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Pool service software, side by side.
Orbit beside the six tools pool companies ask us about. Every fact about another product comes from that product's own website, checked October 2026. Where they do not publish something, the cell says so instead of guessing.
Pool service software
Built for
Pool and spa service companies
Skimmer is the most widely used pool service app. It bills per serviced location, so the bill grows with every pool you add, and route optimization, quotes and checklists sit on the higher plan.
Built for
Medium to large pool companies
Pool Brain is deep, pool-specific software priced per active field tech. It has the longest feature list of the pool apps, including a dosing calculator, purchase orders and a customer portal.
Built for
Seasonal pool service and repair
Pool Office Manager is one plan priced per active user, with dosing suggestions and a saturation index built in. QuickBooks sync and customer texting are paid add-ons, and the trial needs a card.
Built for
Routes, chemicals and customers
PoolTrac charges $1 per visited location with a $30 minimum and includes unlimited users, a client portal and QuickBooks. Invoicing and payments are not on its plan list.
Field service software
Built for
Home service pros in every industry
Jobber is general field service software for lawn care, cleaning, HVAC and pools alike. It is polished and well supported, and it knows nothing about water chemistry, bodies of water or filter cleans.
Built for
Home service businesses
Housecall Pro is general home service software with strong booking, estimates and payments. Routes and QuickBooks start on Essentials, route optimization and recurring service plans only on Max.
The two pool apps most people are switching from.
Skimmer and Pool Brain, feature by feature, next to Orbit.
| Feature |  | Skimmer | Pool Brain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | |||
| How you payWhat the monthly bill is based on | Flat $39 to $139. First tech included, $30 per extra tech | Per serviced location, $1 to $2 each, $49 or $98 minimum | Per active field tech |
| Pools or locationsAny cap on pools or locations | Unlimited on every plan | Billed per location | Unlimited |
| Office usersOwner and office staff | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Free trial | 30 days, no card | One free month, usage over 49 locations billed | 30 days |
| Contract | Month to month, cancel any time | Not published | Not published |
| Card processingWhat the processor charges you | Stripe's standard rate, nothing added | Not published | Not published |
| Routes and scheduling | |||
| Route optimizationReorder a day by distance | Every plan | Scaling Up and above | |
| Route map with progressDone and pending stops on the map | Not published | ||
| Cover a dayHand a route to another tech for one day without touching the weekly route | Not published | ||
| Recurring serviceWeekly stops generated from the service day | |||
| Filter clean schedulingCleans come due from the last clean and the interval | Not published | ||
| Calendar with repairs, events and time off | Every plan, phone feed on Pro | ||
| Field app | |||
| Works without signalLogs save on the phone and sync when signal returns | |||
| Readings per body of waterPool, spa, fountain, each with its own log | 2 on Starter, 5 on Pro, unlimited on Business | ||
| Dosing calculator in the appSoftware tells the tech what to add | — | Scaling Up and above | |
| Photos per visit | Unlimited | 5 on Getting Started, 20 on Scaling Up | Unlimited |
| Time clockClock in and out, hours to a timesheet | Pro and up | Not published | |
| Truck stockDoses count down what is on the truck | Business | Shopping list | |
| Message the office from a stop | Not published | ||
| Gate codes, dog and entry side on the stop | |||
| Checklists per client | Pro and up | Scaling Up and above | |
| Jobs and quotes | |||
| Repairs flagged from the field | |||
| Quotes with your logo | Every plan | Scaling Up and above | |
| Quotes from the mobile app | Pro and up | ||
| Accepted quote becomes the invoice | Not published | ||
| Price book and job templates | Pro and up | ||
| Billing | |||
| Monthly service invoicesGenerated for every client from their rate | Pro and up | ||
| Online payments | Pro and up, card by Stripe | Card and ACH | |
| QuickBooks Online syncCustomers, invoices and payments | Business | Enterprise | Two way |
| Service report emailed after each visitReadings, chemicals, photos, notes | |||
| Customer portalCustomers log in to see history and pay | — | ||
| Text messages to customers | — | Per message, or included on Scaling Up | Not published |
| Reports and records | |||
| Chemical spend by client, tech and month | Pro and up | Financial reporting | |
| Client profitabilityLabor, chemical and travel cost against the rate | Business | Financial reporting | |
| Mileage and fleetOdometer readings per truck | Pro and up | Not published | Trucks per tech |
| Audit log of every changeWho changed what, when | Business, two years | Not published | Activity logs |
| Full export of your data and photos | Business | Not published | Not published |
| Chemical logs cannot be deletedNo role can delete a reading | Not published | Not published | |
Where we are honest about gaps. Orbit does not calculate doses in the app, run a customer portal, or text customers. Those are choices: a dose the tech did not decide becomes the office's liability, and the field app stays simple on purpose. If one of those is a must for you, Pool Brain is the stronger fit today.
See something wrong or out of date? Email support@orbitpoolsoftware.com and we fix it.
Try Orbit on your route for 30 days.
Add your clients and your techs, run a week. If it does not earn its place in the truck, nothing to cancel and nothing to pay.