Top 5 UpKeep Alternatives You Should Consider

A computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) is an application for maintenance staff to optimize building and asset-related activities. It can help track maintenance for everything from HVAC and lighting systems to forklifts and refrigerators.

A quality CMMS software enables building staff to effectively and efficiently track work orders, monitor parts and supply inventory, schedule preventive maintenance tasks, communicate with maintenance technicians and generate reports to track performance trends. The ultimate goal? Using a CMMS can reduce equipment downtime and costly repairs, increase asset reliability and longevity, and ensure companies comply with safety standards. Maintenance teams will also find that a good CMMS can help with team productivity.

While there are several CMMS software options from which you can choose, there are only a few that standout from the rest. UpKeep is often referenced, but is it the best?

Why Should You Consider UpKeep Alternatives? 

UpKeep is a popular CMMS software that provides a user-friendly interface for everything from scheduling work orders to tracking IoT-connected assets. Yet UpKeep has some drawbacks that might make you consider other options. These include: 

• Relatively high user subscription costs: Despite the “pay for the features you need” pricing model, users find UpKeep to be more expensive than some of the competition, especially when you consider additional fees for DataHub and Edge monitoring services, professional implementation and IoT sensor hardware.     
• Lacks customization: Creating and customizing reports and analytics is challenging and not as intuitive as competitive solutions.   
• Mobile is less intuitive: Some user reviews report that the app freezes during mobile use and that UpKeep’s dev team seems resistant to adding feature requests to the product roadmap.

Now that we’ve established some of the reasons users might seek other CMMS software, let’s review some of the competitive UpKeep alternatives you should consider and the strengths that each solution is recognized for by their customers and industry watchers.   

TL;DR — Top 5 UpKeep Alternatives at a Glance

• Coast — Highly customizable and collaborative workspaces
• Limble — Well suited to enterprises with many assets to track and maintain 
• MaintainX — Consistent desktop and mobile experiences 
• Hippo CMMS by Eptura — Well suited for companies with diverse operations staff in that it supports 30+ languages
• Fiix — Ease of integration with data sources and third-party applications

Coast — For a Highly Collaborative Teams Solution 

Coast is an intuitive, collaborative cloud-based CMMS solution for maintenance teams looking to seamlessly communicate, access secure files, and create and track work orders and maintenance activities on their preferred devices. Field-service workers can effectively manage their tasks and keep their team informed about the status of maintenance activities using the mobile app. Plus, Coast consolidates multiple voice, text and email conversations into a single conversation thread enriched by attachments like photos and documents.  

Key Features

• Customizable workspaces that allow users to add or remove field names in a given work order, allowing your team to set up the CMMS for it to reflect how you work in the real world
• Preventive maintenance scheduling of assets to prolong their lifespan
• Automated alerts and notifications to notify maintenance team when a maintenance task is due

Coast Pros

• Communication and collaboration screens are simple to learn and use   
• Uses QR codes that allow anyone to create a work order
• Users can create and efficiently manage work orders and track progress in their task list
• Affordable subscription options and a simple pricing model

Coast Cons

• Lacks advanced integration that large businesses may require for managing extensive asset inventories
• Reporting features only available in paid plans

Coast Pricing

• Free: $0 per user/month, limited document and image attachment sharing capacity
• Starter: $20 per user/month, allows users to tailor their experience with personalized views and custom fields  
• Pro: $39 per user/month, adding reporting and dashboard functionality for users to track their productivity over time and collect digital signatures for completed service calls; also provides implementation support and training services through the Customer Success team
• Enterprise: Custom quote, provides advanced reporting capabilities, more administrative and user function control, and online chat support with Coast specialists

Contact Coast for a solution that meets your unique business needs!  

Limble — For Streamlined Work Orders 

Limble is another cloud-based CMMS that offers a comprehensive solution for maintenance teams and building operations staff. Limble allows users to create and manage work orders, schedule preventive and predictive maintenance, track assets and inventory, and generate reports and dashboards. 

Key Features

• Automated workflows and status updates via the mobile work order request system 
• Real-time communication and access to mobile app information 
• On-the-go access to maintenance information, even without the internet via offline mode

Limble Pros

• Highly scalable and secure
• Intuitive mobile and desktop user experiences  
• Supports 30+ languages 
• Enterprise plans offer integrations with business systems like ESRI ArcGIS, Slack, Microsoft Outlook and Google Calendars
• Parts inventory management and request portal   

Limble Cons

• Users cannot personalize the user interface
• Custom views or fields are not supported   
• Higher costs and complex setups, which often require considerable support resources  

Limble Pricing

• Free: Enables companies to test drive communications, reporting, advanced analytics, work order management and asset management functions
• Standard: $28 per user/month, offers asset downtime reporting, custom dashboards and three months of advanced analytics 
• Premium: $69 per user/month, adds functionality like automated workflows, parts inventory management, API access, maintenance time and cost tracking as well as a Dedicated Customer Success Manager
• Enterprise: Custom quote, expands upon the functionality offered in the Premium plan by adding features like advanced integrations for ERP software, IoT sensors and other complementary tools

MaintainX — For a Simple User Interface 

MaintainX provides a simple and effective way for maintenance teams and building operations staff to manage maintenance tasks and work orders and track equipment downtime. The intuitive mobile app allows users to create and complete work orders, assign and monitor tasks, capture signatures, and attach photos and documents using messages to facilitate team collaboration.  

