STACK Reviews

Pros
This product is incredibly simple to use, but a very powerful tool. The calendar makes organizing projects by due date easy. You can quickly see what's coming up and space them out when a larger project takes more time. The search function to find past projects is imperative. Doing takeoffs is much easier now. I can export final dwgs and reports so that my sales rep can go back and see exactly what I quoted and where. All the work is saved so I can back and reference it or change it if plans change. The lines and symbols are easy to read and quick to set up. You can dimension the plans when needed and add call outs. The cloud tool is useful for items I have a question about. I can even copy and paste a line several times instead of having to draw it out each time. Being able to add labels to the takeoff is crucial. It makes my quotes much more powerful when I say exactly where I found each product. It also helps if there is a change to the plan later. I can easily remove one section by using the Geometric Report instead of having to dig through all the plans. The ability to use two screens is awesome! When I find a particular detail and have to match it to the plan, it is much easier to have one screen with the detail and one with the plan.

Cons
Some things are not customizable. I can't change the default dimension color or size. But once you set it, it remembers the changes for that page only. I can't rearrange the sheets with the tabs on top. I have to open them in the order I need. So if I find a detail on another sheet, I may have to close some tabs and them reopen them in the order I need. It does integrate with Excel reports, but Excel charges a monthly subscription for that. I am also waiting for the symbol search tool.

Rating breakdown

Pros
The functions and takeoff procedures has really helped speed up my takeoff process.

Cons
The web based software sometimes leads to lags/glitches when zooming in and out. If you zoom in and do your take off then zoom out to continue your takeoff it does not start your take off right away, and you have to click twice to initiate the new takeoff.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
We run multiple computers from multiple locations. With our old software it was desktop based and was not accessible remotely. Also our old program requiered Parallels to run on Mac. With Stack. we can access from any mobile device, laptop and desktop that has internet. It has been a real game changer for us.

Cons
The only Con is you are charged by user. If you have a single account Only one person can be logged on. So if say a guy in the field need to access a take off we did. I can not be logged on at the same time. But with that said any good program will not be cheap to own.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
Foe years I had thought about utilizing a symbol based estimating take off software because we were moving from paper to the digital world. I randomly found this online about 9 months ago. It is everything I would have done. It makes sense because it stores all your basis of the estimate information electronically and you no lounger have to use paper. The cost of Paper alone pays for the service as I estimate in our business model that each contracts salesman was expending roughly $5,000 per year in document printing. The other benefit for us is that because it is electronically stored we no longer have to go through our offices every three months and disposed of all the paper on projects we did not get. Or God knows you deep six a project and the following week you get a call to review the project for contracting and other than your estimate spread sheet you have no visual layout to look at for reference. So you print it out again and then re lay out the devices and bulk materials.

Cons
For me it actually does everything I want it to do other than integration into actual building of estimates. I know that we have that capability but this a cost intensive project for each contractor. Obviously this is not a deal breaker though and perhaps in the future you could offer templates that are patterned after specific industries which would lower the cost of developing the complete estimating solution.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
Stack Estimating allows a very flexible approach to take offs and preparing estimates. I've been using this software for just over a year and had previously used another software with other companies. Stack is fairly streamlined, allows multiple options, and organizes your quantities in a way that is very user friendly and easy to manage.

Cons
I find myself frustrated with creating my take off library before starting a project. There are many options, but it would be nice to be able to set some defaults when creating items. For example, when creating a count item, it automatically generates a 'Medium' check mark with 'Medium' line weight. With every count item, I am changing this to 'Small' and 'Small' because the current default obstructs too much of the plan. They have a library that you can set, but every plan has different items so I can only use the library for so much.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 7/10

Pros
It is an online platform comparing to other company that are not . The way to print-to-pdf a drawing with takeoff .

Cons
Cannot put pricing on takeoff without doing assemblies

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 7/10

Pros
It's better than a lot of other take-off software. Is in colour and is easily printable. The support is always there.

