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    Construction Cost Management Software

    Control project costs before they become surprises.

    Jet.Build connects budgets, commitments, changes, invoices, direct costs, and forecasts on the same project record — so owners, developers, and contractors see where cost exposure is building before it reaches the monthly report.

    Book a DemoSee Cost Control →
    app.jetbuild.com/cost/budget

    Budget Summary — Harbor Point Tower

    2 Variances Flagged
    CodeDescriptionBudgetCommittedVariance
    03-100Concrete & Foundations$2,840,000$2,690,000-$150,000
    05-100Structural Steel$4,120,000$4,280,000+$160,000
    09-200Drywall & Finishes$1,560,000$1,420,000-$140,000
    15-100Mechanical / HVAC$3,200,000$3,680,000+$480,000
    16-100Electrical$2,100,000$2,050,000-$50,000

    Jet.Build project cost view showing budget, committed cost, and variance by cost code.

    $47B+ in active development managed on Jet.Build153M+ SF across active portfoliosUnlimited users on every planDedicated U.S.-based account management
    The Cost Control Problem

    Cost overruns show up in reports long after they start on the project.

    The overrun does not begin when the monthly report is built. It begins when a commitment changes, scope moves, a pending change is not reflected, an invoice hits, or a direct cost is entered and the forecast is never updated. When those records live in different tools, the financial picture trails the project — and leadership sees exposure the project team already knew about weeks ago.

    • The approved budget no longer reflects what has actually been committed.
    • Pending changes sit outside the forecast until someone remembers to add them.
    • Cost reports depend on a spreadsheet that one person reconciles by hand.
    • Invoices arrive without budget context, so approvals happen on trust.
    • Actual costs and commitments live in separate systems.
    • Nobody can quickly explain why projected final cost moved this month.
    The Connected Cost Record

    One cost record from budget through forecast.

    Every stage below should update the project's current financial picture — not become another spreadsheet someone has to reconcile later. In Jet.Build each record posts against the same budget lines, so the current cost position is a byproduct of the work rather than a monthly exercise.

    01

    Estimate

    The number the project was won or approved on.

    02

    Budget

    Estimate becomes structured budget lines and cost codes.

    03

    Commitments

    Subcontracts and purchase orders commit cost against those lines.

    04

    Changes

    Owner and subcontractor changes adjust scope, budget, and exposure.

    05

    Invoices / Actuals

    Pay apps, invoices, and direct costs post against the same lines.

    06

    Forecast

    Projected final cost and cost-to-complete update from live records.

    Budget Control

    Know what was approved, committed, spent, and projected.

    Jet.Build holds original budget, approved changes, revised budget, committed cost, actual cost, and projected final cost in one structured view. Filter by cost code, phase, trade, or vendor, then drill into any line item to see the commitments, invoices, and change orders sitting behind the number.

    • Original budget, approved changes, and revised budget on the same line
    • Committed and actual cost tracked against each budget line item
    • Drilldown from a summary number to the underlying transactions
    • Cost code structures that match how your team manages work
    app.jetbuild.com/cost/budget

    Budget Summary — Harbor Point Tower

    2 Variances Flagged
    CodeDescriptionBudgetCommittedVariance
    03-100Concrete & Foundations$2,840,000$2,690,000-$150,000
    05-100Structural Steel$4,120,000$4,280,000+$160,000
    09-200Drywall & Finishes$1,560,000$1,420,000-$140,000
    15-100Mechanical / HVAC$3,200,000$3,680,000+$480,000
    16-100Electrical$2,100,000$2,050,000-$50,000
    Commitments

    See the budget impact when the commitment is made.

    Cost is real the moment a subcontract or purchase order is executed — not when the first invoice arrives. Jet.Build records commitments with their vendor, scope, cost code, and approval state, and posts them against the budget lines they consume. Committed cost is what tells you the true exposure on a line long before actuals catch up.

    • Subcontracts and purchase orders tied to budget lines
    • Vendor, scope, and cost code captured on every commitment
    • Approval state visible to the project and finance teams
    • Committed vs. remaining budget by line item
    app.jetbuild.com/cost/changes

    Active Projects

    9

    Total Value

    $412M

    On Track

    89%

    Open COs

    17

    Midtown Office Tower

    Structural Steel

    On Track

    Harbor Retail Center

    MEP Rough-In

    At Risk

    Union Mixed-Use

    Façade Install

    On Track

    Parkway Corporate Campus

    Site Work

    On Track
    Change Orders & Exposure

    Track cost exposure before every change is fully approved.

    A pending change matters financially before it becomes an approved change order. Jet.Build tracks owner and subcontractor changes with status, documentation, and approval workflow, and carries their budget and forecast impact while they are still open — so the exposure on a line is visible while there is still time to act on it.

