through to production spray on new builds at the fast end). Margin is taken from sell, not added to cost: sell equals cost divided by (1 minus your margin percent). PaintProjex uses per-square-foot pricing matrices the painter sets up — well-suited to repetitive commercial work where the same surface type recurs across many buildings.

Full lifecycle vs estimating depth

Surfacely covers nine workflow stages from site assessment through post-completion review. PaintProjex's strength is concentrated in the estimating-and-bidding portion; downstream operations (crew briefs, daily progress, safety sign-offs, post-completion review) typically run in additional tools.

FAQ

Should a painting contractor use Surfacely or PaintProjex?

Surfacely for full lifecycle and locale-aware safe work plans across AU/US/UK/NZ/CA. PaintProjex for high-volume commercial painting estimating and bid management — Australian-built (Gold Coast), operating in AU + US.

Does PaintProjex generate SWMS or JHA documents?

PaintProjex focuses on commercial estimating and bidding — locale-aware safe work plan generation isn't a core feature. Surfacely auto-generates SWMS / JHA / RAMS / SSSP from project data.

How does Surfacely compare to PaintProjex for residential painting?

Surfacely fits residential and commercial both with the same surface-measurement-and-cost-plus engine. PaintProjex is more commercial-painting-shaped.

Which is better for international painting businesses?

Surfacely — built for AU, US, UK, NZ, CA with locale-aware tax, units, on-costs, and safe work plan documents. PaintProjex is Australian-built and operates in AU + US — both jurisdictions well-supported.

Which has a free tier?

Surfacely is free forever — 5 buildings, full features, no card required. PaintProjex pricing varies — verify on paintprojex.com.