Key Features

• Templates for work procedures and checklists 
• Asset management and multiple locations 
• Request portals enable users outside the team to initiate work orders or requests 
• QR and barcode options for asset identification 

MaintainX Pros

• Easy to use 
• The mobile app is intuitive and engaging for users 
• Free version allows for unlimited work orders and team messaging 

MaintainX Cons

• Limited scheduling capability  
• Users cannot personalize their views or tailor fields on their device’s interface 
• Unlimited reporting and analytics only available in the Enterprise plan 
• Custom user permissions only in the Enterprise plan 

MaintainX Pricing

• Basic: Free for work order generation/management and team messaging 
• Essential: $19 per user/month, adds repeating work orders, image and procedure attachments, and three-month Advanced Analytics   
• Premium: $49 per user/month, adds open REST API access, ERP integration, dedicated account manager, purchase order management, unlimited advanced analytics access, a dedicated account manager and parts inventory management 
• Enterprise: Custom quoting based on required features and functionality, such as IoT sensor integration, single sign-on, global parts management, multi-site management, guaranteed uptime SLA, resource planning, offline mode and custom user permissions  

Hippo CMMS by Eptura — For Hospitality and Healthcare Sectors 

Hippo CMMS by Eptura is a cloud-based CMMS that provides a solution that is both user-friendly and affordable for maintenance operations staff. Like other CMMS solutions, Hippo helps users create and manage work orders, schedule preventive maintenance, track assets and inventory, and generate reports and dashboards. Until recently, Hippo specialized in the hospitality and healthcare industries, but it recently expanded its market presence to include customers in the education, retail and nonprofit sectors. 

Key Features

• Easy-to-use app
• Helps improve workflow efficiency 
• Users can work offline 

Hippo Pros

• Effective time tracker 
• Interactive floor plan management 
• IoT sensor integration add-ons available for a fee 
• Work-order notifications 

Hippo Cons

• Limited overall functionality, especially customization
• Hippo was acquired by Eptura, which is recommending Hippo users subscribe and add-on Eptura’s asset management solution     

Hippo Pricing

• No specific prices are listed on the Eptura site, but interested businesses can request quotes that are tailored to their needs  

Fiix — For Easy Data Extraction and AI-Powered Insights

Fiix is an easy-to-use, intuitive CMMS that enables staff to optimize their maintenance operations using artificial intelligence and data-driven insights. Its mobile app alerts maintenance staff via mobile push notifications to resolve overdue work orders. Users can also prioritize tasks based on severity or preference.  

Key Features

• Powerful search capability for easily accessing data about assets and parts  
• Can upload images to work orders and asset records in the field 
• Sends push notifications to mobile device 

Fiix Pros

• AI-powered maintenance data analysis for asset performance, trend identification and comparison (Fiix Foresight) 
• Advanced ERP, IoT sensor and third-party app integration  
• Multi-factor authentication is available

Fiix Cons

• Customizable interface only available for Enterprise customers
• Costly subscription pricing
• Complex implementations

Fiix Pricing

• Free: Create and manage work orders, track asset downtime, manage parts and supply inventories, and schedule preventative maintenance tasks in the calendar
• Basic: $45 per user/month, includes support for 10 languages, standard reporting, QR and barcode scanning, meter readings support, email and phone support, online support knowledge base and online tutorial access. 
• Professional: $75 per user/month, adds features like multi-site management, parts and tool management, RFQs, custom branding, advanced analytics, work order and asset insights and parts forecasting  
• Enterprise: Custom quoting, adds features like user interface and workflow customization, single sign-on, e-signature support, audit trail and advanced integration capabilities  

Should You Choose an UpKeep Alternative? 

There are several CMMS software alternatives to UpKeep that are available for maintenance teams and building operations professionals with varying strengths and drawbacks. All of the vendors described in this guide have recognized the crucial importance of intuitive mobile applications. Subscribing to a low-cost, easy-to-use, cloud-based CMMS solution like Coast doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice real-time communication and collaboration, user experience personalization or workflow flexibility.   

What are you waiting for? Test drive the Coast app now.