Honest Comparison

Shovels.ai vs PermitGrab — Which Is Right for SMB Contractors?

Shovels.ai is well-funded and aggressive on enterprise. PermitGrab targets the SMB contractor — 5-50 employees, $149/mo, no annual contract. If you're a single-truck or sub-50-headcount shop, here's the honest comparison.

1,061
US cities live
310,281
permits, last 90 days
154,583
contractor profiles
20,856
enriched with phone

Filed this week — live sample

● Pulled from official city records, updated daily

Real permits filed in the last 7 days. Contractor names and phone numbers unmask on the trial.

Date City Trade Contractor Phone Value
2026-06-29 Clearwater, FL Fire Protection S•••••• I••••••• INC (813) •••-••05
2026-06-29 Clearwater, FL Plumbing D•••••• P••••••• INC (727) •••-••79
2026-06-29 Menlo Park, CA General Construction O•• P••••••• A•• C••••••• INC (650) •••-••55
2026-06-29 Menlo Park, CA Electrical F••• S•••••• INC (408) •••-••30
2026-06-29 Clearwater, FL HVAC A•••••• A•• INC (727) •••-••99
2026-06-29 Clearwater, FL HVAC O••••• P••••• - E•••• H••• (727) •••-••46
Unmask these leads — start now

Cancel anytime. Your leads aren't resold to four competitors like Angi or HomeAdvisor.

What you get

Every count above is live from the PermitGrab database. Here's what's in the product.

PermitGrab: $149/mo flat, all cities included, no annual contract.
Shovels.ai: enterprise-priced (typically $1K-5K+/mo, annual contracts).
Shovels has employee-contact data on 2.3M contractors — wider but not deeper.
PermitGrab focuses on permit-fresh daily data + owner enrichment for SMB.
Both are honest products — different price-points, different buyers.
Simple pricing
$149/mo
Cancel anytime. No annual contract.
  • All 770+ US cities included
  • Daily permit collection + owner enrichment
  • CSV export to any CRM
  • Email digest with today's hot leads
  • First 10 reveals every month are free
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14-day trial · Cancel anytime in one click

Frequently asked questions

Real questions contractors have asked us. If yours isn't here, email [email protected].

Which should I pick — Shovels or PermitGrab?

If you're an enterprise data team at a homebuilder, materials supplier, or real estate investor managing 5+ markets — Shovels' depth + employee data may justify the price. If you're a 5-50 employee roofing/HVAC/plumbing/solar contractor wanting daily permits + owner phones in your service area, PermitGrab's $149/mo flat is the no-brainer.

How fresh are the leads?

We collect permits daily from the city and county portals. Most cities show permits within 24-48 hours of issuance. The 'Today's Hot Leads' block on each city page shows permits issued in the last 7 days.

Do they include phone numbers?

Yes — owner phones where available (from enrichment), plus the contractor's business phone where the permit data publishes it. Coverage varies by city — Phoenix, Miami-Dade, San Antonio currently top 3 by phone count.

How much does it cost?

PermitGrab is $149/month flat. No annual contract. Cancel anytime. No per-lead fee, no shared-lead surcharge, no surprises.

Can I try before paying?

Yes. Start a 14-day free trial with full Pro access — every contractor and owner phone, unlimited reveals, CSV export, and city alerts. A card is required to start, but cancel in one click anytime before day 14 and you won't be charged. After that it's $149/month, cancel anytime.

Can I import the leads into my CRM?

Yes — CSV export is included on Pro. Works with ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro, JobNimbus, HubSpot, and any CRM that accepts CSV.

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