Tekmetric vs Shopmonkey vs Gearboxly: what each really costs your shop

Tekmetric, Shopmonkey and Gearboxly will all run a repair shop: repair orders, estimates, inspections, invoices. The real difference is what you pay for the plan you actually need, once you count your people and add texting, card payments and a labor guide. Entry prices don’t tell you that, so this page prices three common shops instead.

Full disclosure: we make Gearboxly. We’ve tried to be fair to both competitors, and every price here comes from each company’s public pricing page, checked October 14, 2026. Jump to the cost table.

The short answer

• Tekmetric is best if you want an established vendor with unlimited users priced per shop, and you’re fine paying for a higher tier to get texting (Scale) and integrated payments (Enterprise).
• Shopmonkey is best if you want texting and payments on the entry plan and your team fits in the 3 to 5 users its plans include, since each extra login is $20/month.
• Gearboxly is best if you want texting, payments, a labor guide and unlimited users in the $99 Core plan, and an AI plan at $249 that drafts estimates and looks up labor.

A small shop: 3 users, texting and payments

This is where Shopmonkey’s entry plan shines: Basic at $239 includes two-way texting, integrated payments and 3 users. On Tekmetric, texting is on Scale ($439) and integrated payments are on Enterprise, which is priced by quote, so you’d need a quote to get both. Gearboxly Core is $99 with both included.

A growing shop: 6 users and a labor guide

Six logins pushes Shopmonkey past its included users. On Clever (4 users) that’s $399 plus two extra users at $20, or $439 a month. We couldn’t verify which Shopmonkey plan includes a labor guide, so check with Shopmonkey. Tekmetric’s labor guide starts on Grow, but texting and payments still sit on Scale and Enterprise. Gearboxly includes the labor guide on every plan, so it’s still Core at $99.

A busy shop: 10 users, everything, plus AI

Shopmonkey Genius is $499 with 5 users, so 10 users is $499 plus 5 × $20, or $599 a month. Tekmetric would be an Enterprise quote, since that’s where integrated payments sit. For AI features in either product, check with them. Gearboxly’s AI plan is $249 for one location, with unlimited users.

Tekmetric vs Shopmonkey: the real trade-off

Tekmetric and Shopmonkey price in opposite ways. Tekmetric charges per shop and includes unlimited users on every plan, so adding a tech or a second service writer doesn’t change the bill. Its plans step up by feature instead: the labor guide and time and job clocks start on Grow ($349), two-way texting is on Scale ($439), and integrated payments are on Enterprise, which is custom. There’s no contract.

Shopmonkey puts more into its entry plan. Basic ($239) includes two-way text and email, integrated payments, parts lookup and ordering, and a mobile app for iOS and Android. The trade-off is users: Basic includes 3, Clever 4 and Genius 5, then $20 a month for each extra login. As far as we can tell from earlier checks, inventory and the employee time clock start on Clever, but check with Shopmonkey. Shopmonkey also lists a one-time $500 data migration fee, and its card reader is $299 plus $10 a month per device.

So the answer to “Tekmetric or Shopmonkey?” mostly comes down to two numbers: how many people log in, and whether you want texting and payments without moving up tiers. Small teams that want texting and payments right away tend to land on Shopmonkey’s numbers. Bigger teams feel per-user fees, which is where Tekmetric’s per-shop pricing helps. Head-to-heads: Gearboxly vs Tekmetric and Gearboxly vs Shopmonkey. Weighing more vendors? See Tekmetric alternatives.

Where Gearboxly is different

Gearboxly was built inside a working repair shop, and it prices like it: per location, with the everyday tools in the cheapest plan. Here’s what’s different, and where to read more.

AI estimates from the customer’s concern

Type what the customer said, like “grinding from the front when braking,” and the AI plan drafts an estimate with the likely jobs, parts and labor lines. Your service writer edits it, then sends it for approval by text. It saves the blank-page minutes at the counter, especially on busy mornings. Nothing goes to the customer until a person approves it. See AI estimate drafts.

Labor lookup that labels every AI time

AI labor lookup suggests labor hours for a job on the vehicle in front of you. Every AI labor time is labeled on the repair order, so your writer always knows which numbers came from the AI and which came from your labor guide or your own experience. Treat AI times as a starting point and check them like any other source. See AI labor lookup.

Tech shorthand turned into customer-ready findings

Techs write the way techs write: “RF brakes 3mm, battery 390/600.” The AI turns that shorthand into plain findings a customer can read on their phone, with the recommendation attached, so the tech doesn’t have to type paragraphs and the writer doesn’t have to translate. The tech’s notes stay on the inspection. See AI inspection shorthand.

Shop Brain: what needs a person right now

Shop Brain looks across the shop and surfaces what’s waiting on someone: estimates waiting for approval, finished jobs that haven’t been invoiced, deferred work worth a call. It’s a short list for the counter instead of a report you have to dig through at the end of the day. See Shop Brain.

Deferred-work follow-ups

Work a customer declined today is often work they’ll approve in a month, if someone reminds them. Gearboxly drafts follow-ups for deferred work so it doesn’t slip through the cracks, and a person reviews them before they go. See AI deferred-work follow-ups, and our guide to winning back deferred work.

Customer portal, rewards points and online booking on every plan

Every plan includes a customer portal with your shop’s name and colors. Customers sign in with their email to see their vehicles, past visits and upcoming appointments, collect rewards points you set the rate for, and book their next visit themselves. See how the customer portal works and scheduling and online booking.

Month to month, unlimited users

Every Gearboxly plan is month to month with unlimited users, priced per location: Core $99, AI $249 ($219 each for 2 to 4 locations) and Growth $399 ($369 each for 2 to 4). Yearly billing gives you 2 months free, and every shop starts with a 14-day trial of the AI plan with no card. See pricing.

The honest part: the AI drafts and a person approves; it doesn’t send anything on its own. QuickBooks Online sync and the iPhone and Android staff app are marked “Soon” on our pricing, so if you need those today, factor that in.

When to pick Tekmetric or Shopmonkey instead

Gearboxly is new, and that matters to some shops. Pick Tekmetric if you want an established vendor with a broad integration ecosystem, you run several shops and want its multi-shop add-on (+$70/month per shop on its pricing page), or your team already knows it and switching would cost more than it saves.

Pick Shopmonkey if you want a polished all-in-one with texting, payments, parts ordering and a mobile app on the entry plan, and your team fits comfortably in its included users. For a small crew, that can be a strong, simple choice.

Switching without losing a week

Export your customers and vehicles as CSV from your current system and import them into Gearboxly; we’re happy to help with the move. Keep the old system readable for a month so you can look up history. Then test on real repair orders, not demo data: write a few estimates, send a few texts, take a payment. Set your labor rate and parts matrix before you go live, because every estimate depends on them. The getting started guide walks through setup, and what to look for in shop management software covers the bigger decision.