Workshop Software vs Workshop Mate

Workshop Software and Workshop Mate are two different companies with two different products, and the similar names cause a lot of confusion. Workshop Mate is made by Jeal Computer Services, a Sydney business trading since 1983. Workshop Software has been building automotive software since 1992, released its first version in 2013, and runs more than 9,400 users across five countries. Workshop Mate is the cheaper monthly subscription. Workshop Software is the considerably more capable product. This page lays out both sides so you can pick on something other than the name.

What is Workshop Software?

Workshop Software is cloud workshop management software for independent automotive workshops, mechanical repairers and multi-site groups. It runs your booking diary and workboard, job cards, quoting and invoicing, inventory, electronic inspections, automated service reminders and a customer portal, with reporting through Workshop Intelligence.

It connects natively to Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks Online on every plan, and is a listed app on the Intuit QuickBooks App Store. Intuit reviews listed apps against its published technical and security requirements, and runs its own security scan of them every year. Vehicle technical data is available through WorkshopData, powered by HaynesPro, inside the job card. There are free native apps for iOS and Android, and on Gold and above the app carries the full job workflow.

Pricing starts at AUD $99 per month on annual billing. There is a 14 day free trial with full features and no credit card required, and no lock-in contract. See full pricing.

What is Workshop Mate?

Workshop Mate is a cloud workshop management system from Jeal Computer Services Pty Ltd of Sydney, established by Allan Jeal in 1983 and employing around 21 staff. Its sister products are EasyCars, a dealer management system, and Workshop Websites.

It covers job cards, quotes and invoices, a booking diary, parts inventory with stocktake and barcoding, automatic reminders by letter, email and SMS, staff clock on and off, flexible customer pricing levels, and Australian specifics including a NSW Prescribed Parts register with Form 2 built in and a Capricorn report.

Australian pricing is a single plan at AUD $91 plus GST per month with unlimited users and no lock-in. Internationally it runs four tiers gated by monthly job volume, starting with a free plan for up to 10 jobs a month. It integrates with Xero, MYOB AccountRight and Burson EzyParts. There is a 14 day free trial, and a paid Getting Started package at AUD $1,060 plus GST.

Feature Comparison

Pricing Comparison

Workshop Mate is cheaper on subscription for any Australian workshop with more than one person on the system, and the gap widens with every user you add. At eight users the difference is roughly AUD $148 a month. There is no reading of the numbers that makes us the cheaper subscription.

Two things pull the other way in year one. Their Getting Started package is AUD $1,060 plus GST where our onboarding and data migration are included, which cancels about seven months of the subscription difference at three users. And their pricing page states that charges apply per integration without publishing the amounts, so the running cost depends on how many you switch on.

The clearer way to think about it: these are not the same product at two prices. What the extra buys is electronic inspections, vehicle technical data and labour times in the job card, a mobile app that runs the whole job, Workshop Intelligence, QuickBooks, integrated payments, multi-site and an API. Whether that is worth AUD $148 a month depends entirely on whether you would use any of it.

First Things First: These Are Two Different Companies

Workshop Software is made by Workshop Software Pty Ltd. Workshop Mate is made by Jeal Computer Services Pty Ltd of Sydney, which also makes EasyCars and Workshop Websites. The two businesses are unrelated, and neither resells the other.

If you have landed here because a search engine or an AI assistant used the two names interchangeably, that is the confusion this page exists to clear up. The products differ in scope as much as they do in ownership, which the rest of this page sets out.

The Xero Question Worth Asking Them

Workshop Software syncs with Xero both ways, on every plan. Invoices, payments and purchase orders flow through, and changes reconcile back.

Workshop Mate’s own Xero integration page is unusually clear that its sync runs one way. It states, in these words, that Xero’s invoices will never update Workshop Mate’s invoices, and repeats the same for customers, suppliers, invoice receipts and purchase order receipts. Their listing on the Xero App Store describes a two-way sync. Both statements cannot be right, and it is a fair question to put to them before you commit.

Credit where it is due on MYOB: they integrate with MYOB AccountRight and we integrate with MYOB, so that row is a draw. QuickBooks is the gap. It does not appear anywhere on their site, and we are a listed app on the Intuit QuickBooks App Store.

Inspections, Repair Times and Vehicle Lookups

This is the widest gap between the two products, and it is the one that shows up in daily work.

Workshop Software includes electronic inspections on Gold and above, with photos and customer approval by reply, so a customer can see the worn part rather than read about it. WorkshopData, powered by HaynesPro, puts manufacturer repair times, service schedules, torque settings and wiring information inside the job card from AUD $69 a month. Rego and VIN lookups fill the vehicle in from a plate.

