YellowTradie against a spreadsheet

A spreadsheet is a good tool and most solo traders start on one. It is free if you already have Excel or Google Sheets or Numbers. It does not go down. You can shape it exactly how you want. That is a real strength and this comparison starts there.

Our verdict is that a spreadsheet is the best way to keep a simple list, and YellowTradie is the better fit when you want the quote to write itself and the job to carry its own record. Keep the sheet if the list is all you need. Move when you want the phone to do the next step for you.

Prices checked on 24 October 2026. YellowTradie checked on its own pricing page. A spreadsheet has no price to check because you already own the app that opens it.

When YellowTradie is the better fit

Choose YellowTradie if you want:

• to speak the job on site and have the quote fill itself line by line from your own words
• the customer to open a link and approve the quote, with the answer back on your phone
• one place for the job that holds the quote and the invoice and the costs and the photos and the hours
• a reminder when an invoice is past due that asks for the balance and already knows your bank details
• to see what was actually paid, what is still owed, and what to set aside for tax without building a formula

Side by side

| What you do | A spreadsheet | YellowTradie | |---|---|---| | Monthly cost checked on 24 Oct 2026 | No charge. A spreadsheet has no monthly price. It is part of Excel or Google Sheets or Numbers which you already have | £19.99 a month, 14 days free, card needed. One plan, no per seat fee. App not in the shops yet, 14 days start when it opens. Checked on yellowtradie.com/pricing.html | | Where the record lives | On your computer or in your drive. You back it up | On your phone in the app, even with no signal. You export a sheet for the accountant when needed | | Price the job on site | You type the total or you link a few cells you made | You say it out loud. Each sentence files into Materials or Labour or Travel or Additional charges. The total is worked out as you speak. You can still type in the same form | | Send the quote | You make a PDF from the sheet and send it yourself, then wait for a reply by text or call | You send a PDF and a link from the phone. The customer opens the link and taps Approve or Decline. The answer comes back to your phone | | Keep the job together | You make a new tab or a new file, and you link them by job name or you do not | The job holds the quote that made it, the invoice, the photos, the costs, the hours and the notes, all tied by the job record | | Chase what is still owed | You change the cell colour and you write the message | When a sent invoice is past its due date, a card appears on Home with the balance still owed and your bank details and the reference already in the message | | Take a payment on the job | You type Paid in a cell and the sum changes if you built a sum | You record the payment on the bill. The balance falls, the payment log keeps the date and the method, and the Home total follows what is still owed | | Know what to set aside for tax | You build a formula and you keep it up to date with HMRC rates | The reports show money in and money out and the tax slice worked from your records, with bands and with CIS already taken off. It says it is an estimate from your records, not advice | | Ask your own records a question | You filter the sheet or build a pivot | You ask the assistant in plain words and it answers from your own records with a card or a table, not a typed number | | Work with no signal | Yes. A file that is on the device works with no signal. Google Sheets needs offline turned on first | Yes. Quotes and jobs and invoices are on the phone. A spoken phrase needs a signal to be read, but typing works with no signal |

What a spreadsheet does better

A spreadsheet is free to run and you already know how it looks. You can change a column in a second and copy a sheet for the next year without asking anyone. It will not close an account or ask for a new login. If you have a simple set of jobs and you are happy to build the formulas, a sheet can be all you need for a year.

It also has no rules about what a document must look like. You can put any logo or any note anywhere on the page. The app has to keep the invoice in a set shape so the customer link and the PDF match and the bank block stays in the right place.

The price difference is real too. A spreadsheet has no monthly bill. YellowTradie is £19.99 a month, and it is an extra bill to carry if the list is all you use.

Questions

Is a spreadsheet really free

In the sense this table checks, yes. If you have Excel or Google Sheets or Numbers, there is no extra charge per month to keep a sheet. Google Sheets is free with a Google account. Your phone and your laptop are costs you already have. YellowTradie checked on 24 October 2026 is £19.99 a month with 14 days free.

Can I keep my sheet if I try YellowTradie

Yes. Nothing in the app deletes a file. Keep the sheet as your backup while you run the first few jobs in the app. Export a sheet from the app for the accountant when you need a copy outside the phone.

Will my sheet chase a late customer

Not on its own. You will see that a due date has passed if you built a column for it. You will still write the message and fill in the bank details and the amount still owed. In YellowTradie the chase card appears on Home with that message already filled in, and you choose when to send.

What if I have no signal on site

Both work. A sheet that is saved to the device opens with no signal. Google Sheets needs you to turn on offline access before you need it. In YellowTradie the jobs and quotes are on the phone, so you can type a quote with no signal. A spoken phrase needs a signal to be turned into lines, but the typed form does not.

Does VAT work in a spreadsheet

You can make it work if you add the rate and the formula. You also have to keep the reverse charge right, for example removing VAT by dividing by 1.20. In the app the VAT rate is set once in Settings and the totals on quotes and invoices follow it.

What does a spreadsheet not do that the app does

A sheet does not give the customer a link to answer on. It does not keep photos and costs tied to the job without extra linking. It does not remind you when a bill is late. It does not keep a payment log that can take a part payment and show the ageing. It does not answer a question from your own records.

Related

• How we compare: what we check and how we date a price.
• Every part of the app: the full list, one line each.
• Quote by talking: speak the job and the form fills itself.

Join the list

The app is not in the shops yet. Join the list and we will tell you the day it opens. £19.99 a month, 14 days free, card needed.