Ascora is a full field service management platform built in Perth since 2010, covering the complete job lifecycle from enquiry through quoting, scheduling, and invoicing at $29 per user per month. FlowSpec does one thing: turn a spoken job description into a priced Xero draft quote in about 30 seconds. One runs your whole operation; the other gets the on-site quote done fast.
See it draft a real quote into Xero.
Side-by-Side
| Feature | FlowSpec | Ascora |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Voice-to-Xero quoting specialist | Full field service management platform |
| Voice-to-quote | End to end: speak the job, get a priced Xero draft | Form-based quoting from item libraries |
| Quote creation time | About 30 seconds | Manual entry per line item |
| Scheduling and dispatch | Left to your job management tools | Built-in scheduling with route optimisation |
| Job management | Quoting only | Full lifecycle: enquiry, quote, job, invoice |
| Xero integration | Reads Xero items, writes Xero draft quotes (items, contact, account codes, tax) | Bidirectional: invoices, payments, contacts, suppliers, payroll |
| Accounting support | Xero only | Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks |
| Trade slang recognition | GPO, RCD, PRV, TMV, and more, with per-user phrase memory | Standard item search |
| GST auto-calculated | Yes | Yes |
| Safety forms and compliance | Left to your safety tools | Digital safety forms, SWMS |
| GPS tracking | Left to your fleet tools | Built-in GPS tracking |
| Inventory and equipment | Left to Xero or your stock tools | Inventory tracking, equipment maintenance |
| Quote follow-up | Left to Xero | Quote pipeline view, automated email and SMS reminders |
| Mobile app | PWA on any phone, native apps in progress | Native iOS + Android + web |
| Pricing | One all-inclusive, per-seat plan | From $29/user/month, cancel anytime |
A quoting specialist compared to a full job management platform. The table reflects that scope difference honestly. See the full FlowSpec comparison hub to line it up against other tools.
How Quoting Works
Ascora builds quotes from item libraries and templates. FlowSpec builds them from a voice memo. Walk through the same plumber quoting a hot water system replacement in each.
Ascora’s quoting is structured, customisable, and ties into its job pipeline and follow-up automation. FlowSpec skips the form entirely. For an experienced tradesman who knows the job and wants the Xero quote done in 30 seconds, FlowSpec is the faster path. For a business that needs the quote to feed into scheduling, job tracking, and invoicing inside one platform, Ascora keeps it all connected.
Scope
The biggest difference between Ascora and FlowSpec is how much ground each covers.
Ascora manages everything from the initial customer enquiry through quoting, scheduling, field dispatch, on-site work (safety forms, photos, timesheets), invoicing, and payment. It includes route optimisation, GPS tracking, inventory management, equipment maintenance, and automated supplier billing. For a trade business that wants one platform to run the entire operation, Ascora covers the ground at $29 per user per month with a 14-day free trial.
FlowSpec does one step in the job lifecycle and aims to do it faster than anything else: getting the on-site quote into Xero. Record a voice memo, get a priced Xero draft in about 30 seconds. It syncs your Xero items as your price list, handles GST, creates or matches contacts, learns your trade language, and writes the draft straight into your Xero account. It leaves scheduling, job management, invoicing, and everything else to whatever tools you already use.
The question is whether you want one platform for everything or a specialist tool that makes one step instant. Some tradies use both.
Xero Integration
Ascora has one of the deepest field-service-to-Xero integrations on the market. FlowSpec goes deep on one thing: the quote.
Xero sits at the centre of how FlowSpec works. Your Xero items sync in as your price list. Every quote FlowSpec creates is a Xero draft quote with the right line items, the matched or created contact, account codes, and tax types. Your prices come out of Xero and your quotes go straight back into Xero. One voice memo, one pipeline, clean data end to end.
Ascora syncs customers, suppliers, AR and AP invoices, customer payments, and payroll data with Xero. Edits and voids in Ascora flow back to Xero automatically. Payments taken in the field (tap-to-pay, online, or office) push to Xero in near real-time. You can assign Xero tracking categories to teams and configure account codes per job type. The Ascora Xero integration is rated 4.33 out of 5 on the Xero App Store. Ascora also supports MYOB and QuickBooks for businesses on those platforms.
Fair’s Fair
Ascora has been serving Australian tradies since 2010. When any of these describe your business, it is likely the right fit.
You want one platform for quoting, scheduling, job tracking, and invoicing
Ascora manages the full job lifecycle in one place. A new enquiry becomes a quote, the quote becomes a job, the job gets scheduled and dispatched, fieldwork is tracked (timesheets, safety forms, photos), and the invoice pushes to Xero when the job is done. For a growing trade business that wants to consolidate multiple tools into one, Ascora covers that ground at $29 per user per month.
You have a team of field workers who need scheduling and GPS
Ascora includes scheduling, dispatch, route optimisation, and GPS tracking out of the box. When an office coordinator is managing multiple tradies across jobs, Ascora keeps everyone visible and routed efficiently. FlowSpec is a quoting tool and leaves scheduling to your existing workflow.
You use MYOB or QuickBooks rather than Xero
Ascora integrates with Xero, MYOB, and QuickBooks. FlowSpec is built specifically for Xero and requires a Xero account. If your accounting runs on MYOB or QuickBooks, Ascora supports that directly.
