Estimates, invoices, deposits, a service-call fee, and GPS mileage. On Android, offline, $99.99 once.
Shop software assumes a shop: a counter, a Wi-Fi router, a desk. You've got a truck and a customer's driveway with one bar of signal. GarageCodex has a Mobile Mechanic mode built for that, and it costs $99.99 once instead of a monthly fee, because the whole thing runs on the device in your pocket.
Free to try·$99.99 one-time unlock·No subscription
Competitor prices checked on October 19, 2026 on each vendor's own pricing page. Vendors change pricing, so confirm before you decide. All product names are trademarks of their owners; GarageCodex is affiliated with none of them.
Flip one switch in Settings and the app adapts. Every job gets a service location with a Navigate button that hands the address to your maps app. A service-call fee is added to each estimate automatically, and you can override or waive it per job. You can require a deposit for parts, and the job advances when it's paid. A Start trip button records your real driven miles and travel time by GPS and writes them to the work order.
Those miles feed an IRS-style mileage log: a year-to-date deduction estimate on the dashboard, a CSV you can hand to whoever does your taxes, and a year-end tax summary. It's informational, not tax advice, but it's the log most mobile mechanics never keep.
GarageCodex against the auto-specific apps and the general field-service tools mobile mechanics end up using.
| GarageCodex | ARI | Trackara Pro | Jobber / Housecall Pro | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $99.99 once | $39.99/mo (Pro); $399.99/yr yearly | $499.99/yr | Jobber from $29/mo (1 user); Housecall Pro from $59/mo (1 user, annual) |
| 5-year cost | $99.99 | $1,999.95 | $2,499.95 | $1,740 / $3,540 |
| Built for auto repair | Yes VIN scan, vehicle history, 24-point inspection, labor + parts lines. | Yes | Yes Mobile-mechanic specific. | No General field service (plumbers, HVAC, lawn care). |
| Works with no internet | Yes Everything, always. | Partly Offline mode on Windows app. | Yes Advertises full offline mode on mobile. | Not stated on pricing pages. |
| GPS trip miles per job | Yes Recorded by GPS while the app is open; written to the work order. | See ARI's feature list. | Mileage tracking advertised. | See vendor feature lists. |
| IRS-style mileage log + year-end tax summary | Yes YTD deduction estimate, mileage CSV, Schedule-C-shaped PDF. | See ARI's feature list. | See Trackara's feature list. | See vendor feature lists. |
| Service-call fee & deposits | Yes Auto-added fee, per-job override; deposit required → Deposit Paid status. | See ARI's feature list. | See Trackara's feature list. | Partly Available on some plans. |
| Where your data lives | On your device; optional backup to your own Google Drive. | ARI's cloud | Trackara's cloud | Vendor cloud |
| Platforms | Android | Android, iOS, web, Windows | Android, iOS, web | Android, iOS, web |
| Customer texting / card processing | No Send PDFs by any app; record payments you take anyhow. | Yes | See Trackara's feature list. Extra tech logins $15/mo each. | Yes |
Rows marked “See … feature list” are features we didn't verify on that vendor's pricing page and won't guess at. Five-year figures multiply the stated rate and assume no price increases.
Cheapest published billing for each. GarageCodex is $99.99 and then it's yours.
Five years of a $39.99/mo subscription is a scan tool. GarageCodex updates are free; a future major version may be a separate one-time purchase, never a subscription.
If you need these, GarageCodex isn't your app, and we'd rather say so now.
No. A trip records only while the app is open, with a visible notification, and it stops if you swipe the app away. GarageCodex never asks for always-on background location. Start the trip, drive, tap Arrive. That's it.
It's an informational log, not tax advice: date, work order, customer, vehicle, and GPS-recorded miles, exported as CSV with a total, plus a year-to-date deduction estimate at the per-mile rate you set in Settings. Hand it to your tax preparer; they'll tell you how to use it.
Yes. Set a required deposit on the job; record the payment when the customer pays it and the work order moves to Deposit Paid on its own. The estimate PDF shows the deposit line.
Mobile Mechanic mode is a switch, not a different app. Turn it on for the road and off at the shop. The same customers, vehicles, and history stay put either way.
Download it free and run real jobs today. When you're ready, one $99.99 in-app purchase unlocks the full shop. One time, forever, no subscription.
Built and supported by one independent developer. No investors, no ads, no reselling your data. Questions? support@garagecodex.app
