The Powered Now alternative for UK sole traders who want more work
Powered Now is a good UK product that papers a job beautifully. Trades leave because the bill is per user, and the parts that win work are sold separately.
Tradehand
Powered Now
The short answer
The question is not who clears paperwork fastest. It is who fills a thin diary. Powered Now wins certificate-heavy work. Tradify suits a team wanting accounting sync. Tradehand answers, quotes, books and chases. Free includes the manual tools and the Assistant with £1 of usage a month: 5% of each payment Tradehand takes, card fees included. Paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly. They add automation and more usage. Basic payment fees on your own jobs: From 1.25% + 20p, deducted automatically when the customer pays. Grow and Advanced have lower Tradehand payment fees.
So which should you pick?
Stay on Powered Now if…
- Your week is certificate-heavy: gas, electrical, risk assessments
- You are happy buying the receptionist as an add-on
Choose Tradify if…
- You want Xero and QuickBooks Online sync on every plan
- You need timesheets and job costing
Choose ServiceM8 if…
- Your crew is on iPhones and someone drives it
- Job count is steady, so job credits never bite
Choose Tradehand if…
- Your problem is a thin diary, not a messy one
- You want a Free plan with the Assistant
Powered Now beats Tradehand on paperwork, and it is not close: industry specific certificates and forms, completed, stored and signed on site, plus staff tracking and a Xero sync of invoices, payments and customers.
Free and paid plans for your business
Those tiers are doing a person's job, so compare a person. Powered Now bills per user. Tradehand includes the Assistant on Free and bills a subscription for automation and more usage.
UK office manager starter salary, before NI and pension. Paid whether invoices land or not.
Source: Office manager salary
TradehandFree, or paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly
Salary: National Careers Service office-manager profile, read 24 July 2026. Competitor tier prices are deliberately not reproduced; see the sources.
See pricingSide by side
| What matters |  Tradehand |  Powered Now |
|---|---|---|
| Answers the phone mid-jobSource: Powered Now AI Receptionist | TradehandQuote from your rates, held when approval is required | Powered NowPricing page says diary booking. Receptionist page says account sync is coming soon |
| Chases a customer who went quietSource: Powered Now pricing | TradehandChases customers you never quoted, plus unpaid invoices | Powered NowAutomatic quote and invoice chasing, top tier |
| Certificates and compliance formsSource: Powered Now features | TradehandTen published types, signed PDF. Countersign only when a supervisor signs | Powered NowIndustry specific certificates and forms, signed on site. Powered Now wins |
| Repeat revenueSource: Powered Now features | TradehandMembership and service plans, billed on repeat | Powered NowService reminders, no plan billing |
| Driving between jobsSource: Powered Now features | TradehandDay optimiser reassigns jobs to cut driving, you approve | Powered NowRoute planning through Google and Apple Maps |
| Keeping the customer postedSource: Powered Now features | TradehandText, email, voice and web, live ETA on the link | Powered NowUnlimited text and email, on-my-way alerts |
| How you are billedSource: Powered Now pricing | TradehandFree, or paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly | Powered NowMonthly per user, excluding VAT, receptionist extra |
More work, on a Tuesday
You are under a floor at 09:32 and the phone goes. Powered Now's pricing page says the receptionist answers and books jobs into the diary. The receptionist page says full account sync is coming soon, and current enquiries arrive as a phone notification. Checked 29 September 2026. Tradehand drafts a quote from the rates and holds it when approval is required.
Powered Now papers that job once you have won it. The gap is earlier, because someone has to answer the call and price the work, and your assistant is the one who does it.
Leaving Powered Now without losing your records
Run both for a week, keeping Powered Now as your certificate book.
- Day 1
Export customers and prices
Pull them out of Powered Now, keeping that account for old certificates.
- Day 1
We do the import
A person moves customers, prices, number, rates and diary. Historic jobs do not come.
- Day 7
Judge it on jobs won
Count calls answered, quotes accepted, invoices paid. No contract either way.
Your questions
What is the best Powered Now alternative in the UK?
Tradehand answers missed calls, quotes from your rates, books and chases. Free includes the manual tools and the Assistant with £1 of usage a month: 5% of each payment Tradehand takes, card fees included. Paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly. They add automation and more usage. Basic payment fees on your own jobs: From 1.25% + 20p, deducted automatically when the customer pays. Grow and Advanced have lower Tradehand payment fees. Certificate-heavy work: stay on Powered Now.
Why do UK trades leave Powered Now?
Powered Now prices per user, so the bill grows with the team, and the AI Receptionist and Here Is My Work website are sold separately.
Is Tradehand cheaper than Powered Now?
Free includes the manual tools and the Assistant with £1 of usage a month: 5% of each payment Tradehand takes, card fees included. Paid plans from £19 a month, billed yearly. They add automation and more usage. Basic payment fees on your own jobs: From 1.25% + 20p, deducted automatically when the customer pays. Grow and Advanced have lower Tradehand payment fees. Powered Now bills per user regardless.
Powered Now already chases my quotes. What does Tradehand add?
Powered Now chases a quote you already wrote, on its top tier. Tradehand chases the customer before there is a quote.
How is Tradehand different from the Powered Now AI Receptionist?
Powered Now's pricing page says the receptionist answers and books jobs into the diary. The receptionist page says full account sync is coming soon, and current enquiries arrive as a phone notification. Checked 29 September 2026. Tradehand drafts a quote from the rates and holds it when approval is required.
Can I move my data from Powered Now to Tradehand?
Tradehand imports customers and prices, done for you by a person. Tradehand does not import historic jobs or Powered Now certificates.
Does Tradehand work with Xero or QuickBooks?
Tradehand pushes invoices one way into Xero and QuickBooks, plus CSV. VAT-registered companies cannot push today. Powered Now markets a Xero sync of invoices, payments and customers.
Will I lose my certificates if I leave Powered Now?
Powered Now ships industry specific certificates and forms, signed on site. Tradehand has ten certificate types, not a forms library. Export before cancelling Powered Now.
Sources & references
More comparisons
See what it does with your next missed call
Get started. A quote is drafted from the rates and held when approval is required. An agreed slot is booked.
