GraftPay vs Powered Now: Which UK Trade App Should You Choose in 2026?
If you're weighing up GraftPay vs Powered Now for your UK trade business, here's the honest answer first. Both are UK-built tools made for British tradesmen. That's where the easy bit ends. Powered Now is deeper, with Making Tax Digital compliance, Xero sync, staff management and project tools — but it prices per user, starting at £28/user/month. GraftPay is leaner, flat-rate at £29/month covering unlimited users, but doesn't yet do MTD, VAT submission or accounting sync.
This post pulls every Powered Now claim direct from powerednow.com/pricing on the day it was written. Honest about who each one suits.
Quick verdict
Pick Powered Now if you need Making Tax Digital compliance, VAT return submission, Xero integration, staff scheduling and project management, and you're happy paying per user.
Pick GraftPay if you want flat-rate pricing that doesn't grow with your team, a sharper focus on quote-to-deposit-to-balance, and the simplest possible setup. Your accountant can still handle MTD on your behalf.
GraftPay vs Powered Now pricing compared
Money first. The big structural difference: Powered Now charges per user. GraftPay doesn't.
| Team size | GraftPay | Powered Now Business | Powered Now Professional | Powered Now Premium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 user | £29/month | £28/user/month | £32/user/month | £40/user/month |
| 2 users | £29/month | £56/month | £64/month | £80/month |
| 5 users | £29/month | £140/month | £160/month | £200/month |
| 10 users | £29/month | £280/month | £320/month | £400/month |
| Annual saving | n/a | 2 months free if paid annually | 2 months free if paid annually | 2 months free if paid annually |
| VAT | Included | Excluded — added on top | Excluded — added on top | Excluded — added on top |
| Free trial | 14 days, no card | 14 days, no card | 14 days, no card | 14 days, no card |
Powered Now pricing pulled from powerednow.com/pricing on 11 May 2026. The page states clearly: 'Pricing is based per user, VAT excluded'. GraftPay's £29/month is the flat rate listed on graftpay.co.uk.
Three takeaways.
One. For a sole trader, Powered Now Business at £28/user is £1 cheaper than GraftPay's £29 headline. Add VAT at 20% (standard rate per HMRC VAT guidance) and Powered Now becomes £33.60/month effective. GraftPay's £29 is the all-in price.
Two. The moment you add a second user, the gap flips. Two users on Powered Now Business: £56/month before VAT, or £67.20 with VAT. GraftPay at £29 covers unlimited users.
Three. At 5 users on Powered Now Professional (the most-popular plan): £160/month before VAT, or £192 after. GraftPay: still £29. That's a £163/month gap, nearly £2,000 a year.
Features compared
Powered Now has been in the UK trade market since 2013 and the feature depth shows, especially around UK tax compliance.
| Feature | GraftPay | Powered Now |
|---|---|---|
| Quote builder | ✅ | ✅ |
| Email + SMS quote delivery | ✅ Included | ✅ Unlimited on Professional+ |
| Take deposits | ✅ Built-in via Stripe | ✅ Online payments + mobile card reader |
| Final balance invoicing | ✅ One-tap | ✅ |
| Making Tax Digital compliance | ❌ | ✅ All plans |
| VAT return submission | ❌ | ✅ Professional + Premium |
| Xero integration | ❌ | ✅ Professional + Premium |
| Purchase orders & supplier invoices | ❌ | ✅ All plans |
| Project management & job tracking | ❌ | ✅ All plans |
| Digital forms & certificates | ❌ | ✅ Professional + Premium |
| Staff management & tracking | ❌ | ✅ Professional + Premium |
| Drag & drop staff scheduling | ❌ | ✅ Premium only |
| Customer portal | ❌ | ✅ Premium only |
| Automatic quote and invoice chasing | ❌ | ✅ Premium only |
| AI text drafting | ❌ | ✅ Premium only |
| Mobile app | ✅ Web app, any phone | ✅ Native iOS + Android + iPad |
| Flat-rate pricing | ✅ £29 covers unlimited users | ❌ Per-user |
| UK-built | ✅ | ✅ |
Two takeaways.
One. Powered Now does meaningfully more than GraftPay, especially around UK-specific things like MTD compliance, VAT return submission and Xero sync. If those matter to how you run your books, that's a real reason to look at Powered Now.
Two. GraftPay is built around a tighter loop: quote out, deposit in, balance paid. For a sole trader whose accountant handles VAT and MTD anyway, you're paying for tools you'll never click.
Where Powered Now wins
Being honest. Powered Now is the most established UK-built option on the market. Per their own figures, 4,000+ trade businesses have invoiced £2.1B through the platform. They win on:
- UK tax compliance. Making Tax Digital is included on every plan, and VAT return submission is available on Professional and Premium. GraftPay doesn't do this. If your accountant doesn't handle it for you, this is a real differentiator.
- Xero integration. Sync clients, invoices and payments to Xero directly. Saves hours of double-entry every month for businesses using Xero for their books. GraftPay doesn't integrate with accounting software yet.
- Project management & job tracking. Full job lifecycle from quote to completion, with attachments, notes and project view. For builders running 5+ active jobs, this matters. GraftPay handles individual quotes and invoices, not full projects.
- Staff management. Add your team, track location, log time, manage HR including sickness and holidays. Available on Professional and Premium. GraftPay has no staff tools today.
- Mature feature set. Forms and certificates (Gas Safety, EICR style), product catalogue, customer portal, automated chasing. A lot of trade-specific machinery built in.
If you need any of those five and you're already paying for an accountant or bookkeeper anyway, Powered Now is the more complete UK tool. Plain fact.
Where GraftPay wins
Now the bit you scrolled down for.
