QuoteSmith vs Fergus
Which Is Better for UK Tradespeople?

Overview

Fergus is a cloud-based job management platform built in New Zealand. It is designed for trade businesses that need to manage the full lifecycle of a job, from initial quote through to scheduling, time tracking, purchasing, and invoicing. Fergus has grown a strong following among plumbers, electricians, and HVAC contractors, particularly in New Zealand and Australia.

QuoteSmith takes a completely different approach. Rather than trying to manage every aspect of your business, it focuses on one thing: helping you create professional, branded proposals using AI. You enter your job details and line items, and the AI generates a complete proposal with a detailed scope of work, project timeline, payment terms, and terms and conditions. The result is a polished PDF ready to send to your client.

The question is simple. Do you need a full business management system, or do you need a faster way to win quotes? If quoting is your bottleneck, QuoteSmith is purpose-built for that.

Pricing

Fergus uses per-user pricing that starts at around $55 NZD per user per month (approximately £27). However, the cost adds up fast as your team grows. A team of three would pay roughly £81/month, and that is before any add-ons or premium features. Fergus also offers tiered plans with different feature sets, so you may need a higher-priced plan to access everything.

QuoteSmith is a flat £19.99 per month with no per-user charges, no tiers, and no hidden fees. QuoteSmith Starter is £9.99 per month. For sole traders and small teams focused on winning more work through better proposals, QuoteSmith is significantly more affordable.

Quoting Features

Fergus includes quoting as part of its broader platform. You can create quotes using templates and price lists, and send them to clients for approval. However, you still need to write the actual content yourself. There is no AI assistance for drafting scope of work descriptions, terms, or project narratives. You type everything manually or copy from previous quotes.

QuoteSmith's AI engine is its core feature. You provide the job details - type of work, property details, your line items - and the AI writes a professional proposal for you. It generates a detailed scope of work using correct trade terminology, a realistic project timeline, payment schedules, and comprehensive terms and conditions. This is not a fill-in-the-blank template. It is genuinely tailored content for each job. Most proposals are generated in under two minutes.

UK Focus

Fergus was designed for the New Zealand and Australian markets before expanding globally. While it supports GBP and can be used by UK businesses, it is not specifically tailored to UK building regulations, terminology, or industry standards. Terms and templates use a more generic international approach.

QuoteSmith is built specifically for UK tradespeople. All AI-generated content uses British terminology, references UK building regulations and standards, includes proper VAT calculations at 20%, and produces proposals that read as if they were written by someone who understands the UK construction industry. It supports 18+ trade types common in the UK market.

Ease of Use

Fergus is a comprehensive platform, and with that comes complexity. Setting up your account involves configuring job types, price lists, team members, workflows, and templates. Most users report needing one to two hours for initial setup, plus ongoing time to learn the scheduling and invoicing modules. There is a learning curve, especially for those not used to business management software.

QuoteSmith is designed for speed. Sign up, enter your company details, and create your first proposal in under two minutes. There are no modules to configure, no workflows to set up, and no training required. If you can fill in a simple form, you can use QuoteSmith.

Best For

Choose Fergus if: You need a complete job management system with scheduling, time tracking, purchasing, and invoicing. You have a growing team and want one platform to run your entire operation.

Choose QuoteSmith if: Your biggest challenge is creating professional quotes and proposals quickly. You want AI to write the content for you, you want UK-specific formatting and terminology, and you want to start quoting in minutes without a steep learning curve. At £19.99/month flat, it is also the more affordable option for sole traders and small teams.