Notes for a busier shop
Practical guides for auto repair shop owners: answering every call, filling your bays, getting estimates approved, getting paid faster and earning more reviews.
Guides
Flat Rate Labor Guide: How Labor Times Work (2026)
What a flat rate labor guide is, where MOTOR, ALLDATA, Mitchell 1 and Identifix labor times come from and what they cost, and how shops use guide hours to quote jobs, pay flat-rate technicians …
Comparisons
Mitchell 1 Pricing (2026): Manager SE and ProDemand
What Mitchell 1 publishes and what it doesn't: ProDemand and TeamWorks lease prices from its store, Manager SE add-ons from $15 to …
Comparisons
AutoLeap Pricing (2026): Plans, Setup Fee and AIR
AutoLeap's Essentials, Pro and Elite plans monthly and annually, what each lacks, the unpublished setup fee and add-ons, and what the AIR …
Comparisons
Shop-Ware Pricing (2026): Packages, Add-On and Fees
Shop-Ware's four packages monthly and annually, what each one leaves out, the $249 CRM and scheduler add-on, the fees Shop-Ware mentions without …
Comparisons
Shopmonkey Pricing (2026): Plans, Users and Add-Ons
What Shopmonkey's Basic, Clever and Genius plans cost monthly and on annual pricing, what each tier lacks, what extra users, CRM Essentials, …
Comparisons
Tekmetric Pricing (2026): Every Plan, Add-On and Fee
Every Tekmetric plan, monthly and yearly, what each tier leaves out, the Marketing, Tire Suite and Multi-Shop add-ons, what a typical shop …
Comparisons
Tekmetric vs Shopmonkey (2026): Pricing and Features
A neutral, plan-by-plan comparison of Tekmetric and Shopmonkey: what each costs by team size, where texting, labor guides, booking and payments sit, …
Comparisons
Shopmonkey Alternatives (2026): 9 Options, Real Prices
Nine alternatives to Shopmonkey for independent auto repair shops, sorted by the reason you're looking: per-user licenses, labor guides on a cheaper …
Comparisons
Tekmetric Alternatives (2026): 9 Options, Real Prices
Nine alternatives to Tekmetric for independent auto repair shops, sorted by the reason you're looking: texting on the entry plan, unlimited users, …
Guides
Auto Repair Shop Insurance: Coverage Types and Costs
Which policies an auto repair shop needs, garage liability vs garagekeepers (legal liability, direct primary, direct excess), workers' comp rules that vary …