You need safety compliance and digital forms in the field
Ascora includes digital safety forms and SWMS that your team fills out on site. Completed forms attach to the job record and stay on file. For trades where workplace safety documentation is mandatory (electrical, plumbing, construction), having that built into the job management platform keeps compliance in one system.
Ascora is a proven field service platform with 15 years of development behind it. When the spoken Xero draft is the move that saves your evenings, FlowSpec gets it done in about 30 seconds.
Pricing
Ascora is a full platform at $29 per user. FlowSpec is a quoting specialist at a higher per-seat rate. The price reflects what each tool covers.
Unlimited quotes, voice input, Xero item sync, trade slang, phrase memory, GST handling, every feature included. Trial: 5 quotes over 7 days.
See flowspec.com.au/pricing for the current rate.
Full field service management: quoting, scheduling, dispatch, job tracking, safety forms, GPS, inventory, invoicing, payments, Xero/MYOB/QB sync. 14-day free trial, month-to-month.
Available in AU, NZ, UK, CA, US.
Ascora is cheaper per user and includes far more, because it is a different category of tool. The question is whether the 30-second voice quote is worth a separate subscription alongside whatever job management platform you already use, or whether Ascora’s built-in form-based quoting covers what you need.
The FlowSpec Fit
FlowSpec is purpose-built for one scenario: getting the quote into Xero in about 30 seconds from site.
Quoting takes the most time, and you already have the rest covered
You already manage jobs through Ascora, ServiceM8, Tradify, or just your calendar and Xero. The step that takes the most time after a site visit is turning it into a written quote. FlowSpec handles that step: speak the job on site, and the priced Xero draft is ready before you drive to the next job. It fits alongside whatever else you use.
You run Xero and want quotes to start and end there
With Xero as your system of record, FlowSpec drafts quotes straight into Xero with the right account codes, contact, and tax types, priced from your own Xero items. Ascora creates quotes inside its own system and pushes invoices to Xero. FlowSpec makes the quote a Xero object from the start.
You know the job and want to skip the form
An experienced plumber quoting a hot water swap or an electrician quoting a switchboard upgrade. You know the items, the quantities, and the price. Typing them into a form takes longer than speaking them. FlowSpec turns one voice memo into the finished Xero draft in about 30 seconds. Ascora’s form-based quoting is flexible, but it still requires manual line-item entry.
You want the tool that learns your trade language
FlowSpec’s disambiguation engine recognises trade abbreviations like GPO, RCD, PRV, TMV and many more, and builds per-user phrase memory over time. When you say “tempering valve,” FlowSpec remembers which Xero item you meant last time. Ascora uses standard item search from your catalogue, which works well but requires you to find and select the item each time.
Weighing up other tools too? See how the spoken Xero quote sits against FlowSpec vs ServiceM8, FlowSpec vs Tradify, FlowSpec vs Fergus, or browse the full comparison hub.
FAQ
Yes, and it is a natural pairing. Ascora handles the full job lifecycle: scheduling, dispatch, safety forms, timesheets, invoicing. FlowSpec handles one step inside that lifecycle: getting the quote into Xero fast from a voice memo. Ascora pushes invoices to Xero; FlowSpec pushes draft quotes. They operate on different objects in Xero and coexist cleanly. Use Ascora for the job, use FlowSpec for the on-site quote.
Ascora starts at $29 per user per month for a full field service management platform covering quoting, scheduling, job management, invoicing, safety forms, and GPS tracking. FlowSpec is a per-seat plan for voice-to-Xero quoting only. Ascora costs less per user and does far more, because it is a different category of tool. The comparison that matters is whether the 30-second voice quote is worth a separate subscription alongside whatever job management platform you already use.
Ascora builds quotes from item libraries, price books, and customisable templates. You search your catalogue, select items, set quantities, and send. It includes a quote pipeline view and automated follow-up reminders. Voice input is not part of the quoting workflow. FlowSpec replaces that manual entry with a single voice recording that produces a priced Xero draft quote in about 30 seconds.
Both have strong Xero integration, but they connect to different parts of Xero. Ascora has bidirectional sync for customers, suppliers, invoices, payments, and payroll. It is one of the more comprehensive Xero integrations in the field service category, with a 4.33 out of 5 rating on the Xero App Store. FlowSpec connects to Xero items (your price list) and Xero quotes (the draft it creates). It reads prices from Xero and writes quotes back to Xero. Ascora is broader; FlowSpec is deeper on the quote itself.
Yes. Ascora has native apps on both iOS and Android, plus a web interface. Ascora covers iOS, Android, and web, giving full team access across devices. FlowSpec runs as a progressive web app on any phone, tablet, or desktop browser, with native apps in development.
Yes. Ascora was founded in Perth, Western Australia in 2010 by Courtney and Amelia Smith. The product is designed, built, and supported locally with an Australian support team. They also have a North American office in Austin, Texas. FlowSpec is also Australian-built, based in Canberra, ACT, and operated by Flow Through Logic Pty Ltd.
FlowSpec is built for trades who quote on Xero. Watch it turn a spoken job into a priced Xero draft in about 30 seconds.
Try the demo