Accounting software for electrical contractors: QuickBooks vs construction ledgers, electrical billing software, job costing setup and a monthly routine.
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Accounting software for electrical contractors has a harder job than generic small business bookkeeping. One week you are billing a $289 service call from a truck, the next you are sending a progress bill on a tenant buildout with retainage held back. The software has to track both, tie every dollar of labor and wire to a job, and still give you a clean set of books at tax time.
This guide walks through what to look for, the main accounting options electricians actually use, how electrical billing software fits around them, a simple job costing setup and a monthly bookkeeping routine. It also covers the piece most software stacks leave out: following up on the invoices once they are sent. If you want the wider view across all trades, read our guide to accounting software for construction contractors.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
An electrical contractor is often two businesses under one license: a service business that runs many small tickets, and a construction business that runs fewer, larger jobs with contracts, change orders and pay applications. Your accounting software has to handle both without forcing you into two sets of books.
| Need | Why it matters for electricians |
|---|---|
| Job costing | Wire, gear and labor hours are your biggest costs. Without job costing you only find out a job lost money after the season is over. |
| Progress billing and retainage | Commercial and new construction work is billed by percent complete, often with 5 to 10 percent held until closeout. The books need to show retainage receivable separately. |
| T&M billing | Service work and extras are often billed on hours plus materials and markup. The invoice has to match the timesheet and the material tickets. |
| Change orders | Added circuits, panel upgrades and owner changes need their own lines, tied to the original contract. |
| Payroll and burden | Labor cost is wages plus taxes, workers' comp and benefits. Union and prevailing wage jobs add certified payroll on top. |
| Integrations | Your estimating, dispatch, payroll and payment tools should push data into the ledger, not into a spreadsheet someone retypes on Friday. |
Very few shops run on one product. A typical setup has a general ledger in the middle and a few tools around it. Knowing the layers keeps you from buying two products that do the same job, or none that do the job you actually need.
| Layer | What it does | Common examples |
|---|---|---|
| Accounting (general ledger) | Books, bank reconciliation, financial statements, sales tax, AP | QuickBooks Online, Xero, Sage 100 Contractor, Foundation |
| Estimating | Takeoffs, labor units, bids | Dedicated electrical estimating tools |
| Field service and dispatch | Scheduling, work orders, on-site invoices | ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber, simPRO |
| Payroll | Pay, taxes, certified payroll | Payroll add-ons or a construction payroll service |
| Receivables follow-up | Reminders, payment links, payment plans, aging | AR Workflow and other AR tools |
Here are the general ledgers electrical contractors most often run, described factually. Features and plans change, so check each vendor's site for current details before you decide.
QuickBooks Online is the default for many small and mid-size electrical shops. Most field service, payroll and payment tools integrate with it, and most bookkeepers know it. Its higher plans include project tracking and progress invoicing. It is not a full construction accounting system: retainage, WIP schedules and certified payroll usually take workarounds or add-ons. Our QuickBooks for contractors guide covers job costing and progress invoicing setup step by step.
Xero is a cloud ledger popular with small businesses and some accounting firms. It covers the core books well. Check that your field service and payroll tools support it before you commit, since some trade tools put QuickBooks first.
Sage 100 Contractor is built for construction, with job costing, retainage, equipment and payroll in one system. It suits contractors who run more project work than service work and want the construction features inside the ledger.
Foundation Software is construction accounting and payroll aimed at specialty and general contractors, including those with union and certified payroll requirements. It fits electrical contractors whose work is mostly commercial and public projects.
Firms with multiple entities, large project portfolios or a controller on staff sometimes move to construction ERPs such as Sage Intacct Construction, Viewpoint or Acumatica. These are bigger projects to implement. We compare several of them in accounting construction software compared.
| Your shop | Where many start |
|---|---|
| Mostly residential service, 1 to 15 people | QuickBooks Online or Xero plus a field service app |
| Service plus residential new construction | QuickBooks Online with projects and progress invoicing, plus field service software |
| Mostly commercial with retainage and pay apps | A construction ledger such as Sage 100 Contractor or Foundation |
| Union, prevailing wage or public work | A system with certified payroll built in, or a payroll service that handles it |
Electrical billing software is whatever creates and sends your invoices. For a service electrician that is usually field service software: the tech finishes the job, builds the invoice on a tablet from a flat-rate price book or T&M lines, and the customer can pay before the truck leaves. For project work it is often the accounting system itself, or a pay application built from a schedule of values. Our pay application guide walks through the G702 and G703.
Field service tools electricians commonly look at include ServiceTitan, Housecall Pro, Jobber and simPRO. Each handles scheduling, work orders and invoicing, and each lists accounting integrations. Ask how the invoice and the payment reach your ledger, and whether they arrive as one clean record or as something your bookkeeper has to fix. For more tools, see construction billing software: best tools for 2026.
