A PaintScout alternative for UK decorators: the facts side by side
BrushDesk is job software for UK painters and decorators. It prices a job room by room at your own rates, in pounds, then runs it from quote to paid with VAT and CIS on the invoice. PaintScout is also built for painting contractors and publishes its prices in USD. BrushDesk is not the right fit if you need QuickBooks sync.
By BrushDesk. Last checked 30/10/2026.
Who BrushDesk suits
BrushDesk is job software built for UK painting and decorating firms. You pick the paint and materials from a catalogue, set your own rates, and price each room from its measurements. The same job then goes on to the quote, the schedule, the invoice and the payment.
It also handles the paperwork a UK decorator meets: VAT on invoices, and CIS deductions where you work as a subcontractor.
You can price a room free, with no sign-up, before you decide anything.
The facts side by side
Each PaintScout cell is taken from PaintScout’s own public pages, with a link to the page and the date we read it. BrushDesk’s column is checked against our own product on the same day. PaintScout publishes its prices in USD, so they are shown as published, not converted to pounds.
A blank cell means we have not used PaintScout’s pages for that row. It does not mean the feature is missing.
| Feature | BrushDesk | PaintScout |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | UK painting and decorating firms only. | Software for painting contractors.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Price as published | £39 per office seat and £10 per field seat, each a month, net of VAT. Annual billing charges ten months, so two are free. | Sales plan USD 119 a month billed monthly, or USD 99 a month billed annually. Operations add-on USD 99 a month billed monthly, or USD 79 a month billed annually. Extra team seats USD 20 per user a month. Set-up packages, called Success Packages, USD 999 to USD 1,999; the page says every account includes free onboarding.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Free trial | 14 days, no card. | 14-day free trial, no credit card required.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| How quotes are built | Room by room, from a paint and materials catalogue, at your own rates. | From customisable production rates and room dimensions, with templates for each type of project.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Currency and region | Built for the UK: prices in pounds, UK VAT and CIS. | Publishes its prices in USD. Its help centre says it supports metric measurements and pounds (£), with international mode switched on by its support team.Source: help.paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| VAT and CIS on invoices | VAT is added to invoices at the UK standard rate when you are VAT registered. CIS deductions are applied at 0, 20 or 30 percent, by the subcontractor’s status. | |
| Card payments | Customers pay by card through a payment link, into your own Stripe account. BrushDesk adds a 0.3% platform fee on each card payment, on top of Stripe’s own card fees. | Stripe can be connected to collect credit card payments. Its help centre says each Stripe transaction is charged your Stripe fee plus 0.5% paid to PaintScout.Source: help.paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Scheduling jobs | Included: schedule jobs and the team on site. | Jobs are planned on a centralised calendar with Operations.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Phone app | A web app built phone-first, opened in your phone’s browser. | Works in the browser on smartphones, tablets and computers.Source: help.paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
| Accounting software sync | No Xero, QuickBooks or Sage sync. | Invoices export to QuickBooks Online.Source: paintscout.com, read 30/10/2026 |
VAT and CIS
On BrushDesk, VAT is added to invoices at the UK standard rate when you are VAT registered, and CIS deductions are applied at 0, 20 or 30 percent depending on the subcontractor’s status. Check what your accountant needs before you commit to any tool.
Where BrushDesk is not the right fit
BrushDesk is probably not the tool for you if either of these is true.
- You need your invoices in QuickBooks. BrushDesk has no sync with QuickBooks, Xero or Sage. PaintScout says its invoices export to QuickBooks Online.
- You work outside the UK. BrushDesk is built for UK firms: pounds, UK VAT and CIS. PaintScout publishes its prices in USD, and its help centre says pounds (£) are supported once international mode is switched on by its support team.
How this page was checked
Prices and features change. Every PaintScout figure here was read on 30/10/2026 and may have moved since, so check its pages before you decide. We show no logos, ratings or screenshots of PaintScout.
This page was written by BrushDesk, which sells one of the products it compares.