Cons
There are many things OST does that Stack does not. 1. Being able to select the dimensions of the 'count' function. ie; 2000x500mm rectangle. 2. Being able to re-assign a measurement to another measurement. ie; I measured an area for 10 minutes as turf but it was actually garden. Select the area, right click, re-assign to garden. This means you don't have to delete the item and waste more time. 3. Being able to overlay plans. ie; Your client issues a new set of plans and you need to check the difference between the old and the new. 4. Being able to calculate multiple measurements in one. ie; I want a m2 area with my measurement so I can calculate mulch however, this is in a planterbox and I also need to calculate the soil depth as well as drainage cell to walls so I really need m2, m3 and perimeter functions all engaged. 5. We're not interested in Stack Estimating as it is all Microsoft excel based, like most other programs, making it only based on rates, rather than being able to adjust accordingly for site constraints using different machinery and access requirements. 6. Your legend key needs updating. It doesn't fit correctly on the page nicely.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 5/10

Pros
The software is intuitive and efficient.

Cons
It is cumbersome to add specificity to the measurements, such as specific brick or stone dimensions for different coursing.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
I like how easy it is to upload plans and set my own scale is needed.

Cons
I would like to be able to do a fill or select a colour/legend to show a pattern of materials

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
Quick Take off's good for team work and sharing

Cons
Tech. problems uploading Sometime screen blacks out and has to reloaded

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
Just Inputting and using program to enter ships and drawings of ships in for each class of ship we are working on. once more jobs are entered would like to end up witha square foot to S data base so in futur we can ask how many sqare foot pf bilge in the AMR on a WMSL Class ship and wbhat did we charge as an average for painting by square foot. Now have Started to measure 2s square footage but have not seen or understand hoe to correlate that to job. Much less how to enter it and pull it out to make a bid I supose that will come in time. First we are verifying what we have and then there will be more data base building from old and new bids as we go , including machinery and equipment needs to use and the material required. The we should be able ask " the customer want us to paint the forward bulkead in the bosn locke dark ble using xxx paint prepared to SSPC SP10 what will the cost be for bid... hpw much profit can we make and also what is the average marie rate for that.

Cons
AS I explained above new at it and have not yet gotten to the point of being a well trained user of it. Howevr it has bothered me when i set in a PDF print use the stated scale and do noy get a known answer ...>>>>>Just Inputting and using program to enter ships and drawings of ships in for each class of ship we are working on. once more jobs are entered would like to end up witha square foot to S data base so in futur we can ask howmany sqare foot pf bilge in the AMR on a WMSL Class ship and wbhat did we charge as an average for painting by square foot. Now have Started to measure 2s square footage but have not seen or understand hoe to correlate that to job. Much less how to enter it and pull it out to make a bid I supose thst will come in time. First we are verifying what we have and then there will be more data base building from old and new bids as we go , including machinery and equipment needs to use and the material required. The we shold be able ask " the customer want us to paint the fwd bulkead in the bosn locke dark ble using xxx paint prepared to SSPC SP10 what will the cost be for bid... hpw much profit can we make and also what is the average marie rate for that.Workin the marine industry in a land familiar setting.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 5/10

Pros
We looked for a very long time for a very simple takeoff program and this is definitely it. We have used this program for the past year and a half to get measurements on masonry and it has not failed us. Our trade does not need super advanced features so this suites us perfectly. If you have a properly scaled PDF then you can hit the ground running for your measurements. Otherwise, determining your own scale is very simple to do and I've even taken pictures of blueprints with my phone to roughly estimate one of our simpler prints in under 10 prints from the camera snapping. Amazing.

