HVAC estimating software for duct, pipe and equipment

HVAC estimating software turns a mechanical plan set into a priced bid: it takes off ductwork by size and gauge, piping by size and material, fittings, air devices and equipment, then applies material prices and labor units to each item. Commercial mechanical contractors commonly use trade-specific programs such as QuoteSoft, FastDUCT and FastPIPE, Trimble AutoBid or McCormick, which ship with duct and pipe databases and industry labor units¹²³⁵⁶. General takeoff tools like PlanSwift can measure the same plans⁸, but you build the HVAC assemblies yourself.

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 HVAC takeoff measures

Item	Unit	What to watch
Rectangular duct	LF by size, then LB by gauge	Price follows sheet metal weight, not length. The same 100 feet of duct changes cost with size, gauge, pressure class and reinforcement.
Round, spiral and oval duct	LF by diameter	Often bought rather than fabricated. Keep spiral, long-seam and flex separate because the labor is different.
Duct fittings	EA by type and size	Elbows, tees, transitions, takeoffs and offsets carry more labor than straight duct. Missing fittings is the most common way a duct takeoff comes in light.
Air devices	EA by type and neck size	Diffusers, grilles and registers come off the air device schedule. Check the schedule against the floor plans, not just the plans alone.
Dampers and accessories	EA	Volume dampers, fire and fire/smoke dampers, access doors and flex connectors. Fire/smoke dampers also need power and controls from other trades.
Equipment	EA with rigging	RTUs, AHUs, VAV boxes, fan coils, exhaust fans, split systems. Each one usually triggers an assembly: curbs, connections, hangers, startup.
Hydronic and refrigerant piping	LF by size and material	Chilled water, heating water, condenser water and refrigerant lines, with fittings, valves and specialties counted separately.
Duct liner, wrap and pipe insulation	SF / LF	Often subcontracted. Decide early whether it is in your number or a sub quote, so it is not carried twice or not at all.

How an HVAC estimate is built

Read the mechanical specs and the scope letter: what is yours, what is by others (controls, test and balance, insulation, electrical connections), and which standards govern duct construction.
Go through the schedules first (equipment, air devices, fans, VAV boxes). They define most of the counted items and the sizes the floor plans refer to.
Take off ductwork system by system, starting at the unit and working downstream, so supply, return, exhaust and outside air stay separate and addenda are easy to isolate.
Take off hydronic and refrigerant piping by system and size, then valves, specialties and equipment connections.
Let the software apply specs: gauge, seams, joints, reinforcement and hangers for duct, and material, joining method and supports for pipe.
Add equipment, rigging and crane time, startup, permits, test and balance and any controls allowance, then review labor hours by system before applying rates.
Price material from current supplier quotes, apply labor rates and job factors (height, phasing, occupied building), and produce the bid summary.

What to look for in HVAC software

Duct and pipe specs that drive the takeoff

You should set gauge, seams, joints, liner, hangers and pipe material once per system and have every item taken off inherit them. That is what separates HVAC estimating software from a generic measuring tool.

A real fitting and equipment database

Rectangular, round and oval duct and fittings, air devices, dampers and equipment, plus pipe, fittings and valves for the hydronic side, with labor units you can adjust to your crews.

Automatic fittings and connections

Tools that generate fittings, hangers and pipe between fittings as you trace a run save the most time and catch the most misses. Several mechanical programs do this today⁵³.

Alternates, revisions and export

Rectangular to round conversions for value engineering, drawing overlays for addenda, and an Excel bid summary or export to accounting so the number leaves the program cleanly.

Software HVAC estimators use

Tool	What it does for HVAC	Price
QuoteSoft Duct QuoteSoft (ConstructConnect)	Duct estimating for commercial and industrial sheet metal contractors: rectangular, round and oval duct, accessories and HVAC equipment, with SMACNA specifications and labor times available and on-screen takeoff from PDFs.¹	Quote only
FastDUCT and FastPIPE FastEST	FastDUCT covers rectangular, round and oval duct and HVAC equipment with SMACNA labor rates; FastPIPE covers HVAC and plumbing piping with MCAA and PHCC labor estimates. Both share one on-screen takeoff and export to a single Excel bid.²³⁴	$4,995 one time for the first application, $2,495 each additional; FastPIPE and FastDUCT combo $7,490; or lease from $250/mo
Trimble AutoBid Mechanical Trimble	Mechanical estimating for commercial mechanical, piping and plumbing contractors, with specification-driven takeoff, over 100,000 items and pre-built assemblies, autofitting generation and MCAA and PHCC labor units.⁵	Quote only
McCormick Mechanical McCormick Systems	Integrated takeoff and estimating for mechanical piping bids, with pre-built assemblies for equipment hookups like pumps, boilers and chillers and a pre-loaded database of material costs and labor units.⁶	Quote only
Wrightsoft Right-Suite Universal MiTek Wrightsoft	HVAC design software for residential and light commercial work: ACCA load calculations, duct design and a drawing, proposal and parts takeoff tool. Commercial loads come as add-ons or in the commercial-only package.⁷	$900/yr per package (US version)
PlanSwift ConstructConnect	All-trade takeoff and estimating with assemblies you build for your trade, plus AI tools such as Auto Count and Auto Scale. Useful when HVAC is one of several trades you bid.⁸	Essential $2,000/yr, Core $3,000/yr (first seat)

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.

