Earthwork takeoff software for cut, fill and excavation bids

Earthwork takeoff software builds a 3D surface of the existing ground and another of the finished grade, then calculates cut and fill volumes in cubic yards between them, usually by region and by layer (strip, subgrade, structural excavation). Dedicated tools such as AGTEK Gradework, InSite Elevation Pro and Kubla Cubed build surfaces from PDF or CAD plans¹³⁵, Trimble Business Center works from survey and drone data⁷, and AGTEK and InSite also export the model to GPS machine control¹³. Published prices run from a free Kubla Lite edition⁶ to $3,900 a year for InSite Elevation Pro⁴; AGTEK and Trimble quote on request²⁸.

By Agustín Policano, founder of AmpCount, which makes electrical takeoff software. Facts about other products and statistics link to their source, checked November 3, 2026.

What an earthwork takeoff measures

Item	Unit	What to watch
Topsoil stripping	SF and CY	Measured as an area times a strip depth from the geotech report. It comes off before cut and fill is calculated, and most of it is stockpiled, not hauled.
Site cut and fill	CY (bank)	The volume between the existing and proposed surfaces. Proposed grades are usually finished grade, so subtract pavement, slab and topsoil sections to get subgrade.
Subgrade adjustment	CY	Building pads, paving sections and landscape topsoil each lower the dirt surface by a different depth. Missing one region shifts the whole balance.
Structural and trench excavation	CY and LF	Footings, pits and utility trenches are taken off separately from mass grading, with side slopes or shoring, then backfill and spoil are figured from the same geometry.
Import, export and haul	CY (loose) and truckloads	Bank cut swells when loaded and compacts when placed, so the net site balance is not the haul quantity. Apply your own factors from the soils report.
Fine grading and compaction	SF or SY	Priced by area for pads, paving subgrade and lawns. It is labor and equipment time, not volume.
Erosion control	LF and EA	Silt fence, inlet protection and construction entrances come off the SWPPP or erosion control sheet, not the grading plan.

How an earthwork estimate is built

Collect the grading plan, existing topo or survey, geotech report and erosion control sheets. Note whether elevations are finished grade or subgrade on each sheet.
Calibrate the plan scale or bring in the CAD file, and align multiple sheets so contours from the topo and the grading plan line up on the same coordinates.
Digitize existing contours and spot elevations, then proposed contours, break lines, pads and slopes, checking each surface for spikes and flat triangles.
Define regions for building pads, paving, sidewalks and landscape areas with their section depths so the software calculates subgrade cut and fill, not finished grade.
Run cut and fill by region, review the cut and fill map for obvious errors, then add strip, structural excavation, trenching and spoil.
Apply swell and shrink factors to get import or export, decide haul routes and stockpiles, and price equipment hours and trucking against the quantities.
Export the surface for GPS machine control if the job is won, and keep the takeoff so field progress can be checked against it.

What to look for in earthwork software

Surfaces from PDF, CAD and survey data

Most earthwork bids arrive as PDF plans, but CAD and drone or survey data save digitizing time. Look for tools that align several documents on the same coordinates so the topo and grading plan stack correctly.

Subgrade regions and section depths

The volume that matters is to subgrade. Good earthwork software lets you assign pad, paving and landscape sections by region and recalculates cut and fill automatically when a section changes.

Cut and fill maps you can defend

A colored cut and fill map or grid lets you and the GC see where the dirt is. It is also how you catch a bad elevation before it reaches the bid.

Machine control export

If you self-perform, exporting the finished surface to the GPS systems on your dozers and excavators reuses the takeoff model in the field instead of paying for it twice.

Software earthwork estimators use

Tool	What it does for earthwork	Price
Gradework AGTEK (Hexagon)	3D earthwork takeoff from PDF, CAD or manual entry, quantities by phase and structure, integrated with AGTEK Materials and Underground, and machine control model export to Leica, Topcon and Trimble.¹²	Quote only
Elevation Pro InSite Software	Earthwork and utility takeoff from PDF, CAD and drone data with aligned documents, cut and fill contour map and grid, TrenchVision 3D for trench excavation and backfill, haul analysis and GPS model export.³⁴	$3,900 a year, billed annually (1 concurrent user, up to 2 machines)
Kubla Cubed Kubla Software	Earthworks cut and fill software that imports PDF, CAD and survey data and calculates volumes with a TIN prism engine. A free Lite edition covers simple jobs with some features restricted.⁵⁶	$295 a year (subscription) or $741 (perpetual); Lite edition free
Trimble Business Center Trimble Geospatial	Survey CAD software that turns GNSS, total station, scanner and drone data into surfaces, with a takeoff feature for quantities used in planning and payment. A fit for contractors who already work from survey and drone data.⁷⁸	Quote only (annual subscriptions through a Trimble distribution partner; free trial offered)

As described on each vendor's own pages, checked November 3, 2026. Prices change; check with the vendor.

