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Autopilot vs RealGreen
RealGreen is built for established, multi-crew lawn care companies that want route density, print marketing, and a proven green-industry playbook. Autopilot is for the smaller crew that wants everything in one app, phone and AI receptionist included, at a flat price you can see without a sales call.
The RealGreen alternative built for small crews
The numbers that decide it, side by side.
| Comparison point |  |  RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $49/mo flat | Quote-based; ~$125/mo base reported |
| Team members included | 1, 5, or 10 by plan | Usage and user-based packages |
| Free trial | 2 weeks, no card required | No free trial, demo only |
| Onboarding fee | $0 | Third parties report ~$995 implementation |
| Contract | Month to month, cancel anytime | One-year agreements reported |
| AI receptionist | Full Throttle, $149/mo | Not offered |
| Full business phone system | Full Throttle, $149/mo | Not offered |
| Support | Human support chat, no ticket queue | Phone and online support |
Last updated July 2026. RealGreen details are based on publicly available information; verify with RealGreen.
Who is RealGreen?
RealGreen is one of the oldest names in lawn care software, now owned by WorkWave, itself backed by private equity (EQT and TA Associates) after the 2021 acquisition. Its core product, Service Assistant 5, is a green-industry CRM for scheduling, billing, and customer management, and the company claims its customers generate $3.5 billion a year in revenue. It is aimed at multi-crew to enterprise lawn companies.
RealGreen sells in modules. Service Assistant is the base, and Routing Assistant, Measurement Assistant, Mobile Live, Automated Marketing Assistant, and the Customer Assistant Website portal are each add-ons. Pricing is not published; third parties report the base module starting around $125 a month, roughly $995 for implementation, and one-year agreements. It does have an open API, which is rarer in this vertical.
For a chemical lawn care operation with thousands of recurring accounts, RealGreen's density-focused routing and direct-mail marketing machine are genuine strengths. For a small crew, the module-by-module pricing and sales-call-only quotes make the real monthly cost hard to pin down.
Who is Autopilot?
Autopilot is an all-in-one CRM built for home service businesses: junk removal, cleaning, landscaping, moving, and the rest of the trades that keep neighborhoods running. Plans start at $49 a month for scheduling, estimates, invoicing, payments, and online booking. Crew at $99 adds two-way texting and limited calling. Full Throttle at $149 adds the full phone system, AI receptionist, QuickBooks, GPS, and marketing tools. Plans include 1, 5, or 10 team members respectively.
It was built by a founder who ran his own junk removal company and got tired of paying for three tools that didn't talk to each other. Over 400 businesses run on it today, and it holds a 4.8 rating on the App Store and 4.9 on Google Play.
Against RealGreen, the pitch is one price on the website instead of a quote, and the phone, texting, marketing, and AI receptionist already inside instead of sold as separate assistants.
Feature by feature
Not just checkmarks. Where a feature costs extra or sits on a higher plan, the table says so.
Phone & AI
| Comparison point | | RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| AI receptionist that answers and books calls | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| Built-in business phone (VoIP) | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| Call recording & transcripts | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| AI call summaries | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | |
| Two-way business texting | Crew and Full Throttle | Not advertised |
Scheduling & Jobs
| Comparison point | | RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Drag-and-drop scheduling & dispatch | ||
| Online booking | Customer Assistant Website add-on | |
| Estimates & quotes | Via Measurement Assistant add-on | |
| Client & lead management | ||
| iOS & Android crew app | 4.8 App Store / 4.9 Google Play | Mobile Live add-on |
Payments & Money
| Comparison point | | RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing & payments | ||
| Tap to Pay on iPhone | Not advertised | |
| QuickBooks sync | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| Price book | Not advertised | |
| Customer tipping |
Marketing & Growth
| Comparison point | | RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Review funnel | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
| SMS blast campaigns | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Via Automated Marketing Assistant add-on |
| Email blast campaigns | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Via Automated Marketing Assistant add-on |
| Automated marketing sequences | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Via Automated Marketing Assistant add-on |
| Google Ads tracking | Full Throttle ($149/mo) | Not advertised |
Where RealGreen goes deeper
| Comparison point | | RealGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Property measurement & instant quotes | Add-on | |
| Dynamic route optimization | Add-on | |
| Print & direct-mail marketing services | ||
| Open API |
An honest comparison cuts both ways. If these are must-haves for your business today, RealGreen earns the look.
What you actually pay
Autopilot
- Starter$49/mo
- Crew$99/mo
- Full Throttle$149/mo
Clear plans for 1, 5, or 10 team members. No onboarding fee or annual contract. Free 2-week trial.
RealGreen
- Service Assistant 5Quote-based
Base CRM, scheduling, billing
- Add-on modulesQuote-based
Routing, measurement, marketing, mobile, portal
RealGreen does not publish pricing. Third parties report the base module starting around $125 a month, an implementation fee around $995, one-year agreements, and separate charges for each add-on module.
Last updated July 2026. RealGreen details are based on publicly available information; verify with RealGreen.
The bottom line
Two different tools for two different businesses. Here is the honest split.
Choose RealGreen if…
- You run a multi-crew or enterprise lawn care company built on recurring chemical applications
- Route density is your business model and you want purpose-built routing tools
- You want direct-mail and print marketing services from your software vendor
- You need an open API to connect your own systems
Choose Autopilot if…
- You want the real price on the website, not after a sales call
- You want scheduling, invoicing, texting, marketing, and booking in one app, not five modules
- You want an AI receptionist answering calls and booking jobs, included in the plan
- You want month-to-month terms instead of a one-year agreement
Switching from RealGreen takes an afternoon
Four steps, and our team does the heavy one for you.
- 1
Export your customers
Pull your client list out of RealGreen as a CSV. Every FSM platform supports this, and it takes about five minutes.
- 2
We import everything for you
Send us the file and our team loads your customers, jobs, and price book into Autopilot as part of free onboarding. No spreadsheet wrestling on your end.
- 3
Point your phone number at Autopilot
On Full Throttle, keep your existing business number. We port it or forward it, so calls start landing in Autopilot with recording, transcripts, and the AI receptionist behind them.
- 4
Run both for a week, then cut over
Your RealGreen account keeps working during your free trial. Most crews book their first Autopilot job on day one and cancel the old subscription within the month.
- 400+
- businesses run on Autopilot
- 4.9
- Google Play rating
- 4.8
- App Store rating
- $49
- per month starting price
Autopilot vs RealGreen: your questions
The things owners actually ask before they switch.
Try the RealGreen alternative built for your crew
Start a free 2-week trial and book your first job today. No credit card, no onboarding fee, no contract.
More comparisons
RealGreen is a trademark of RealGreen. Autopilot is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by RealGreen. Competitor pricing and feature information is based on publicly available sources as of July 2026 and may have changed; features missing from a plan may be available on higher plans or for an additional fee. Confirm details with the vendor before buying.