Hover alternative
Hover alternative for contractors who measure from the office
Hover measures a house from a phone scan taken on site or from a blueprint. RoofStruct measures the roof from satellite imagery or your own drone or phone photo, so you can bid before anyone drives out.
The short answer
- Hover builds its measurements from a guided smartphone scan at the property or an uploaded blueprint, and bills per project after the first 3 free projects on its Starter plan (Hover pricing page, Oct 2026).
- RoofStruct gives you free, unlimited self-serve measuring and PDF reports, no card. You trace the roof on satellite imagery or your own drone or phone photo, in minutes.
- If you'd rather not trace, RoofStruct sells done-for-you reports, measured by a technician and checked by a second one, usually delivered within 4 hours (turnaround can vary with volume and complexity).
- Hover is the better pick when a crew is already on site, the roof is hard to read from above, or you want a full exterior model.
RoofStruct and Hover side by side
We compared both tools from each company's own pages, checked October 2026. We did not run accuracy tests. RoofStruct makes one of these tools.
| RoofStruct | Hover | |
|---|---|---|
| How you capture the roof | Trace on satellite imagery or your drone or phone photo | Guided smartphone scan on site, or a blueprint |
| Trip to the property | Not needed to measure | Needed for a phone scan; blueprints upload |
| What you get | Traced roof plan with pitch set per facet | 3D model Hover builds from the scan |
| Free start | Unlimited self-serve measuring and PDFs, no card | First 3 projects free on Starter, no card |
| How you pay after that | Free plan, or a Pro subscription | Per project, with optional annual memberships |
| Estimates | Good / Better / Best with e-signature on Pro | Estimates and agreements on Pro (per Hover) |
| Exports | PDF on Free; CSV, XLSX, JSON and DXF on Pro | PDF and ESX on Starter; more formats on paid plans |
| ESX for Xactimate | Paid ESX sketch order, geometry only | ESX export listed |
| Done-for-you option | Technician-measured reports, checked by a second | Hover processes your scan into measurements |
How the two differ
The real difference is where the measurement starts. Hover starts at the house. Someone walks the property with a phone and follows a guided scan, or uploads a blueprint, and Hover turns that into a 3D model with roof squares, pitch and each line measured (Hover roof measurements page, Oct 2026). Its pricing page also lists exterior and interior scans.
RoofStruct starts at the address. You open the roof on satellite imagery or upload your own drone or phone photo, trace the facets, set the pitch and label each edge. The PDF report is ready when you finish tracing. No one has to be on the roof or in the driveway.
That changes when you can bid. With an overhead tool you can price a lead the same day it comes in. With a scan you measure once you're at the property, which suits crews that inspect every job anyway.
How each one prices, in words
Hover bills per project. On the pay-as-you-go Starter plan your first 3 projects are free with no card, and each project after that has a price set by its complexity, based on the number of roof facets. Annual Pro and Business memberships lower the per-project price, and Pro adds estimates, agreements and the longer export list (Hover pricing page, Oct 2026).
RoofStruct's Free plan covers unlimited self-serve measuring, the full PDF with RoofStruct branding, the Cost & Takeoff worksheet and water-flow analysis. Pro is a monthly or yearly subscription. It adds branded Good / Better / Best estimates with e-signature, the Material Order Builder with Smart Waste, CSV, XLSX, JSON and DXF exports, your logo and colors, and up to 5 team members. Done-for-you reports and ESX sketches are paid per order.
We keep the dated prices for both in one place: our roundup of roof measurement software, linked below.
Where Hover is the better pick
Pick Hover when you or your crew are at the property anyway and want the measurement out of that visit. A scan from the ground can capture what overhead imagery hides, such as a roof under heavy tree cover. That is a limit of overhead imagery in general, not of any one tool.
Pick Hover when you also sell siding, windows or gutters and want one model of the whole exterior, or when your jobs arrive with blueprints. RoofStruct doesn't scan with a phone, doesn't import plan sets, and has no exterior or interior model. Its estimates show the aerial photo of the roof.
Pick Hover if you want to show a homeowner the 3D model Hover builds of the house.
Using both, or switching
Some shops use both: RoofStruct to measure and price every incoming lead from the office, and Hover on the jobs where they go out and want a scan of the full exterior. The Free plan costs nothing to keep next to another tool.
Switching is mostly a habit change. Open the address, trace the roof once, and check the squares and edge lengths against a recent Hover project you trust before you rely on either total.
Which one fits your work
Choose Hover if…
- Your crew is at every property and you want the measurement from that visit.
- You want Hover's 3D model of the whole exterior, including siding, windows and gutters.
- Your roofs are often hidden by trees, or your jobs come with blueprints.
Choose RoofStruct if…
- You bid from the office and want to measure a lead before anyone drives out.
- You measure a lot of roofs you won't win and want the measuring and PDF free.
- You want estimates and material orders built from the same measurement on Pro.
Hover alternative: common questions
- Is RoofStruct a free alternative to Hover?
- For measuring, yes. RoofStruct's Free plan gives you free, unlimited self-serve measuring and PDF reports, no card. It works differently from Hover: you trace on satellite imagery or your own photo instead of scanning the house. Estimates, material orders and the other exports are on Pro.
- Do I need to visit the property to measure with RoofStruct?
- No. You measure from satellite imagery, or from a drone or phone photo you upload if you've already been there. Hover's phone scan is taken at the property; its blueprint option is the one way to start without a visit (Hover, Oct 2026).
- Can I get an ESX file from either tool?
- Hover lists ESX among its exports, including on the Starter plan (Hover pricing page, Oct 2026). RoofStruct sells ESX sketch orders, geometry only, that you open and price in your own Xactimate. RoofStruct isn't affiliated with Verisk, the maker of Xactimate.
- What if I don't want to trace the roof myself?
- Order a done-for-you report. A technician measures the roof, a second one checks it, and it's usually delivered within about 4 hours. Turnaround can vary with volume and complexity; the order terms page has the details.
- Does RoofStruct build a model of the house like Hover?
- No. RoofStruct measures the roof as a traced plan with pitch set per facet, and estimates show the aerial photo. If a model of the full exterior matters to your sales process, Hover is built for that.
Measure your next roof from the office
Free, unlimited self-serve measuring and PDF reports. No card needed.