- Flat-rate beats per-user fast. £29 covers one user or fifty. Powered Now charges per user on every plan. Two-person team: GraftPay is £27/month cheaper. Five-person team: GraftPay is £130+/month cheaper. As your team grows, the gap widens with no extra effort from you.
- VAT is in the £29. Powered Now's prices exclude VAT. So £28/user/month becomes £33.60 once you've added 20% VAT. GraftPay's £29 is the all-in cost on your invoice.
- Deposit-first by design. GraftPay is built around the moment that actually matters: getting a deposit before you start the job. The customer taps Accept, pays through Stripe, money lands in your account. Powered Now has online payments but they sit inside a much bigger workflow.
- Less to learn. Powered Now's feature set is impressive but it takes time to set up properly. GraftPay does one thing well, and you're sending your first quote within five minutes of signing up.
- No upgrade ladder. Powered Now's most useful features (staff management, Xero, AI text, scheduling) sit on higher plans. GraftPay's £29 includes everything it does.
GraftPay vs Powered Now: real-world scenarios
Three quick scenarios.
Scenario 1: Sole-trader gas engineer, accountant handles tax
Picture a gas engineer working solo. Around 15 jobs a week. Your accountant handles your VAT returns quarterly and they manage Making Tax Digital on your behalf.
Powered Now Business: £28/user/month, or £33.60 after VAT. Decent value if you want the in-app MTD and project tools, but you're paying for things your accountant already does.
GraftPay: £29/month flat, VAT included. Same headline price after VAT is added to Powered Now, but you save the per-user creep if you ever take on a labourer.
For this profile, the choice comes down to whether you want one app that does everything (Powered Now) or a sharper tool focused on getting paid faster (GraftPay).
Scenario 2: Plumbing firm with 4 lads on the team
Now imagine you've got three lads working with you plus an apprentice. You're managing VAT yourself, no accountant in-house, and you're using Xero for the books.
Powered Now Professional: £32 × 4 users = £128/month before VAT, or £153.60 after. You get MTD, VAT submission, Xero sync, staff tracking and time logging. For a self-managing trade firm doing its own books, this is genuinely useful.
GraftPay: £29/month flat. £124+ a month cheaper than Powered Now Professional. But you don't get MTD, VAT or Xero. You'd still need a tool or service for those.
Honest answer: if your VAT and MTD are core admin pain points and you use Xero, Powered Now pays for itself. If your accountant handles those and you just want to get paid faster, GraftPay saves you £1,400+ a year.
Scenario 3: Established firm with 8 staff and complex jobs
8-person team, mix of office and field. Multiple active projects. Quoting 100+ jobs a month. Need scheduling, certificates and customer portal.
Powered Now Premium: £40 × 8 users = £320/month before VAT, or £384 after. You get the full stack including drag-and-drop scheduling, automated chasing, AI text and customer portal.
GraftPay: still £29/month, but without scheduling, certificates, customer portal or full project management. Honestly not the right fit at this size.
If you're running an 8-person operation with proper field work, Powered Now Premium is the right call. GraftPay isn't competing here yet.
GraftPay vs Powered Now: which one wins?
Sole trader whose accountant handles VAT and MTD: GraftPay wins on price and focus. Flat £29 with VAT included beats Powered Now's £33.60 after VAT, and you don't pay for tools your accountant already covers.
Small team self-managing VAT and using Xero: Powered Now Professional is worth the extra. MTD compliance, VAT submission and Xero sync are genuinely useful and GraftPay doesn't have them yet.
4+ staff with complex jobs and scheduling needs: Powered Now Premium wins on capability. GraftPay can't compete on staff management, scheduling or customer portal at this size.
Cost-sensitive growing team where flat pricing matters more than features: GraftPay wins on simplicity. No per-user creep, no VAT surprise on the headline price, no upgrade ladder.
Weighing up other tools too? It's worth reading GraftPay vs Tradify for the New Zealand per-user comparison, GraftPay vs ServiceM8 for the Australian flat-rate option, and GraftPay vs Jobber if USD pricing is a concern.
Frequently asked questions
Is Powered Now cheaper than GraftPay?
Only for sole traders, and only just. Powered Now Business is £28/user/month vs GraftPay's £29/month flat. The £1 gap disappears the moment you add a second user, because Powered Now is per-user. Two users on Powered Now Business is £56/month versus £29 with GraftPay. VAT also pushes Powered Now's effective price above £29 anyway.
Does Powered Now handle Making Tax Digital and VAT?
Yes. According to the Powered Now pricing page, Making Tax Digital compliance is included on all plans, and VAT return submission is available on Professional (£32/user/month) and above. GraftPay does not currently handle MTD or VAT submission. For background on Making Tax Digital itself, see the official HMRC guidance.
Do both have a free trial?
Yes. Both offer a 14-day free trial with no card required. Powered Now confirms this on its pricing page. GraftPay offers the same.
Is Powered Now UK-based?
Yes. Powered Now is UK-built and UK-focused, like GraftPay. This is the first comparison in our series where both tools are UK-native, so the differentiator is pricing model and feature focus rather than country.
Does Powered Now work on Android?
Yes. Powered Now confirms on its pricing page that it works on PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android phones and tablets. GraftPay is a web app and works on any phone too. Mixed-device teams aren't penalised on either tool.
Want to try GraftPay?
If flat-rate pricing and a sharper focus sound like what you actually need, try GraftPay free for 14 days. No card needed. Send your first quote, take your first deposit, see how it feels. Then run Powered Now's free trial alongside if you want to compare them side by side. Both have 14-day trials and neither asks for a card. You'll know which fits your business by the end of the fortnight.