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Autopilot vs Orcatec
Orcatec is a freemium home services platform covering 40+ trades, with a free entry plan and pay-as-you-go pricing for paid features. Autopilot plans start at $49 a month, and the $149 Full Throttle plan includes the full phone system, AI receptionist, QuickBooks, GPS, and marketing tools.
The Orcatec alternative that answers your phone
The numbers that decide it, side by side.
| Comparison point |  |  Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $49/mo flat | Free plan; paid features pay as you go |
| Team members included | 1, 5, or 10 by plan | Reported ~$10/user pay as you go |
| Free trial | 2 weeks, no card required | Free plan available |
| Onboarding fee | $0 | $0, onboarding included |
| Contract | Month to month, cancel anytime | Not published |
| AI receptionist | Full Throttle, $149/mo | No (AI route optimizer only) |
| Full business phone system | Full Throttle, $149/mo | Call tracking and recording; full VoIP not advertised |
| Support | Human support chat, no ticket queue | Included, even on the free plan |
Last updated July 2026. Orcatec details are based on publicly available information; verify with Orcatec.
Who is Orcatec?
Orcatec is a small, privately held home services management platform that leads with an unusual pitch: a genuinely free plan, with onboarding and support included. It covers a wide sweep of features across 40+ trades, including scheduling and dispatch, estimates, invoicing, QuickBooks sync, GPS tracking, text messaging, call recording, review management, consumer financing, and an AI route optimizer that suggests the best tech, date, and time for a job.
Paid pricing is not clearly published on the site. Third-party listings describe a pay-as-you-go model reported around $10 per user, where you pay only for the functionality you turn on. There is no public API.
Free is a real price, and for a solo operator counting every dollar, Orcatec is worth a look. The tradeoffs are the usual ones with freemium software from a small vendor: the useful features sit behind the paid meter, the pricing you will actually pay takes a conversation to pin down, and there is no AI answering your phone when you are under a sink.
Who is Autopilot?
Autopilot is an all-in-one CRM built for home service businesses: junk removal, cleaning, landscaping, moving, and the rest of the trades that keep neighborhoods running. Plans start at $49 a month for scheduling, estimates, invoicing, payments, and online booking. Crew at $99 adds two-way texting and limited calling. Full Throttle at $149 adds the full phone system, AI receptionist, QuickBooks, GPS, and marketing tools. Plans include 1, 5, or 10 team members respectively.
It was built by a founder who ran his own junk removal company and got tired of paying for three tools that didn't talk to each other. Over 400 businesses run on it today, and it holds a 4.8 rating on the App Store and 4.9 on Google Play.
Autopilot plans start at $49 a month, and the $149 Full Throttle plan includes the full phone system, AI receptionist, QuickBooks, GPS, and marketing tools.
Feature by feature
Not just checkmarks. Where a feature costs extra or sits on a higher plan, the table says so.
Phone & AI
| Comparison point | | Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| AI receptionist that answers and books calls | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| Built-in business phone (VoIP) | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Call tracking; full phone system not advertised |
| Call recording & transcripts | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| AI call summaries | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| Two-way business texting | Crew and Full Throttle |
Scheduling & Jobs
| Comparison point | | Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| Drag-and-drop scheduling & dispatch | ||
| Online booking | ||
| Estimates & quotes | ||
| Client & lead management | ||
| iOS & Android crew app | 4.8 App Store / 4.9 Google Play | iOS & Android apps |
Payments & Money
| Comparison point | | Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing & payments | ||
| Tap to Pay on iPhone | Card reader offered | |
| QuickBooks sync | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| Price book | Price pages tool | |
| Customer tipping | Not advertised |
Marketing & Growth
| Comparison point | | Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| Review funnel | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| SMS blast campaigns | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| Email blast campaigns | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| Automated marketing sequences | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| Google Ads tracking | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
Where Orcatec goes deeper
| Comparison point | | Orcatec |
|---|---|---|
| Free entry plan | Free 2-week trial, then $49/mo | |
| Consumer financing offers | ||
| Job costing & payroll commissions |
An honest comparison cuts both ways. If these are must-haves for your business today, Orcatec earns the look.
What you actually pay
Autopilot
- Starter$49/mo
- Crew$99/mo
- Full Throttle$149/mo
Clear plans for 1, 5, or 10 team members. No onboarding fee or annual contract. Free 2-week trial.
Orcatec
- Free$0
Core features, onboarding and support included
- Pay as you goReported ~$10/user
Pay only for features you enable
Orcatec's paid pricing is not clearly published. Third-party listings report a pay-as-you-go model around $10 per user where you pay per enabled feature, so the real monthly cost depends on which features you turn on.
Last updated July 2026. Orcatec details are based on publicly available information; verify with Orcatec.
The bottom line
Two different tools for two different businesses. Here is the honest split.
Choose Orcatec if…
- You are a solo operator who needs working software at zero dollars a month
- You want to pay per feature instead of a bundled plan
- You want consumer financing offers and job costing in a budget tool
- You are willing to trade polish and a public roadmap for the price
Choose Autopilot if…
- You miss calls on jobs and want an AI receptionist answering and booking them
- You want a real business phone with a free local number, not just call tracking
- You want one flat published price, $49 a month, instead of a per-feature meter
- You want SMS and email campaigns and automated sequences, not just review requests
- You want an app your crew will actually like: 4.8 on the App Store, 4.9 on Google Play
Switching from Orcatec takes an afternoon
Four steps, and our team does the heavy one for you.
- 1
Export your customers
Pull your client list out of Orcatec as a CSV. Every FSM platform supports this, and it takes about five minutes.
- 2
We import everything for you
Send us the file and our team loads your customers, jobs, and price book into Autopilot as part of free onboarding. No spreadsheet wrestling on your end.
- 3
Point your phone number at Autopilot
On Full Throttle, keep your existing business number. We port it or forward it, so calls start landing in Autopilot with recording, transcripts, and the AI receptionist behind them.
- 4
Run both for a week, then cut over
Your Orcatec account keeps working during your free trial. Most crews book their first Autopilot job on day one and cancel the old subscription within the month.
- 400+
- businesses run on Autopilot
- 4.9
- Google Play rating
- 4.8
- App Store rating
- $49
- per month starting price
Autopilot vs Orcatec: your questions
The things owners actually ask before they switch.
Try the Orcatec alternative built for your crew
Start a free 2-week trial and book your first job today. No credit card, no onboarding fee, no contract.
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Orcatec is a trademark of Orcatec. Autopilot is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Orcatec. Competitor pricing and feature information is based on publicly available sources as of July 2026 and may have changed; features missing from a plan may be available on higher plans or for an additional fee. Confirm details with the vendor before buying.