Cons
Due to this program being available online only sometimes it can be finicky if you have a poor internet connection or if there is some sort of (extremely rare) maintenance. As stated earlier, we use this for masonry so it does not need advanced features. But as with all estimating, you will still need a basic knowledge of your trade's quirks. If you can't see a wall on an elevation because it is returning into the building then you will need to approximately draw it in under your elevation based off of a foundation plan or floor plan. Not super hard but it just will not do all of the work for you.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
The greatest feature is the ease of use. They kept it simple for the take-off, genius on the auto-save. Of course, the cloud-based feature. No more bringing home the laptop, cables, plans, specs. Quick uploads and tons of memory for those large jobs.

Cons
Had issues with Silverlight running on MAC in earlier versions. ( wasn't a huge deal and I believe when Stack took over they fixed the bugs). I'd like to see options when drawing a linear measurement to have various dashes or hashes for lines would be helpful. For example, on other platforms I could indicate through-wall cf with a red dotted line while below do a solid line indicating another linear measurement such as expansion joint. You would then be able to visually identify to different terminations on the same linear measurement. Just a suggestion.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
First and foremost, I enjoy the takeoff speed and accuracy Stack affords our estimating department. Simply by clicking a link on a plan exchange site, or quickly uploading plans, we can begin a highly detailed accurate takeoff in minutes if not seconds. Likewise, we can complete our takeoff much faster than traditional methods saving valuable time to analyze our bids post takeoff.

Cons
Like any good cost hawk, I would highlight price as my least favorite aspect of Stack Software; though I will say the product represents good value for the price! I would like to see Stack offer the complete product in one package, without the present tiered pricing.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
The use of pop-ups when you "Mouse-Over" items is very effective, makes things very intuitive, lessens time-to-learn how to use the system.

Cons
Need to have more than 50 characters when naming take-off items, at least 100 characters.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
Constant Upgrades, high level of customer service, user friendly and very detailed reports and takeoffs.

Cons
You cannot copy an entire project. Also, you can't download all the plans at once. You are able to export marked up files but if you want to download the entire plans that you have uploaded (in case you deleted the original files) you will have to select each plan to download; very time consuming.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
For me it has to be the speed at which it allows me to get through a large scale take-off. The way I can customize my labels makes it easy for me to separate areas and alternates for each individual project, and then sort them and pull information from with in those labels easily and quickly.

Cons
Not many Cons, but it would be nice to be able to use my delete key on my key board once I have takeoff highlighted versus highlighting the take off then going over to the menu bar and then taking the cursor down to the delete function. It would also be nice to hold down command/cntrl key and select multiple take offs to copy and or delete. Finally being able to highlight a takeoff area and change what that take-off is with out deleting it and re- drawing it, this would be a huge time saver for me when dealing with addendum and design team changes.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
My team loves how easy the program is to use and track projects. The measuring and estimating capabilities of this program are fantastic.

Cons
I am displeased with the fact that several years ago we subscribed when the software was in its infancy and the rates seem to continue to take drastic jumps each time we are due for renewal. Additional, we spent countless hours a few years back to put in all the formulas for the assemblies program and after spending all the time to create them, when it was time for renewal if we wanted to keep access to all of "our" formulas we had to pay an additional fee to keep the work we created.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
Cloud Storage, Takeoff Storage, Calendar, Accumulating Units of Measurement, Customer Support, Copy/Paste, Upload Times, Legend, Highlight, Labels, Auto-load from Smartbidnet ITB's, able to view takeoffs from mobile version & able to view other user's takeoffs on our account.