If you want a format to copy, use our electrical invoice template, which includes a filled-in example.
Job costing is where accounting software earns its keep. You do not need a complicated cost code list to start. You need one that your crew and office use the same way every time.
| Cost code | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| 100 Rough-in labor | Hours for boxes, conduit, pulling wire |
| 110 Trim labor | Devices, fixtures, panel termination |
| 120 Service labor | Troubleshooting, repairs, service calls |
| 200 Wire and conduit | Copper, conduit, fittings |
| 210 Gear and fixtures | Panels, breakers, lighting, devices |
| 300 Equipment | Lifts, trenchers, rentals |
| 400 Subcontract | Low voltage, trenching or other subs |
| 500 Permits and fees | Permits, inspections, utility fees |
Three habits make the codes useful. Code every supply house ticket to a job when it is entered, not at month end. Apply labor burden (payroll taxes, workers' comp and benefits) to hours, so a job's labor cost is real. And compare estimated to actual hours by phase on every job over a size you choose, so your next bid uses real numbers.
Tip: Ask your supply house for electronic invoices with your job number on them. It saves your bookkeeper from coding paper tickets, and it is the fastest way to see material overruns while a job is still open.
Software does not keep the books by itself. A short routine does. Here is one that fits most shops with a part-time or outside bookkeeper. For a fuller version, read construction bookkeeping software: setup and routine.
| Weekly | Code supply house bills to jobs, approve timesheets, send every invoice for finished work, review what is past due |
| Monthly | Reconcile bank and credit cards, send progress bills and pay apps on the owner's cutoff, review job cost reports, run the AR aging |
| Quarterly | Review retainage receivable and closeout documents, check sales and payroll tax filings, update labor burden rates |
The AR aging report is the one most shops skip. It shows which invoices are 30, 60 and 90 days old, and it is the clearest early warning of a cash crunch. Here is how to read an AR aging report.
| Question | What a good answer looks like |
|---|---|
| How do invoices and payments from my field software reach the ledger? | Automatically, matched to the right customer and job, with no retyping |
| Can I see job profit by phase while the job is open? | Yes, estimated vs actual by cost code |
| How is retainage tracked and billed? | As a separate receivable you can bill at closeout |
| Does it handle certified payroll, or do I need a separate service? | A clear yes or a named partner |
| Does my bookkeeper or CPA already know it? | Yes, or they are willing to learn it |
| What happens after an invoice is sent? | Reminders run on a schedule until it is paid, or you know which tool does that |
Bring one overdue invoice.
We'll show you exactly how it would be followed up, and what your customer would see when they pay.
Accounting software records what you are owed. Electrical billing software sends the invoice. Neither one calls the property manager whose AP clerk lost your pay app, or texts the homeowner who meant to pay from their phone and forgot. In most electrical shops that follow-up falls to the owner or the office manager, and it gets done when there is time, which is rarely.
That is the part AR Workflow for electrical contractors handles. It is not accounting software. It sits on top of QuickBooks Online, syncs your open invoices, and puts each one on a follow-up schedule by email, two-way text and ringless voicemail from a dedicated number. Customers get card and ACH payment links, you can set up payment plans, and payments post back to QuickBooks. It stops when the invoice is paid. See how the QuickBooks collections sync works.
It depends on your mix of work. Many small and mid-size electrical shops use QuickBooks Online because nearly every field service and payroll tool connects to it. Contractors with mostly commercial work, retainage and certified payroll often move to a construction ledger such as Sage 100 Contractor or Foundation Software. Pick the one that handles job costing and progress billing for the work you do most.
For many shops, yes. QuickBooks Online handles the core books, project tracking and progress invoicing, and most electrical field service software integrates with it. It is weaker on retainage, WIP reporting and certified payroll, which may need add-ons or a different system as you grow.
Electrical billing software creates and sends invoices for electrical work. For service work that is usually field service software that builds the invoice on site. For project work it can be your accounting system or pay application software. Billing software sends the invoice; you still need a process, or a tool, to follow up until it is paid.
Create a short list of cost codes by phase and cost type, such as rough-in labor, trim labor, service labor, wire and conduit, gear and fixtures, equipment, subcontract and permits. Code every bill and timesheet to a job and code when it is entered, apply labor burden to hours, and compare estimated to actual hours on each job.
Both are used. Which method you can use, and how long-term contracts are reported, depends on your size and contract types under IRS rules. IRS Publication 538 explains accounting methods. Ask your CPA which method fits your business.
Related reading
Your invoice, not a feature tour.
Bring one overdue invoice to a demo and see what AR Workflow would send, when, and how your customer would pay.
Software features and integrations change. Check each vendor's site for current details. This article is general information, not tax or legal advice.
Sam owned and ran three restoration companies for more than 14 years and collected over $100 million in receivables. He built AR Workflow in 2020 to give contractors the collections system he wished he'd had.
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