For tools that cover every trade on one plan set, see the construction takeoff software and construction estimating software guides.

Excavation estimating software vs earthwork takeoff software

People search for both, and the tools overlap. Earthwork takeoff software produces quantities: cut, fill, strip, trench and spoil volumes. Excavation estimating software adds the cost side: equipment spreads, production rates, trucking cycles, labor and markup. Some contractors run a takeoff tool such as Gradework, Elevation Pro or Kubla Cubed and price the quantities in a spreadsheet or in a heavy civil estimating system.

If you bid larger public work with many pay items, the quantities usually feed a full estimating system, which is covered on the civil construction estimating software page. If you mostly bid site packages for private developers, a takeoff tool plus a well built spreadsheet is a common setup.

Electrical trenching and duct banks in the earthwork bid

Most commercial sites carry a lot of electrical work below grade: the primary duct bank to the utility transformer, feeders to outbuildings, branch circuits to site lighting and empty conduits for telecom. The grading plan rarely shows any of it, and the electrical site plan rarely shows depths, so the first question on bid day is whose number carries the trench. Read the specs and the bid form, then write the answer into the earthwork proposal as an inclusion or an exclusion.

Trench depth comes from the electrical code, not from the excavator's habit. NEC Table 300.5(A) sets minimum cover at 24 inches for direct-buried cable, 18 inches for PVC conduit and 6 inches for rigid metal conduit in general locations, rising to 24 inches for every wiring method under streets, driveways and parking lots⁹. Underground service conductors buried 18 inches or deeper without concrete encasement need a warning ribbon at least 12 inches above them, and 300.5(F) keeps large rock, paving and cinders out of the backfill⁹. Cover is measured to finished grade, so a trench cut before mass grading is done has to allow for fill still to come.

A shared trench is cheaper than two, but only if the low voltage contractor's conduits are scheduled into the same cut. The electrical side sizes each duct with a conduit fill calculator and checks long site feeders with a voltage drop calculator; what the dirt estimator needs back is trench length by depth and width, encasement, and any import for sand bedding. AmpCount counts the poles, fixtures and devices on the electrical site plan, which tells you where the trenches go, but it does not measure them.

Where earthwork takeoffs go wrong

Calculating cut and fill to finished grade instead of subgrade, which ignores the pavement, slab and topsoil sections and can flip a job from export to import.
A topo that does not tie to the same benchmark or coordinate system as the grading plan. Every contour is then off by the same amount and the volumes look plausible but are wrong.
Treating the net balance as the haul quantity without swell and shrink, so trucking and import are underpriced.
Missing unsuitable soil over-excavation and replacement that the geotech report calls for under the building pad.
Digitizing contour labels wrong by one interval on a dense plan. Spot-check high and low points against the plan after every surface is built.
Leaving structural excavation and utility trench spoil out of the site balance, then finding extra dirt on site after mass grading is done.

Trades that bid the same job

A earthwork bid rarely stands alone. The trades next to it on the schedule read the same drawings and often share scope lines, so it pays to know how they take off too: sitework estimating software, civil construction estimating software and landscape estimating software.

Where AmpCount fits

AmpCount only counts electrical devices and fixtures on electrical sheets, so it does not build surfaces or calculate cut and fill, and it is not an earthwork tool. The connection is on the same site package: the electrical contractor bidding the site lighting and power on a civil job can use AmpCount to count pole fixtures, receptacles and other symbols on the electrical site plan, while the earthwork estimator figures trench excavation and backfill in a tool built for dirt.

How electrical takeoff software counts a plan set

Questions

What is the best earthwork takeoff software?

It depends on how you work. AGTEK Gradework and InSite Elevation Pro are full earthwork and utility takeoff tools with machine control export¹³; Kubla Cubed is a lower cost cut and fill tool with a free Lite edition⁶; Trimble Business Center fits contractors already using Trimble survey data⁷. Try each on a job you already bid and compare the cut and fill to your known result.

How much does earthwork takeoff software cost?

From the vendors' own pages, checked November 2026: Kubla Cubed is $295 a year or $741 perpetual with a free Lite edition⁶, InSite Elevation Pro is $3,900 a year billed annually⁴, and AGTEK and Trimble Business Center are quoted on request²⁸.

Can earthwork software read PDF plans?

Yes. AGTEK, InSite and Kubla all describe takeoff from PDF plans as well as CAD¹³⁵. On a PDF you still digitize or confirm contours and spot elevations, so CAD or survey data is faster when the engineer will share it.

Why does my cut and fill not match the engineer's balance?

The usual causes are calculating to finished grade instead of subgrade, a different existing surface or benchmark, regions with the wrong section depth, or comparing bank volume to compacted volume. Check those four before anything else.

Guides and tools for any trade

Sources

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