Comparison

Ardovia vs ProDBX: pool builder software compared

ProDBX is a CRM, estimating, and accounting platform built for pool and fence contractors. Ardovia is built for pool builders and specialty contractors who want the software to run more of the build: price the job from formulas, run the schedule on its own, and pull the permit.

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Construction / Templates / Gunite Pool

Gunite Pool Build

Published

Welcome email—On apply

Excavation3 daysAfter permit

Steel / Rebar2 daysFS · Excavation

Gunite1 dayFS · Steel

Draw 2 requestmilestoneFS · Gunite

Final walkthrough1 dayFS · Tile

PhaseTaskChecklistEmailPaymentPOStatus

ProDBX is all-in-one business software for pool, fence, and landscape contractors built around a CRM, pricebook estimating, and built-in accounting; Ardovia is construction management software for pool builders and specialty contractors built around formula-driven pricing templates, self-running construction schedules, and a built-in permitting module.

The short answer

Both are built for pool builders, and both connect to Heritage. ProDBX centers on sales and the back office; Ardovia is pool builder software that automates the build itself.

Pick Ardovia if the build itself is your bottleneck: phases, draws, inspections, and permits. Ardovia's schedule runs each step on its own, permits are a full module, and pricing is published per location with no user minimum.

Pick ProDBX if you want accounting, payroll, and job costing in the same system, a customer or vendor portal, two-way texting, or live POOLCORP pricing today.

Comparing other tools too? See Ardovia vs Buildertrend, Ardovia vs JobTread, Ardovia vs Jobber, and our Buildertrend alternatives guide.

Construction scheduling

A pool build that schedules its own next step

ProDBX's pricing page lists phase-based project management, phase scheduling, and automations that can tell a project manager when a phase is complete. Ardovia models the whole build as a schedule template with dependencies, then runs it.

When an item's turn comes, it acts. It creates the phase on the calendar, assigns the task, sends the customer email, requests the draw, places the purchase order task, or starts the permit.

Work is assigned by role. An item set to the job's supervisor or designer finds the right person on each job, and follows the role if it changes.

Three-step phases: schedule it, confirm the crew started, confirm it finished
Payment gates that hold or flag work until a draw is paid
Inspections placed automatically before or after the right phase
Re-flow: move a phase and everything downstream moves with it, working days and all

ardovia.com / construction / Bell Residence

Construction schedule

On trackMonthTimelineTable

Week 1Week 2Week 3Week 4Week 5

Excavation

Steel / Rebar

Plumbing

Gunite

Draw 2 · paid gate

Tile & Coping

Final Walkthrough

Move a phase and everything downstream shifts with it — automatically.

Permitting

Permits handled inside the job, from application to inspection

As of November 2026, ProDBX's pricing and features pages don't list permitting or inspections. In Ardovia, permits are a full module.

Each authority having jurisdiction is a template with its real PDF forms, coverage ZIPs, timelines, and required inspections. Create a permit from the job and the application fills itself from the job and customer.

One signable packet, or separate segments for each form
A board from incomplete to submitted to issued, with review ETAs
Expiration dates and extensions calculated from the jurisdiction
Required inspections on the job's construction schedule

ardovia.com / permits

Incomplete2

Bell Residence

Travis County

Pool

Pending1

Okafor Estate

City of Austin

Building

In Progress2

Ramirez Backyard

Round Rock

Electrical

Issued4

Whitfield Pool

Williamson Co.

Pool

Drag a permit to Issued to capture its number & date — expiration is set for you

Estimating

Formulas price the pool while your designer picks options

Both tools price from a catalog. ProDBX lists an estimating pricebook with custom calculations on its Professional plan and up. Ardovia's pricing tool is a guided template where inputs like dimensions, finishes, and equipment drive every quantity through your own formulas, on every plan.

Selections are built once and reused by every template. Each option can carry data fields, like gallons per minute, that cascade through every formula that reads them. Change orders are priced from the template the job was sold with.

