Software reviews

Yes. Bills in Xero can be saved as Awaiting Approval, and a user with the right permission approves them before payment. It is a single approval step with no rules by amount, supplier or project, and the Ignite plan only lets you enter 10 bills a month. Firms that need several approvers or project-based routing add an app such as ApprovalMax or Planyard.

For a construction firm that only needs bills and purchase orders approved in Xero or QuickBooks, ApprovalMax is a strong, inexpensive choice with unlimited approvers. It does not hold project budgets, subcontracts, valuations or retention, so contractors who want each invoice checked against the job usually pair it with a cost control tool or use Planyard instead. Our ApprovalMax vs Planyard comparison goes through the differences.

Approve the amount before the invoice arrives. The subcontractor applies for payment, the QS or project manager values the work, retention and any CIS deduction are set, and the subcontractor then invoices the certified amount. The invoice approval step checks that the invoice matches what was certified. Software that links the application, the certificate and the invoice to the same subcontract makes that check quick.

Prices in this guide run from about £24 a month for Dext, through £35.83 to £43 a month per organisation for ApprovalMax, to £130 and up for Lightyear and £159 for Zahara. Planyard includes invoice approval workflows in its Professional plan at £123 per project manager per month, with cost control in the same price. Rillion and Archdesk price on application.

Yes. Some contractors keep Dext for receipts and high-volume capture and use Planyard for invoices that belong to a project, where they need to be matched to an order and approved against the budget. See Dext vs Planyard for how the two split the work.