Cons
Going through the plan pages seems cumbersome at times. I wish Stack could go back to the Cloud Takeoff Silverlight version, much better UI. Not being able to reorganize the plan sheet tabs by a left click and drag, have to close each one of them down and then go through the correct page sequence to display in the order you want. Chrome issue of having to multi select every item you want to quickly delete. Not being able to share a takeoff instantly, instead we have to download the plan into a PDF and send the PDF.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
I love how easy STACK is to use. I literally can hop on my computer and generate a takeoff and reports of a pretty complex drawing within minutes. I don't have to calculate anything, as this software does the math for me. Additionally, I haven't had to ever use technical support for STACK because it's always live and working when I am, but there is always a button to talk to a representative present on the screen in case I do run into trouble. Another thing I love, is that it's online browser-based, and I never have to worry about saving anything. It automatically saves wherever I have left off on a project. Speaking of projects, STACK also allows one to organize different projects on it's calendar very easily, and things can also be edited/changed/deleted efficiently. Without STACK my job would be a lot harder, and take a lot longer. I'm not even sure that I've taken advantage of everything that STACK has to offer, but as you can see, I am thrilled for what I use it for. I am fairly new to this application, and career, but as you can see, I love it. I'm sure it has paid for itself many times over.

Cons
Sometimes STACK can lag a bit, but I'm willing to say that it has to do with some of the drawings/prints that I have had to upload there, and not necessarily the fault of the STACK application.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
Stack is a great product for doing takeoffs efficiently and at a great price. The features that come with it are great, and they are constantly adding new ones. I love the fact that you get immediate attention from the developers whenever you have a question or comment. The only thing better than their product it the customer service!

Cons
It can be a little buggy when using different browsers. If I remember correctly , I was using Firefox and had problems, they told me to switch to Chrome, and when I started getting comfortable with Chrome I started having issues and they told me to switch to Firefox! I currently use Chrome, and there can occasionally be a little bug here or there (ex. trying to select one of my items to edit - hint: use the multiselect!).

Rating breakdown

Pros
We appreciate the ability of the software to quickly set up new projects and to get started working on them as soon as we receive work orders from our clients; the ability to see the underlying plan sheet on which were working is a hidden benefit - we often find ourselves using Stack as a plan review tool as well as a takeoff tool. The mobility of the view on the screen is most helpful - zooming in and out is especially useful. Our clients appreciate our ability to provide them plan sheets marked up with the takeoffs quantities visibly highlighted and in legend format.

Cons
We are civil estimators, and we frequently have the need to perform earthwork takeoffs from cross sections. Sadly, Stack does not yet have the ability to set dual scales (horizontal and vertical) that allow area takeoffs on cross sectional views. This is a feature improvement we've suggested many times when our product reps call us to check in with us periodically (which we appreciate), so we hope this becomes a new feature in the near future.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
It is easy to use this is first and foremost because we have staff with different levels of comfort with computers. Next it is still powerful and allows us to get all the information we need for an accurate and confident estimate. With the information you generate in STACK you can do a very accurate estimate versus actual job cost at the end as well to see how you are doing and what areas of your business may need work or training.

Cons
I do still wish we could have Profit and Overhead calculated and even take an estimate to its completion with an estimate writer, however I know these things are being looked at and I hope to see them soon.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
The program is easy to use out of the box/ The real magic is in the custom assemblies. You can create anything you're looking for. At first, these custom assemblies are cumbersome to set up. But once they are set up, taking off a project is almost automated. Add in some nifty features like different scales on the same drawing page, multipliers for different layers, multitool select for deleting and copying... We are very happy with this product for on-screen take-offs. The new excel template recently released is also great.

Cons
Honestly, there's always going to be something an end user wants but most of the things we want are things that are too difficult to apply universally. For example, we would love to see the ability to alter pricing and structure of existing assemblies but the only way to do that is to make it custom. We understand why, because all users draw from these assemblies. What would be nice is to copy groups within a stack assembly.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10

Pros
This software is the most user friendly software i have used. It does not matter what form the drawings are in. I can scale and take off a scanned set of drawings just as easily as i can with a downloaded set of drawings. I have a few pdf programs downloaded which i can scale to which do not require me to upload anything. However if i can afford the opportunity i always prefer to load the drawings into stacked for scaling and takeoff.

Cons
One of my least favorite features is the "Auto Name" function. This feature tends to need a bit more work. Granted there is the option to manually name each page; which is fine for small projects with just a few sheets. However the larger jobs this is just tedious and time consuming.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 10/10