GorillaDesk vs Pool Brain (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, GorillaDesk grades higher than Pool Brain: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
GorillaDesk grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
GorillaDesk
Field service software for pest control, lawn care and pool routes
Pool Brain
Pool company software for routes, jobs, dosing and billing
Which one is for you
Pick GorillaDesk if
- Fits if you run pest control and need chemical use records for every visit
- Works for lawn care and pool businesses with the same stops every week
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you text customers a lot, as it's $5 a month for a number plus credits from $50
- Tight if you need online booking or QuickBooks sync, which start on Pro at $99 a route
- Not for you if each tech runs a separate route and money's tight: routes two and three add $50 each on Basic, and on Growth route two alone adds $100
- Watch out: Basic routes up to 25 stops, and a yearly plan is billed in full at the start
- Skip it if you want a desktop app, as it's web, iPhone and Android only
Pick Pool Brain if
- Fits if you run a pool service route and want chemicals and cost tracked per stop
- Works for firms with many office users, since office logins are unlimited
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you grow, because each active technician adds $65 a month to the $50 base
- Not for you if you work in other trades, since the pages describe pool service only
- Watch out: QuickBooks sync is optional because billing runs inside Pool Brain
- Watch out: the pricing calculator covers 5 to 50 technicians, and more means contacting sales
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAGorillaDeskFair | 2.2GPAPool BrainFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CYou pay per route, not per person. Three techs each running a route pay $149 a month on Basic ($49 plus $50 for each of two more), billed monthly, with a month free if you pay yearly. A crew riding together pays $49. That's mid-pack here. | C$50 a month plus $65 per active technician means 5 technicians pay $375, about $75 a head, above the category's middle at $49 and near its dearer quarter. Office users are unlimited. |
| Free plan and trial | CA 14-day free trial, the usual length here. No free plan. | DA 30-day free trial is offered, but the page does not say that no card is needed. There is no free plan. |
| Features | BMap-based scheduling and routing, invoices, estimates, work orders, chemical and material records, automatic reminders, and from Pro online booking, a customer portal and subscription billing. The whole job for route businesses, plus pest control records. | BRouting and scheduling, quotes, jobs and billing, chemical dosing and cost, guided workflows and alerts, and reports with technician pay. The listing shows no gap in the pool service job. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record for it. Booking, the customer portal and QuickBooks sync need Pro, and texting needs its own number and credits, so there's some setting up. | CNo store rating on record. Pools, routes and chemical prices have to be loaded in before it works. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with QuickBooks Online, Stripe, Square and Zapier, and an API from Pro. No desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with a QuickBooks Online link. No desktop app. |
| Best for | pest control, lawn and pool routes | pool service routes and chemical tracking |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: GorillaDesk and Pool Brain. How we grade
Price against what you get
GorillaDesk starts at $49 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Pool Brain starts at $50 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and GorillaDesk starts $1 a month lower. Of the other field service apps on the chart, 3 score higher than GorillaDesk for less, and 3 score higher than Pool Brain for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- GorillaDesk also covers time clock, appointment booking and review collection.
- Pool Brain also covers workflow automation and reports.
At a glance
| GorillaDesk | Pool Brain | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $49 per month for 1 route schedule, billed monthly | $50 per month, plus $65 per active technician |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial | 30-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | GorillaDesk | Pool Brain |
| Price read from | gorilladesk.com | poolbrain.com |
| Checked | Nov 9, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
GorillaDesk
- Price is per route schedule: extra routes cost $50 a month each on Pro; Basic adds $50 then $30, and Growth $100, then $50, with 5 routes at $499.
- Texting costs extra: $5 a month for a local number, plus credits from $50 for 1,000 messages.
- Online booking, the customer portal, QuickBooks Online sync, Zapier and the API need Pro or Growth.
- A yearly subscription is billed in full up front; monthly plans can be cancelled or frozen at any time.
Pool Brain
- Cost grows with headcount: $65 per active technician each month on top of the $50 base.
- Aimed at pool service; the pages do not describe other trades.
- QuickBooks sync is offered but billing runs inside Pool Brain, so it is optional.
- The pricing page shows a calculator for 5 to 50 technicians and a contact-sales option beyond that.
Key features
GorillaDesk
- Scheduling and routing
- Jobs appear as pins on a map and Basic orders up to 25 stops at a time; Pro routes with real street drive times and Growth suggests the best open slot.
- Invoices, estimates and work orders
- Automated invoices with flexible frequencies, estimates and work orders; Pro adds subscription billing through Square or Stripe and e-signatures.
- Chemical and device tracking
- Record material and chemical use for reports on every plan, and from Pro barcode traps and devices at commercial sites and track trends.
- Automated reminders
- Appointment confirmations, reminders and late-payment notices go out by email and text automatically, and broadcasts reach everyone on a day's calendar.
- Booking, portal and reviews
- From Pro, customers book from your website, manage their account in a portal and get asked for reviews after the visit.
- Sales pipeline on Growth
- Growth adds lead stages, sales opportunities with close dates, pipeline reports and estimate packages with required and optional items.
Pool Brain
- Routing and scheduling
- Drag-and-drop routes, one-click optimization, one-time moves and an unscheduled list; jobs and route stops can be viewed together or apart.
- Quotes, jobs and billing
- Approved quotes become jobs, closed jobs create invoices, and monthly invoices are billed by card or ACH automatically.
- Chemical dosing and cost
- Dosing is calculated from the readings a technician enters, and chemical use and cost are tracked by customer, property and technician.
- Guided workflows and alerts
- Task flows keep steps from being skipped, and custom alerts flag chemical, flow, leak, time and cost problems.
- Reports and technician pay
- Route profit, technician scorecards and pay calculations by rate, property and service level.
Plans
GorillaDesk
Basic$49
per month for 1 route schedule, billed monthly
Unlimited users, invoices, estimates, work orders, routing up to 25 stops, automations and 20 reports. Routes 2–3 add $50/mo each, 4+ add $30.
Pro$99
per month for 1 route schedule, billed monthly
Adds online booking, a customer portal, subscription billing, Drive Matrix routing, reviews, e-signatures, QuickBooks Online, API and time clock.
Growth$149
per month for 1 route schedule, billed monthly
Adds map measuring, best-time scheduling, estimate packages, a sales pipeline, custom fields and multi-branch support. Route 2 adds $100/mo, routes 3–4 $50 each.
Pool Brain
Monthly plan$50
per month, plus $65 per active technician
One plan with every feature and free setup; $50 covers unlimited office users. Five technicians come to $375 a month.
Ways to pay less
GorillaDesk
- Annual discount
One month free with yearly billing
The pricing page offers a month free for paying yearly; the whole year is billed at the start of the subscription.
Pool Brain
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, GorillaDesk or Pool Brain?
As of Nov 12, 2026, GorillaDesk is cheaper to start with: $49 a month, against $50 a month for Pool Brain. GorillaDesk starts at $49 per month for 1 route schedule, billed monthly, and Pool Brain starts at $50 per month, plus $65 per active technician.
Which has a free plan, GorillaDesk or Pool Brain?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither GorillaDesk nor Pool Brain has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.