FenceTracer vs ArcSite: Drawing-First Estimating vs CAD Takeoff

ArcSite is a mobile-first CAD app that does on-site drawing and takeoffs for several trades — fence is one of them, alongside roofing, decking, and concrete. It's a popular choice for fence contractors who want to draw on an iPad and produce a takeoff that flows into their quoting workflow.

FenceTracer is a fence-only platform: estimating, quoting, scheduling, and invoicing in one tool, with a drawing canvas built specifically for fence layouts. The trade-off is real — ArcSite has broader CAD capability and works across trades; FenceTracer is fence-deep with the rest of the operations stack included. This page lays out the comparison.

The honest summary

ArcSite is a drawing + takeoff tool. You draw the fence (or roof, or deck), produce a takeoff, and export the result into whatever quote / CRM tool you use separately. It's CAD-grade. It's not a quoting platform on its own.

FenceTracer is a fence operations platform. Drawing is one step in a workflow that goes drawing → quote PDF → customer signature → project → install schedule → crew app → invoice. The canvas is purpose-built for fence (no need for CAD versatility); the rest of the stack is included.

If you want a powerful drawing app that you'll wire into your own tools, ArcSite is good. If you want one tool that runs the whole fence shop (with a fence-purpose-built drawing canvas inside it), FenceTracer fits.

What ArcSite does well

• Polished CAD drawing on iPad: Apple Pencil-friendly, intuitive, fast to learn. The drawing experience is excellent.
• Multi-trade versatility: if you also do decking or concrete, the same drawing app covers all of it.
• Photo + satellite tracing: drop in an aerial image and trace the fence over it. Useful for remote estimates without a site visit.
• Detailed CAD output: cleaner architectural-style drawings than most fence-specific tools.
• Integrations: exports cleanly to Excel, QuickBooks, and other quoting tools.

For shops that already have a quoting / CRM workflow they like, and want to add a strong drawing tool on top, ArcSite is the natural pick.

Where FenceTracer wins

• Drawing → quote → install runs inside one tool. No exporting, no double entry, no second subscription. The drawing canvas connects directly to a priced quote, the quote becomes a project, the project schedules the install, the crew sees the drawing on their phone, and the invoice generates from the same record.
• Fence-specific drawing logic. Slot-mapped catalogue (1 line post per 10 LF, terminal posts at corners/ends/gates, gate hardware assemblies), per-segment fence styles, sloped lengths — built into the canvas, not configured.
• Canadian tax automation. Eight provincial tax models handled from the install address. ArcSite doesn't quote, so it doesn't handle tax at all.
• Flat $180 CAD/month pricing. Unlimited users. ArcSite's per-user pricing scales with your team.
• Customer + project management included. ArcSite is just the drawing/takeoff layer. FenceTracer covers the rest of the shop too.

Pricing math at a glance

ArcSite is typically priced per user. A representative comparison for a 3-person fence shop:

ArcSite (3 users):    ~$75–$120/user/month  =  $225–$360/month
Quoting / CRM tool:   ~$50–$100/month
Calendar/scheduling:   often Google (free) or another paid tool

Total:                 ~$275–$460/month, plus the cost of running 3 tools that don't talk to each other.

FenceTracer (3 users): $180 CAD/month flat

The bigger cost is the tool-switching tax: estimators bouncing between ArcSite, Excel, Word, QuickBooks, and Google Calendar, with data re-entered at each step.

Best fit for each tool

Choose ArcSite if:

• You're a multi-trade contractor (fence + decks + concrete + roofing)
• You already have a quoting/CRM/scheduling stack you don't want to replace
• You value CAD-quality drawings (e.g., for commercial bids or architectural approvals)
• Apple Pencil drawing on iPad is your primary estimating workflow

Choose FenceTracer if:

• You're a fence-only contractor (or fence is 80%+ of your work)
• You want one tool that runs the whole shop — drawing, quoting, scheduling, invoicing
• You're in Canada and want provincial tax automated
• You want flat pricing instead of per-user
• You quote at the customer's house and want sketch-to-sendable-PDF in one screen

FAQ

Related reading

• Fence estimating software — drawing-first workflow overview
• Fence quote software — quote PDF + proposal workflow
• Fence contractor software — full operations stack
• FenceTracer vs FenceCloud — comparing against another fence-specific platform
• FenceTracer vs Buildertrend — comparing against construction management software