How Long Does Jobber Take to Set Up? Honest Timeline.
Jobber is quicker than enterprise tools. But it still takes time to configure — especially without industry-specific templates.
TL;DR
Jobber isn't hard to set up, but it isn't fast either. Without industry presets, you're building everything from scratch — services, pricing, templates, terminology. That's 1-3 weeks of your time. Opsler has 12 industry presets that pre-load your trade's services, terminology, and pricebook structure. Most businesses are dispatching their first job the same day.
Why Does Jobber Setup Take So Long?
Jobber is a general-purpose FSM tool. That means it works for HVAC companies, pest control, landscaping, plumbing, electrical — basically any service trade. The trade-off? It doesn't know what you do until you tell it. Everything.
You sign up and get a blank canvas. Now you need to:
- Manually enter every service you offer
- Set up your pricing for each service
- Build quote and invoice templates
- Configure your automated emails and follow-ups
- Import your customer list (if you have one)
- Add your team members and set permissions
- Set up your calendar and availability
None of this is rocket science. But it takes time. A lot of time. And every hour you spend configuring software is an hour you're not dispatching techs or closing jobs.
We've talked to business owners who spent their entire first weekend just entering services and pricing. And here's the thing — they still weren't done. They were still tweaking templates and adjusting settings three weeks later.
The Industry Preset Difference
What if the software already knew you were an HVAC company? What if it already had "AC Install," "Furnace Repair," "Duct Cleaning," and "System Tune-Up" loaded as services? What if it called your jobs "Service Calls" instead of the generic "Jobs"? What if your pricebook structure was already organized by equipment type?
That's what Opsler's industry presets do. Pick your trade during signup and the platform configures itself. You're not starting from zero. You're starting from 80% done. Customize the remaining 20% — your specific pricing, your team, your branding — and go live.
Opsler has 12 industry presets: HVAC, plumbing, pest control, electrical, cleaning, landscaping, appliance repair, water purifier service, surveillance systems, and general maintenance. Each one is built with trade-specific terminology, service types, and workflow configurations.
An Honest Setup Timeline Comparison
Jobber: Sign up on Monday. Spend the week entering services, configuring templates, importing customers, and inviting your team. Realistically, you're dispatching your first job next Monday or Tuesday — maybe later if you're doing this between running your existing operation.
Opsler: Sign up in the morning. Pick your industry preset. Import your customer list (15-minute CSV upload). Invite your team. Dispatch your first job that afternoon. Tweak and customize over the next few days as you discover preferences.
Is Jobber's setup process terrible? No. Is it a week of your life you won't get back? Yes.
How Fast Can You Really Get Started with Opsler?
Pick your industry preset (2 minutes)
During signup, choose your trade. Opsler loads your services, terminology, and pricebook structure automatically. An HVAC company sees "AC Repair" and "Service Calls." A pest control company sees "Treatments" and "Follow-ups." No manual entry required.
Import your customers (15 minutes)
Upload a CSV from Jobber, a spreadsheet, or whatever you've got. Opsler auto-detects column mappings. Your entire customer database is live in minutes, not hours.
Add your team (5 minutes)
Invite techs and office staff by email. Each person gets the right role — technicians see the mobile app, admins see the dispatch board. Five users included in your plan. No per-user setup hassle.
Dispatch your first job (same day)
That's it. Schedule a job, assign a tech, and dispatch. Your branded website is live. Your customer portal is active. Your Good/Better/Best estimate templates are ready. Customize as you go — there's no need to have everything perfect before you start.
Frequently Asked Questions
Jobber is faster than enterprise tools like ServiceTitan — you won't wait months. But you're still looking at 1-3 weeks to fully configure everything: adding your services, setting up pricing, configuring your client communications, building quote templates, and training your team. There are no industry-specific shortcuts, so everything is manual.
Most businesses are dispatching their first job within a day. Pick your industry preset, import your customer list, add your team, and you're live. The preset pre-loads your services, terminology, and pricebook structure. You customize from there, but you're starting at 80% done instead of 0%.
Industry presets are pre-built configurations for specific trades. When you pick 'HVAC' during setup, Opsler loads HVAC-specific service types (AC Install, Furnace Repair, Duct Cleaning), HVAC terminology (Service Calls, Maintenance Agreements), and a pricebook structure that makes sense for HVAC work. It's like starting with a template built by someone who actually runs an HVAC company.
No. Setup assistance and migration help are included at no extra cost. You can set everything up yourself using the industry presets (most people do), or reach out to our team for hands-on help. Either way, you don't pay extra.
Not at all. If you can use a smartphone and fill out a form, you can set up Opsler. The industry preset handles the technical configuration. You're just entering your business name, importing your customers, and inviting your team. The hardest part is deciding which tier names to use for your Good/Better/Best estimates.
More About Jobber
Deep-dive comparisons and guides for Jobber vs Opsler.
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