Catalog with markup or margin per item and per-location pricing
Price history for every cost and price change, including distributor syncs
Margin approval before any proposal below your minimum net margin goes out
Customer output you design: proposal and contract layouts with merge tags

Proposals / Builder · Bell Residence

Gunite Pool Package

Template · 3 sections

Live pricing

Pool Package

Gunite Shell — 16′ × 32′

Structure

$28,500

Tile & Coping — Travertine

Finishes

$6,800

Equipment — Pentair IntelliFlo

Equipment

$9,200

Landscaping

Pass-through

Allowance

$5,000

Spring Promo

Discount

−$2,000

Project Total$84,900

Getting started

Bring your Excel price book. AI drafts the template.

Switching software usually means rebuilding your pricing by hand. In Ardovia, upload the Excel price book you already use and AI reads every sheet, formulas included, then drafts a complete pricing template: catalog items, sections, inputs, and translated formulas.

You review every step before anything is created, and the template lands as a Draft you can test before your team quotes from it. See how Price Book Import works.

No spreadsheet? Pool builders can start from an Ardovia demo pricing template, a complete gunite and shotcrete build, with more industries coming.

Any workbook: .xlsx, .xlsm, .xlsb, .xls, or .csv, from simple price lists to multi-sheet calculators
Six reviewed steps: Upload, Analyze, Extract, Catalog, Structure, Build
No duplicates: items already in your catalog are flagged so you can link them
First 10 imports free, no opt-in needed; then a flat $20 per import

Pricing / Templates / Price Book Import

Upload

2Analyze

3Extract

4Catalog

5Structure

6Build

Pool Pricing 2026.xlsx

5 sheets · 447 rows · 304 formulas

Gunite CalcCalculator214 formulas

EquipmentPrice list38 formulas

Tile & CopingOptions12 formulas

RatesLookup table0 formulas

2024 Prices (old)Outdated40 formulas

Notes for the AI

Markup is applied on the Rates tab. Skip the 2024 sheet.

Analyzing is freeExtract template

Pool distributors

Heritage pricing and ordering inside the job

Both platforms connect to pool distributors. ProDBX lists live Heritage and SCP/POOLCORP pricing on its Essential plan and up. Ardovia's Heritage integration is live for pricing and ordering from purchase orders; POOLCORP is coming soon.

Financials / Heritage Orders

Heritage order · PO-10044

Sent as an electronic order

Shipped

Branch pricing applied · order submitted

Tracking 1Z·9F4·22R · ETA Thursday

Invoice synced to a linked Bill

Product linking & pricing live today · direct distributor ordering rolling out

Side by side

Back office first vs build first

Both approaches work. The question is where your team spends its hours.

ProDBX, per its pricing page

Run sales, fulfillment, and accounting in one system

Pricebook estimating with custom calculations
Work orders and purchase orders from the contract
Built-in accounting, payroll, and commissions on Enterprise
No permitting module listed

Ardovia

Build the template once, then let it run every job

Formulas price each pool from dimensions and options
A schedule template runs every phase, payment, and inspection
Items create tasks, emails, and draw requests on their own
Permits come from jurisdiction templates, pre-filled from the job

ProDBX pricing vs Ardovia pricing

ProDBX prices per user with minimums. Ardovia prices per location with users included.

	Ardovia	ProDBX
How it's priced	Flat plan per location, users included	Per user, per month, by plan
Entry plan	$249/month Single User, every feature	Basic $19/user/month (CRM only), shown free under an introductory promo
Team plans	Team $399/month for one location with 5 users; Enterprise $499 per location	Essential $59, Professional $99, Enterprise $139 per user/month
User minimums	None	5 users on Essential and Professional; 10 on Enterprise
Additional users	$20/user/month	Each user is billed at the plan rate
Promotional pricing	None	$39 / $79 / $119 per user for the first 6 months, new customers only
Annual billing	About 20% less than monthly	Not listed on its pricing page
Feature gating	Every feature in every plan	Features unlock by plan; customer portal and built-in accounting on Enterprise
Free trial	14 days, cancel anytime	Not listed on its pricing page
Usage charges	E-signature requests at $1.50 each	Email over 1,000/month and SMS over 100/month billed per message

Competitor details checked November 2026 from their public websites; plans change — confirm on ProDBX's pricing page. Ardovia prices are on our plans page.

