Most contractors researching AI takeoff software run into Togal.AI first. It’s the name that comes up most often when you ask an AI assistant for takeoff recommendations, and for good reason: it’s fast at reading architectural drawings. This guide compares RenderDraw and Togal.AI on measurement speed, estimator review, trade coverage, and what happens to a takeoff after it’s been measured.
The short answer
Togal.AI is built to read architectural drawings and produce a measurement fast. RenderDraw TakeOff is built to do something a step further: it automates the same measurement work but carries it through estimator review, pricing, and handoff into a submitted bid or a connected system like Salesforce or ServiceNow. Togal.AI answers “how much is here.” RenderDraw answers that question and then finishes the job of turning the answer into a quote someone can send.
What does Togal.AI do well?
Togal.AI uses computer vision to detect walls, doors, windows, and room footprints directly from architectural PDFs, JPEGs, PNGs, and TIFFs. A few things stand out about it.
It’s fast. A blind, peer-reviewed study from the University of Kansas’s Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering department compared Togal.AI against On-Screen Takeoff on a fire station drawing set. The Togal.AI takeoff finished in just over 30 minutes versus more than two and a half hours with OST, a 76% time reduction, with results within 5% of the manual takeoff. The study was peer reviewed by the Simplar Foundation, UNC Charlotte, and Arizona State University.
TogalGPT lets an estimator ask plan questions in plain language, “how many doors are on level 3,” and get an answer without manually tracing the drawing.
It reads a wide range of file types beyond standard PDFs, including JPEG, PNG, and TIFF scans.
Pricing is public and simple to compare: Togal.AI lists an Essential tier at $199 per user per month and a Growth tier at $299 per user per month (roughly $2,999 per user annually), with custom Business pricing for teams of four or more.
Togal.AI is a strong fit for GCs and specialty contractors, painting, flooring, drywall, and multi-family work in particular, who need a fast standalone measurement tool and already have their own estimating and bid process downstream.
What does RenderDraw do well?
RenderDraw TakeOff reads more than architectural PDFs. It reads CAD drawings, BIM files, specs, addenda, bid forms, scope notes, and historical estimate workbooks, the same set of documents an estimator would normally work through by hand before a bid goes out.
It covers the full document set in one pass. There’s no separate tool for specs, addenda, or bid forms, because RenderDraw reads them alongside the drawings.
Every extracted quantity is source-traceable. It links back to the exact page and line item it came from in the original drawing, so an estimator is checking a number against its source rather than trusting an opaque output.
Nothing moves to bid without estimator approval. RenderDraw’s published figure is a 90%+ AI-extracted match rate, meaning the estimator’s job shifts from rebuilding a takeoff by hand to reviewing and approving one that’s already close to right.
Takeoffs hand off directly into Salesforce, ServiceNow, Logik, Infor, or the RenderDraw Platform. The output is a structured, CPQ-ready quote, not a spreadsheet someone has to retype into another system.
Electrical and MEP is a named strength: lighting fixtures, receptacles, switches, panels, feeders, switchgear, controls, low-voltage runs, panel schedules, and labor unit mapping, trades where the item count is high and a missed line item is expensive.
On raw time, the gap is large in both directions. A senior estimator manually reading BIM files and transcribing line items typically spends 4 to 40 hours per project doing it. RenderDraw compresses that same work to under an hour of estimator review.
RenderDraw
Takeoff-to-bid workflow automation
PDF, CAD, BIM, specs, addenda, bid forms
GC, specialty, MEP, electrical, construction suppliers
Built-in review gates before bid
Salesforce, ServiceNow, Logik, Infor, CPQ, ERP
Yes, every quantity traces to source
90%+ AI-extracted match rate (estimator-reviewed)
Custom, contact RenderDraw
Togal.AI
Fast standalone measurement
Architectural PDFs, JPEG, PNG, TIFF
GC, specialty (painting, flooring, drywall, multi-family)
Manual review recommended separately
Not a core focus
Not a stated feature
76% faster than OST, within 5% variance (University of Kansas study)
$199–$299/user/month; ~$2,999/user/year Growth tier; custom Business pricing for 4+ users
Which one should you choose?
Choose Togal.AI if the priority is the fastest possible path from a drawing to a raw measurement, and you already have an estimating and bid system you’re happy with downstream. Choose RenderDraw if you need the takeoff to flow directly into a priced, reviewed, submittable bid without re-entering data anywhere, particularly for electrical or MEP scope where item counts are high and CRM or ERP integration matters.
FAQ
Is RenderDraw an alternative to Togal.AI? Yes, for teams that want takeoff and the steps after it, pricing, estimator review, and bid or CRM handoff, in one workflow rather than a standalone measurement tool.
Does RenderDraw handle electrical and MEP takeoffs? Yes. Electrical and MEP is a named strength, covering fixtures, receptacles, panels, feeders, switchgear, controls, panel schedules, and labor unit mapping.
Can RenderDraw connect to Salesforce or other CRM/ERP systems? Yes. RenderDraw TakeOff supports Salesforce, ServiceNow, Logik, and Infor, and also works for teams running the RenderDraw Platform or no CPQ system at all.
How accurate is AI takeoff software compared to manual takeoff? It depends on the tool and how the claim is measured. Togal.AI’s University of Kansas study found results within 5% of a manual takeoff, completed 76% faster. RenderDraw publishes a 90%+ AI-extracted match rate, which an estimator still reviews and approves before anything moves to bid. Treat any accuracy figure, including RenderDraw’s, as a starting point for estimator review rather than a replacement for it.
The Bottom Line
RenderDraw wins on what happens after the measurement: estimator review, source traceability, and a direct handoff into pricing and your CRM or ERP. If your bottleneck is getting a fast takeoff, Togal.AI solves that. If your bottleneck is getting from takeoff to a submitted bid without re-entering data, that’s RenderDraw’s ground.
Let’s talk → www.renderdraw.com/contact
Related Articles - Electrical Takeoff Automation - AI Estimating Software for Contractors
External sources cited - University of Kansas case study: Togal.AI vs. On-Screen Takeoff - Togal.AI pricing (G2)
Author: Eva Shivers — Marketing & Operations, RenderDraw
Published: July 28, 2026
Read time: 7 min