    • Owner and subcontractor changes with status and supporting documentation
    • Pending and approved change impact carried against the budget line
    • Approval routing so changes do not stall in someone's inbox
    See how approval workflows route change orders →

    New to how these records move? Read the construction change-order process. Documenting an individual change? Start with the free construction change order template. Tracking them across the whole project? Use the free change-order log.

    Forecasting & Cost-to-Complete

    Know where the project is expected to land — not just where it stands today.

    Current cost position tells you what has been committed and spent so far. Expected final cost tells you what the project will cost if nothing else changes. Jet.Build calculates projected final cost and cost-to-complete from your commitments, actuals, and open changes — so the forecast reflects the same records the project team is already maintaining.

    Current cost position

    Committed cost plus actual cost posted to date, by line item, phase, trade, and cost code.

    Expected final cost

    Projected final cost and remaining cost-to-complete, including open change exposure.

    Read the Construction Cost Forecasting Guide →
    app.jetbuild.com/cost/forecast

    Active Tasks — Harbor Point Tower

    1 Blocked4 Active
    TaskAssigned ToStatusPriority
    Level 3 concrete pourMartinez GCIn ProgressHigh
    MEP rough-in — Zone BAllied MechanicalIn ProgressHigh
    Structural steel — Level 5IronWorks LLCScheduledMedium
    Fire suppression installSafeGuard FirePending RFIHigh
    Curtain wall fabricationGlassTech IncOn TrackMedium
    Elevator shaft framingVerticalBuildOn TrackLow
    Invoices, Pay Apps & Direct Costs

    Every invoice should answer one question immediately: where does this sit against the budget?

    Invoices and payment applications in Jet.Build are reviewed against the commitment and budget line they draw from, with schedule of values tracking and supporting documentation attached to the record. Direct costs that fall outside a formal commitment are logged the same way, coded to the budget so nothing arrives at month-end unaccounted for.

    • Invoices and pay apps linked to their commitment and budget line
    • Schedule of values tracking on payment applications
    • Supporting documentation attached to the cost record
    • Direct costs coded to the budget without a commitment
    Payment administration and accounting workflows live in Construction Financial Management →
    Project & Portfolio

    The portfolio number should come from the records the project team is managing.

    Two audiences need different depth from the same cost data. When leadership reporting is assembled separately, the two versions drift — and the conversation becomes about whose number is right instead of what to do about it.

    What the project team needs

    • Cost code detail
    • Commitments and invoices
    • Open and approved changes
    • Current forecast
    • Line-item exposure
    • Vendor and trade detail

    What leadership needs

    • Which projects are moving off budget
    • Where forecasts changed
    • Where exposure is building
    • Which changes remain unresolved
    • Which projects need attention
    • Portfolio-level cost comparisons

    Deeper on each: executive reporting and visibility and capital project management for owners and developers.

    app.jetbuild.com/portfolio/cost

    Active Projects

    12

    Total Value

    $284M

    On Track

    83%

    Open RFIs

    34

    Harbor Point Tower

    Structural

    On Track$24.8M

    Meridian West Campus

    MEP Rough-In

    At Risk$41.2M

    Civic Center Reno

    Finishes

    On Track$18.6M

    CUSTOMER STORY

    Canvas CM: cost control that carries into reporting

    Canvas CM, an owner's representative and construction management firm, connected budgets, commitments, pending changes, and forecasts in Jet.Build so project teams and leadership could review a consistent financial picture across the portfolio.

    “Before Jet.Build, we were pulling cost information from multiple places just to understand where a project stood. Now the budget, commitments, changes, and forecast are connected, giving our team and leadership a clearer view of project performance.”

    Suzanne Andolino, Director of Project Management, Canvas CM
    Read the Canvas CM customer story

    Cost management and financial management are connected — but they are not the same job.

    They run on the same records in Jet.Build. The difference is the question you are trying to answer.

    Cost Management

    "How do I control project cost and exposure while the work is happening?"

    Budgets, commitments, changes, actual costs, invoices, forecasts, projected final cost, and line-item exposure.

    Financial Management

    "How do I manage the broader financial operation around those projects?"

    Accounting connectivity, cash flow, financial reporting, payment administration, contracts, and portfolio finance workflows.

    Explore Construction Financial Management

    The cost record lives alongside the activity creating the cost.

    Most cost problems are traceable to a project event — a change in scope, a delayed approval, a schedule slip, a document nobody could find. In Jet.Build the budget line sits next to the change activity, approvals, documents, schedule, and commitments that moved it, so explaining a variance does not require assembling evidence from three systems.