What a 10-person pool company pays

On ProDBX, pricebook estimating and job costing start on Professional. Ten users at $99 is $990 per month at the listed rate, or $790 per month during the six-month introductory promo.

On Ardovia's Team plan, one location with 10 users costs $399 plus five users at $20, or $499 per month. That includes the permits module, construction scheduling, training, dispatch, and every other feature.

ProDBX's Enterprise plan adds built-in accounting, payroll, and a customer portal that Ardovia doesn't have. If those replace other software you pay for, count that in the comparison.

Ardovia vs ProDBX vs Buildertrend at a glance

	Ardovia	ProDBX	Buildertrend
Best fit	Pool builders and specialty design-build contractors; multi-location companies	Pool, fence, and landscape contractors wanting CRM plus accounting	Established home builders running 5+ projects a year
Published pricing	Yes - from $249/month	Yes - per user with minimums	No; custom quote
Estimating	Formula-driven pricing templates	Pricebook with custom calculations (Professional+)	Estimates, takeoff, and bids
Import your existing Excel price book	Yes - AI-assisted import, formulas included; or start from a pool builder demo template	Manual setup	Manual setup
Self-running construction schedule	Yes - with payment gates and inspections	Phase scheduling and automations	Templates, dependencies, critical path
Permitting module	Yes	Not listed on its pricing or features page	Not listed; permits attach as files
Pool distributors	Heritage live; POOLCORP coming soon	Heritage and SCP/POOLCORP live pricing	Not listed on its pricing page
Customer portal	No; documents by email, e-signature by link	Yes - on Enterprise	Yes
Vendor or sub portal	No	Yes - Essential and up	Yes
Online payments	Coming soon (Bill.com)	Yes - via Authorize.NET	Yes - (US only)
Two-way text messaging	Coming soon	Yes	Not listed on its pricing page
QuickBooks Online	Two-way sync	One-way: customers and invoices to QuickBooks	Two-way sync
Built-in accounting and payroll	Job financials and costing; accounting via QuickBooks Online	Yes - on Enterprise	Integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, and Gusto
Call tracking	Yes - tracking numbers by lead source	Not listed on its features page	Not listed on its pricing page
Training courses and quizzes	Yes - courses and quizzes for your own team	Not listed on its features page	Not listed on its pricing page
Sales leaderboard	Yes - live sales rankings against goals	Not listed on its features page	Not listed on its pricing page
Dispatch	Yes - drag-and-drop dispatch board	Yes - calendars, GPS routing, and dispatch	Not listed on its pricing page
Mobile apps	Web, iOS, and Android	Cloud-based, from any device; no native app named	iOS and Android
Free trial	Yes - 14 days	Not listed on its pricing page	No; demos instead

Competitor details checked November 2026 from their public websites; plans change — confirm on ProDBX's pricing page, ProDBX's features page, and Buildertrend's pricing page.

No add-ons

The rest of the business, already built in

Every Ardovia plan includes the tools growing pool companies usually buy separately.

Training & quizzes

Onboard new hires with courses, quizzes, and progress tracking.

Dispatch board

Plan the week by dragging tasks onto days and crews.

Leaderboard

Live sales rankings paced against goals.

Call tracking

Tracking numbers by lead source, tied to the lead.

Checklists

Field checklists with photos and signatures.

Daily logs

A searchable record of every day on site.

Online booking

Customers book consultations from real availability.

Territories

Route leads to the right location by ZIP code.

Reviews

Google Business Profile reviews, synced.

Warranty

Claims, coverage, and installed equipment.

Estimates vs actuals

Variance by cost category on every job.

