Fergus vs NextMinute — and where Toolie fits

Fergus vs NextMinute, at a glance

Both are New Zealand job-management tools for trades and builders, and both bill in a flatter, team-oriented way rather than strictly per user. At the time of writing, Fergus runs from about $53/month (Basic) to $75/month (Pro) for the core, with paid timesheet seats (from ~$22/mo) and contractor users (~$4/user/day) on top. NextMinute prices in crew bands — from about $199/month for 3–9 users and $349/month for 10–14 (ex-GST). Confirm current pricing with each vendor.

Where they're similar

Both cover jobs, quoting, invoicing, timesheets and scheduling, both are built for New Zealand trades, and both integrate with accounting. They're aimed at jobbing businesses with a team rather than a single sole trader.

Where they differ

• Pricing shape. Fergus has a low flat entry with paid seat add-ons, so a small team can start cheaply; NextMinute's banded pricing starts higher but bundles a 3–9 user crew.
• Focus. Fergus leans into workflow and financial visibility; NextMinute leans into project and job management for builders with crews.

Where Toolie fits — the NZ-Building-Code option

Neither knows the New Zealand Building Code. Toolie does the same jobs, quotes, invoicing and scheduling and adds automatic NZS 3604 take-off, the H1 6th edition and Healthy Homes, CCA 2002 retentions, NZ contracts and LBP Records of Work, 16 on-site calculators and a sketch-to-plan tool — for flat per-plan pricing, not per user — from $49/month (ex-GST) for a sole trader, or a flat $129/month for a crew of up to eight.

See Toolie vs Fergus, Toolie vs NextMinute, the Tradify vs Fergus comparison, or how Toolie quotes a job. Competitor pricing is indicative and was current at the time of writing.