HVAC takeoff software vs mechanical takeoff software

People search for both, and the difference is mostly scope. An HVAC takeoff on a commercial job is the air side: duct, fittings, air devices, dampers and the units that move air. A mechanical takeoff usually means the whole Division 23 package, which adds hydronic and refrigerant piping, pumps, boilers, chillers and their connections. Many mechanical contractors bid both, and the trade-specific vendors reflect that: FastEST pairs FastDUCT with FastPIPE in one Excel bid, QuoteSoft sells Duct and Pipe as separate programs, and Trimble sells AutoBid SheetMetal and AutoBid Mechanical^2319105.

Labor units are where these programs earn their price. QuoteSoft says SMACNA specifications and standard labor times are available for duct¹, FastDUCT lists SMACNA labor rates in its catalog², and FastPIPE and Trimble AutoBid Mechanical list MCAA and PHCC labor units for piping³⁵. FastEST's pricing page notes that PHCC, MCAA and SMACNA labor rates can be added for an additional cost⁴, so ask each vendor which labor database is included in the quote you get.

HVAC equipment circuits, disconnects and service receptacles

Every unit on the mechanical equipment schedule becomes a feeder, a disconnect and a connection on the electrical drawings, and that hand-off is where bids leak. The electrical estimator sizes each circuit from the nameplate, which has to show the minimum supply circuit conductor ampacity and the maximum rating of the short-circuit and ground-fault protective device¹¹. Those MCA and MOCP values can move when the submitted units differ from the basis-of-design units, so an electrical number priced from the design schedule should say which units it assumed. A late switch to larger rooftop units also shows up in the building load calculation.

At each unit, NEC 440.14 requires the disconnecting means to be within sight from and readily accessible from the equipment, and the 2023 edition added the working space rules of 110.26(A)¹². Since the 2020 NEC, 210.63 also calls for a 125-volt, 15- or 20-ampere service receptacle within 25 feet of heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment, on the same level and not fed from the load side of the equipment disconnect¹³. On a roof with a dozen units that is a dozen disconnects and receptacles, plus conduit across the roof and penetrations the roofing contractor has to flash.

Controls are the gray zone. Duct smoke detectors, fire/smoke damper actuators and VAV controllers need power or fire alarm wiring, and the specs split that work between the mechanical, controls, fire alarm and electrical contractors differently on every job. Read the HVAC and electrical specifications together, and price the controls wiring in your scope with the same care as the fire alarm and low voltage devices it ties into. The electrical contractor then prices the disconnects and equipment connections in commercial electrical estimating software, while duct and pipe stay in your HVAC program.

Where HVAC takeoffs go wrong

Taking off duct straights and forgetting the fittings and transitions between them, which carry a large share of the labor.
Using one gauge or pressure class for the whole job when the specs call for different construction on the high-pressure side of the VAV boxes.
Not reconciling the air device schedule with the plans, so diffusers shown on the plans but missing from the schedule (or the other way round) slip through.
Leaving scope gaps at the edges: controls, electrical connections to equipment, fire/smoke damper wiring, roof curbs and structural supports.
Re-doing the whole takeoff for an addendum instead of comparing drawing versions and changing only the affected systems.
Applying one labor productivity to every floor, when work at height, in occupied buildings or in tight ceiling spaces runs slower.

Trades that bid the same job

A HVAC 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: sheet metal estimating software, plumbing estimating software and insulation estimating software.

Where AmpCount fits

AmpCount only counts electrical devices and fixtures, so it does not take off duct, pipe or HVAC equipment. Where it helps is next door: mechanical contractors who also carry the electrical or controls scope, or electrical contractors bidding the same building, can use AmpCount to count the disconnects, receptacles, motor connections and other devices on the electrical sheets, while the duct and pipe stay in their HVAC estimating software.

How electrical takeoff software counts a plan set

Questions

What is the best HVAC estimating software for commercial work?

It depends on how you bid. Sheet metal shops that fabricate their own duct tend to pick a duct-first program such as QuoteSoft Duct, FastDUCT or Trimble AutoBid SheetMetal. Full mechanical contractors look at packages that also cover piping, such as FastDUCT with FastPIPE, Trimble AutoBid Mechanical or McCormick. Ask each vendor to run one of your recent jobs, not a demo set.

How much does HVAC estimating software cost?

FastEST publishes $4,995 one time for the first application or a lease from $250 a month⁴. Wrightsoft lists $900 a year per Right-Suite Universal package⁷. QuoteSoft, Trimble AutoBid and McCormick quote on request¹⁵⁶. General takeoff tools like PlanSwift start at $2,000 a year for one seat⁸.

Can I use general takeoff software for HVAC?

Yes for measuring, with more setup. Tools like PlanSwift, STACK or Bluebeam measure lengths, areas and counts on any plan⁸¹⁴¹⁵, but you build the duct and pipe assemblies, gauges and labor yourself. HVAC-specific programs ship with that data and generate fittings and hangers as you trace²⁵.

Is Manual J software the same as HVAC estimating software?

No. Load calculation software sizes equipment and designs duct systems, mostly for residential and light commercial work. Estimating software prices a system that is already designed on the drawings. Some packages, like Wrightsoft, include a parts takeoff alongside the design tools⁷.

Guides and tools for any trade

Sources

Product names are trademarks of their owners. AmpCount is not affiliated with any vendor on this page.