Reporting

Dashboards for leads, sales, and jobs.

Where ProDBX is strong

ProDBX is built for pool contractors, and it shows. Its pool page lists ready-made pool templates and pricebooks on signup, pool industry specialists, and 1-on-1 live training. Its pricing page says every plan includes 100% US-based support.

It also covers more of the back office. Its Enterprise plan includes built-in accounting with banking and reconciliation, check printing, timecards and payroll, and commission tracking. It lists two-way texting, a vendor portal on Essential and up, a customer portal on Enterprise, and live SCP/POOLCORP pricing alongside Heritage.

If a customer or vendor portal, texting, online payments, or POOLCORP pricing are must-haves today, ProDBX has them and Ardovia does not yet. Note that ProDBX's QuickBooks integration is one-way and doesn't sync payments.

See one of your pools priced, scheduled, and permitted

Bring a recent pool estimate to a demo. We'll rebuild it as a pricing template and show the schedule and permit that follow the signed contract.

Book a demo

Frequently asked questions

Is Ardovia a good ProDBX alternative for pool builders?

Ardovia is a strong ProDBX alternative for pool builders whose bottleneck is running the build. It prices pools from formula-driven templates, runs construction schedules whose items create tasks, emails, and draw requests automatically, includes a built-in permitting module, and syncs two ways with QuickBooks Online. ProDBX may fit better if you want built-in accounting and payroll, a customer or vendor portal, two-way texting, or live POOLCORP pricing today.

How much does ProDBX cost?

As of November 2026, ProDBX's pricing page lists per-user monthly plans: Basic at $19, Essential at $59, Professional at $99, and Enterprise at $139 per user. Essential and Professional require at least 5 users and Enterprise at least 10. New customers can get introductory rates of $39, $79, and $119 per user for the first six months, and the Basic plan is shown as free under the same promo.

Does ProDBX have a permitting module?

As of November 2026, ProDBX's pricing and features pages do not list permitting or inspections. Ardovia includes a permits module with jurisdiction templates, pre-filled applications, signable packets, a permit board, expiration tracking, and inspections placed on the job's construction schedule.

Does ProDBX integrate with QuickBooks?

Yes, on its Essential plan and up. ProDBX's QuickBooks page says the integration is one-way: it creates a basic customer record and deposit, addendum, and progress-payment invoices in QuickBooks, and it does not sync payments. Ardovia's QuickBooks Online integration sends invoices, change orders, payments, bills, receipts, and purchase orders to QuickBooks with each job as a QuickBooks Project, and brings payments entered in QuickBooks back into Ardovia.

Do ProDBX and Ardovia connect to pool distributors?

Yes. ProDBX lists live pricing from Heritage and SCP/POOLCORP on its Essential plan and up. Ardovia's Heritage integration is live for product pricing and ordering, and its POOLCORP integration is coming soon.

Does Ardovia have a customer portal like ProDBX?

No. Ardovia does not have a customer portal; customers receive proposals, contracts, and invoices by email and sign electronically through a secure link. ProDBX lists a customer portal on its Enterprise plan.

Can I move from ProDBX to Ardovia?

Yes. Ardovia includes onboarding assistance and a 14-day free trial. A practical path is to import the Excel price book you price from as an Ardovia pricing template with the AI-assisted Price Book Import (or start from Ardovia's pool builder demo template), rebuild your build process as a schedule template, then move active jobs over.

Can I import my Excel price book into Ardovia?

Yes. Ardovia's AI-assisted Price Book Import reads the Excel price book you already use (.xlsx, .xlsm, .xlsb, .xls, or .csv), including its formulas, and drafts a complete pricing template with catalog items, sections, inputs, and translated formulas. You review each step before anything is created, and the template is saved as a Draft. Each account's first 10 imports are free, then each import is $20. Pool builders can also start from an Ardovia demo pricing template.

See Ardovia run one of your pool builds

Start a 14-day free trial, or book a demo and bring a recent proposal.