    Connected project and financial workflows

    Cost, changes, approvals, documents, and schedule on the same project record.

    Unlimited users, flat pricing

    Everyone who touches cost can be in the system — no per-seat math.

    Dedicated U.S.-based account management

    A named account manager who knows how your cost structure is configured.

    Pre-development through closeout

    The same cost record follows the project from budget setup to final reconciliation.

    What's Connected

    The records that make up a project's cost picture.

    Budgets

    Original budget, approved changes, revised budget, and projected final cost in one structured view.

    Commitments

    Subcontracts and purchase orders tied to the budget lines they consume.

    Purchase Orders

    Vendor POs with scope, cost code, and approval state.

    Change Orders

    Owner and subcontractor changes with budget and forecast impact.

    Invoices

    Invoices reviewed against the budget line and commitment they draw from.

    Payment Applications

    Pay apps with schedule of values tracking and supporting documentation.

    Direct Costs

    Costs that fall outside formal commitments, still coded to the budget.

    Cost Codes

    Cost code structures that match how your team actually manages work.

    Forecasting

    Projected final cost calculated from commitments, actuals, and changes.

    Cost-to-Complete

    Remaining exposure by line item, phase, trade, and vendor.

    Cash Flow

    Projected cash flow across the project timeline.

    Cost Reports

    Budget, commitment, and variance reporting from live records.

    Cost control that connects to your accounting environment.

    Project teams should not be reconciling every system by hand. Jet.Build connects to the accounting platforms your organization already runs, so project cost data and the books stay aligned without double entry.

    QuickBooksSageYardiMicrosoft ExcelXero
    See the API and integration options →
    Jenny AI

    Ask what changed in the cost picture.

    Jenny works from your project records — summarizing budget movement, surfacing unresolved change orders, locating the invoice or change documentation behind a number, and citing the underlying records so the answer can be verified. Jenny does not approve costs, move money, or make financial decisions.

    Meet Jenny, the AI built into every project →

    Construction cost management questions

    Construction cost management software is the system a project team uses to control cost while the work is happening. It holds the project budget, the commitments made against it, the changes affecting it, the invoices and direct costs posted to it, and the forecast that says where the project is expected to land. Its job is to keep the current cost position accurate without manual reconciliation.

    At minimum: original budget, approved changes, revised budget, committed cost, actual cost, pending change exposure, projected final cost, and cost-to-complete — all traceable to the underlying commitments, invoices, and change records by cost code, phase, trade, and vendor.

    Cost management is about controlling project cost as the work changes — budgets, commitments, changes, invoices, forecasts, and exposure. Financial management is the broader operation around it: accounting connectivity, cash flow, payment administration, contracts, and portfolio financial reporting. In Jet.Build they run on the same records; the difference is the job you are doing.

    Yes. Commitments, change orders, invoices, and direct costs all post against budget line items, so committed cost, actual cost, and projected final cost update as records are entered and approved rather than at month-end.

    Owner and subcontractor changes are tracked with their status, documentation, approval workflow, and budget impact. Because pending changes are recorded before they are approved, the team can see exposure building against a budget line instead of discovering it when the change order is executed.

    Yes. Jet.Build calculates projected final cost from committed amounts, approved and pending change orders, and actual spend, and shows cost-to-complete by line item, phase, trade, and cost code. The forecast is derived from your project records, not from a manual spreadsheet formula.

    Yes. Invoices and payment applications are reviewed and approved with schedule of values tracking and supporting documentation attached, and direct costs can be logged against budget lines even when no formal commitment exists.

    Yes. Jet.Build includes unlimited users with role-based permissions, so owners, developers, owner's reps, general contractors, and trade partners can work from the same cost records with the visibility appropriate to their role.

    Jet.Build connects with accounting platforms including QuickBooks, Sage, Yardi, and Xero, and supports Microsoft Excel import and export, so project cost data and the back-office books stay aligned without double entry.

    Yes. Portfolio views compare budget, commitment, variance, and forecast movement across active projects, using the same records the project teams are managing day to day.

    Related solutions

    Cost management sits inside a connected platform. These are the closest neighbors.

    See where your project costs are headed before month-end.

    Take about 30 minutes with our team to walk through how Jet.Build connects budgets, commitments, changes, invoices, and forecasts on your own project workflow — and how it fits the financial and project-control environment you already run.

    Trusted with $47B+ in active development · 153M+ SF

    Implementation & Support

    The platform is only part of the implementation.

    Your dedicated U.S.-based account manager helps configure Jet.Build around your operation, onboard internal and external stakeholders, lead recurring training, and support your team throughout the relationship.

    See How Support Works