Feature
GPS Tracking in trades software
Real-time location tracking of technician vehicles for dispatching, route verification, and accountability.
Quick summary
- What it is: Real-time location tracking of technician vehicles for dispatching, route verification, and accountability.
- Tools that list it: 22 of the 127 in our directory
What is GPS tracking in trades software?
GPS tracking serves three purposes: dispatching (sending the nearest technician to a new job), checking routes (seeing where each vehicle went), and customer ETA notifications (telling customers when their technician is on the way). It can come from the technician's phone through the field service app, with no extra hardware, or from devices installed in the vehicles.
Why GPS tracking matters
Knowing where each technician is lets the office send the nearest one to a new job, see where time goes during the day, and send customers accurate ETAs, which cuts down on 'where is my tech' calls.
How to evaluate GPS tracking when buying
Two options: GPS from the technician's phone through the field service app (no hardware, but it depends on the phone being on), or vehicle telematics from a fleet tracking provider such as Samsara, Geotab or Verizon Connect, which some platforms integrate with (Docket lists Samsara and Verizon Connect; Routeware lists Samsara and Geotab). Check which one each field service tool supports.
Tools that list GPS tracking (22)
Tools that name it among their key features in our data. Key-feature names are not standardised across tools, so a tool can offer GPS tracking without being listed here; check its review.
| Tool | Starting price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Arborgold | From $129/mo | Tree care, plant health care, lawn care and landscaping companies that want CRM, proposals, scheduling, crew time tracking and invoicing in one system, with chemical tracking and tree inventory mapping available on the higher plans |
| Bin Boss | From $99/mo | Small roll-off dumpster companies that want 24/7 online booking with deposits, automatic weight-overage charges, QuickBooks Online sync and one flat monthly price with unlimited users and drivers. |
| busybusy | Free tier available | Construction and trades crews that want easy, accurate GPS time tracking with job costing and equipment tracking, including a genuine free tier |
| Connecteam | Free tier available | Teams of 10-100 deskless workers needing time tracking + communication + scheduling in one app |
| GoCanvas | From $29/mo | Trades businesses needing custom mobile forms beyond what their primary FSM provides, such as inspection forms, safety checklists, equipment audits, custom work order templates |
| GorillaDesk | From $44.92/mo | Small pest control, lawn care, cleaning and other route-based service businesses that want published, month-to-month pricing |
| iCANS | From $99/mo | Owner-operator and small roll-off dumpster companies that want one flat monthly price with unlimited drivers, a simple driver app, built-in card and ACH processing and two-way QuickBooks Online sync, and that are comfortable starting from a self-serve free trial. |
| MoveitPro | Custom quote | Moving and storage companies that want CRM, estimates, dispatch, payments, a crew app and AI call tools from a vendor that came out of a moving business |
| Paythepoolman | From $65/mo | Owner-operators and small pool service companies that want routing, recurring billing, bids and a customer app at a low monthly price that adds only $15 per extra technician |
| Pool Founder | From $49/mo | Pool service companies with 1 to 10 technicians (Enterprise above that) that want pool-specific routing, chemistry logging and billing at a flat price that does not rise with pool count |
| RazorSync | From $85/mo | Small-to-mid service businesses that want capped, per-company pricing instead of paying per user |
| Roll-Off Amigo | Free tier available | Owner-operators and roll-off companies with 1 to 20 trucks (the vendor's stated range) that run dispatch off a whiteboard and group texts and want a phone-first app at no cost or one flat price, including crews with Spanish-speaking drivers. |
| Service Autopilot | From $49/mo | Lawn care, landscaping, snow removal, cleaning, pest control and pool service businesses with recurring routes that want scheduling, dispatch, routing and billing in one system, with automations on the higher plans |
| Service Fusion | From $208/mo | Growing service businesses that want unlimited users on a flat monthly price |
| ServSuite | Custom quote | Existing ServSuite customers, and pest, lawn or arbor companies that want to compare it with FieldRoutes' main platform |
| SingleOps | From $200/mo | Tree care and plant health care companies, from single-crew outfits to multi-crew operations, that want estimating, tree inventory, scheduling, crew work orders and invoicing in one system |
| Supermove | Custom quote | Moving and storage companies of any size that want sales, dispatch, crew, storage and billing tools in one system, with AI help on sales calls |
| Synchroteam | From $39/mo | Service businesses with international clients or multi-language teams |
| Workyard | From $6/mo | Construction and trades contractors that want GPS-based labor tracking and job costing to feed payroll, alongside their FSM |
| Yardbook | Free tier available | Solo landscapers and small lawn and landscape crews that want scheduling, estimates, invoices and routing without a monthly fee to start |
| ZenFire | Custom quote | Fire protection contractors, from solo inspectors to multi-company groups, that want NFPA forms, recurring inspections, scheduling and invoicing in one system and want to trial it before buying |
| ZenMaid | From $19/mo | Residential cleaning and maid service businesses that want scheduling, automated client reminders, booking forms and card payments at a low monthly base price plus a fee per team member |
Related features
Related trade pages
Frequently asked questions
Can I track technicians' phones or do I need vehicle GPS?
Field service apps with GPS use the technician's phone, so no hardware is needed. Vehicle devices track the vehicle whether or not the technician is in it, and they are a separate subscription. Pick by whether you need to track people or vehicles.
What if techs turn off their phone GPS?
Phone-based tracking stops when location is turned off. Ask each vendor whether its app reports when location is off. A device installed in the vehicle cannot be switched off from a phone, which is one reason fleets use them.
How does GPS enable customer ETA notifications?
When a technician starts driving to a job, the platform can use the phone's location to send the customer a text with an arrival estimate. Check whether a tool sends these automatically and whether you can edit the message.
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