The Dispatch
A dispatch is the note that tells you where the work is. These are the ones I would have wanted before I knew any of it.
I run a plumbing shop in Lancaster County, PA. Everything here comes out of running it: what software costs once you turn on the parts you assumed were included, why the money is lost between finishing the job and sending the bill, and which of these platforms actually fits a shop with one truck or eight. No rankings paid for by the people being ranked.
What field service software actually cost me
The published per-user price is the least useful number on the page. Here is the whole bill, itemised: the discount that did not cover the seat we added, the rate that was double the one I was quoted, and what $795 of premium support meant when something broke.
How to get your data out of Jobber, Housecall Pro or FieldPulse
Your customer list is the business. Here is what each of the three actually hands back, according to their own help pages, and the parts nobody documents.
Switching field service software without losing your customer history
The export is the easy part. The hard part is the month either side of it, and the things that were never in the export to begin with.
How to choose field service software for a small shop
What actually matters when a 1–8 truck shop picks a platform, in the order it matters, and the three pricing traps that get small shops every time.
Jobber vs Housecall Pro vs FieldPulse: which one fits your shop
Three platforms that overlap more than their marketing admits. Who each one is really built for, what you give up with each, and where mine fits.
How small trade shops get paid faster
Slow pay is almost never the customer. It is the gap between finishing the work and sending the invoice, and that gap belongs to you.
Friendly is the app I built to run my own shop. It went live there in April 2026 and has run it since. It is not open to other shops yet — that happens next year, once the last bugs are out. If you want to know when, leave your email.