The UK PlanSwift alternative that builds your priced NRM2 bill
Published on 15 July 2026
In short: if you are looking for a PlanSwift alternative in the UK, the real question is what happens after the takeoff. PlanSwift measures quantities well, but you still assemble the Bill of Quantities yourself. We built Kestrel™ to go straight from PDF drawings to a priced-ready NRM2 Bill of Quantities in Excel, on Windows, for £25 a month.
At a glance
| Kestrel | PlanSwift | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Takeoff to a priced NRM2 Bill of Quantities | General takeoff and estimating (US-built) |
| Takeoff output | Priced-ready NRM2 bill in Excel, plus annotated PDF drawings | Measured quantities; you build the bill in Excel |
| NRM2 | Native NRM2 output | No native NRM2 structure (metric is supported) |
| Platform | Windows desktop | Windows desktop |
| Price | £25 / month or £250 / year + VAT | Annual subscription, around US$1,749 per licence / year * |
| Licence | One user, single local file | Per-licence subscription; plug-ins extra |
| Made by | A working UK estimating firm | ConstructConnect (US) |
* PlanSwift pricing is reported by third-party listings, in US dollars, and was checked in July 2026; it can change. PlanSwift also includes estimating assemblies and trade plug-ins that Kestrel does not set out to replace.
An NRM2 bill, not just quantities
This is the difference that matters. PlanSwift is a capable takeoff engine: you measure lengths, areas and counts on the drawing and export the numbers to Excel. What you do not get is a structured NRM2 bill. Kestrel measures on the same PDF, then exports an NRM2 Bill of Quantities in Excel with the codes, descriptions, units and live formulas already in place. You drop in your rates and the totals update, rather than building the bill by hand. You also get the marked-up drawings: every takeoff exports as an annotated PDF, colour-coded by measurement with a Take Off Legend and a quantity key per sheet, on your own title block.
One price, no per-seat maths
Kestrel is £25 a month, or £250 a year plus VAT, for one user, with every feature included. PlanSwift is sold as an annual subscription reported at around US$1,749 per licence a year, with trade plug-ins bought separately. If you are a small practice or a solo estimator, that is a very different sum to carry, and there are no add-ons to price up. See Kestrel pricing in full.
Built in the UK, for NRM2
PlanSwift is a US-built tool. It supports metric units, so it can be used here, but it has no native NRM2 structure and its pricing, support and documentation are US-centric. Kestrel is built by a working UK estimating firm around UK practice: metric, NRM2, and the way a UK bill is actually laid out. If you want to understand the standard itself, read the NRM2 work sections.
Your projects stay on your machine
A Kestrel project is a single file on your computer, with the drawings embedded. There is no cloud to log into and no per-seat account to manage; the licence checks in online every few days, but you do not sign in to take off, and it works offline.
When PlanSwift is the better fit
We are not going to pretend Kestrel is for everyone. PlanSwift is a mature, established tool with a large user base, a deep library of estimating assemblies and trade plug-ins, and years of custom templates behind many estimators. If you rely on that assembly and estimating depth, or you have a large PlanSwift template estate you would have to rebuild, it earns its place. Kestrel is narrower on purpose: takeoff to a priced NRM2 bill, with less to learn and less to pay for.
Trying it against your own drawings
There is nothing to migrate, because you work from the same PDF drawings you already have. Open a set in Kestrel, set the scale once, and measure; the takeoff exports to Excel as an NRM2 bill you can price straight away. The step-by-step takeoff guide walks through it.
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Common questions
Is there a cheaper UK alternative to PlanSwift?
Kestrel is a UK-built alternative priced at £25 a month, or £250 a year plus VAT, for one user. PlanSwift is sold as an annual subscription reported at around US$1,749 per licence a year. The two are priced very differently, though PlanSwift also bundles estimating assemblies that Kestrel does not.
Does Kestrel produce an NRM2 Bill of Quantities?
Yes. Kestrel exports your takeoff as an NRM2 Bill of Quantities in Excel, with codes, descriptions, units and live formulas already in place, so you price it rather than build it. PlanSwift measures quantities well but has no native NRM2 bill structure; you assemble that yourself.
Is Kestrel Windows-only, like PlanSwift?
Yes, both are Windows desktop applications. Kestrel runs on Windows 10 and 11 and works offline, with your projects held in a single file on your machine.
How much does PlanSwift cost compared with Kestrel?
PlanSwift is reported by third-party listings at around US$1,749 per licence a year on an annual subscription, in US dollars, with trade plug-ins sold separately. Kestrel is £25 a month or £250 a year plus VAT, with every feature included. Prices were checked in July 2026 and can change.
Can I move off PlanSwift without losing work?
There is nothing to migrate. You work from the same PDF drawings you already have: open a set in Kestrel, set the scale once, and measure. Your takeoff exports straight to Excel as an NRM2 bill you can price.