Workshop Mate’s Australian feature list runs to sixteen items and contains no digital inspections, no vehicle technical data, no labour times guide and no rego or VIN lookup. Quoting labour means quoting from experience rather than from manufacturer times.

Their Only Mobile App Is Not a Workshop App

Workshop Software has free native apps on iOS and Android. On Gold and above the app carries the full job workflow: electronic inspections, bookings, quoting, invoicing end to end, photos, clock on and off and push notifications.

Workshop Mate’s only app is EasyPhoto Pro, and its own Google Play description explains that it is an add-on for the EasyCars vehicle management software, for uploading vehicle photos to advertisers. It is a car dealer’s photo tool. The iOS version was last updated in February 2021 and the Android version in June 2023.

Reporting You Can Run the Business On

Workshop Intelligence is included on Gold and Platinum, with five screens built around the numbers that decide whether a workshop makes money: Pulse, Scoreboard, Opportunity Finder, Benchmarks and Advisor. Labour gross profit, technician efficiency, average invoice value, customer retention, and the work you quoted but never won.

Workshop Mate publishes a Sales Report and a Capricorn report. There is no named analytics product.

What Other Workshops Say

Workshop Software has 261 published reviews across Google, Capterra and the Xero App Store, so you can read what other workshops think before you spend anything.

Workshop Mate has 12 reviews on the Xero App Store, averaging 5 out of 5, and 2 reviews on Capterra averaging 2.5 out of 5. Two reviews is too small a sample to draw much from in either direction, which is rather the point: there is not much to read.

Support and Getting Started

Online chat is staffed by people 24 hours a day. Phone and email run 8:30am to 5:00pm in both Australia and the United Kingdom on one global phone system, and the two teams cover each other, so an Australian workshop ringing at eight in the evening still reaches a person.

Onboarding is one to one with a human and it is included, and so is your data migration: customers, vehicles, suppliers, products and vehicle history. Workshop Mate sells a Getting Started package at AUD $1,060 plus GST.

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Workshop Software if you want electronic inspections and manufacturer repair times in the job card, you need a mobile app that runs the whole job rather than uploads photos, your books are in QuickBooks, you want Workshop Intelligence reporting and integrated payments, you run more than one site or need an API, you would rather not pay AUD $1,060 for onboarding or per-integration charges, or you want to weigh 261 published reviews before deciding.

Workshop Mate may suit you if you run an Australian workshop with three or more people and the monthly subscription is the deciding factor, your books are in Xero or MYOB and you have no need for QuickBooks, you have a NSW Prescribed Parts obligation and want Form 2 built in, you want a free plan to start on, or you do not need inspections, technical data or a working mobile app.

Both offer a 14 day trial, so the fairest test is to put your own jobs through each. Start a free trial.

Still shortlisting? See how ten alternatives compare.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Workshop Software and Workshop Mate the same company?

No. They are two different companies with two different products. Workshop Software is made by Workshop Software Pty Ltd. Workshop Mate is made by Jeal Computer Services Pty Ltd of Sydney, trading since 1983, which also makes EasyCars and Workshop Websites. The two are unrelated and neither resells the other.

Is Workshop Mate cheaper than Workshop Software?

On subscription, yes, for any Australian workshop with more than one person on the system. Workshop Mate is AUD $91 plus GST per month with unlimited users. Workshop Software Silver is AUD $99 per month on annual billing with one user and AUD $20 per extra user, so at three users the comparison is AUD $139 against $91. Onboarding runs the other way: Workshop Mate charges AUD $1,060 plus GST for its Getting Started package where Workshop Software includes onboarding and data migration.

Does Workshop Mate have digital vehicle inspections?

No. Its Australian feature list contains no digital inspections, and also no vehicle technical data, no labour times guide and no rego or VIN lookup. Workshop Software includes electronic inspections on Gold and above with photos and customer approval, and offers WorkshopData, powered by HaynesPro, from AUD $69 per month for manufacturer repair times and service data.

Does Workshop Mate have a mobile app?

Its only app is EasyPhoto Pro, which its own Google Play listing describes as an add-on for the EasyCars vehicle management software for uploading vehicle photos to advertisers. It is a dealer photo tool rather than a workshop app, last updated February 2021 on iOS and June 2023 on Android. Workshop Software has free native apps on iOS and Android, and on Gold and above the app carries the full job workflow.

Does Workshop Mate integrate with Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks?

Xero and MYOB AccountRight, yes. QuickBooks does not appear anywhere on their site. One thing to check with them on Xero: their own integration page states that Xero’s invoices will never update Workshop Mate’s invoices, and says the same for customers, suppliers and receipts, while their Xero App Store listing describes a two-way sync. Workshop Software syncs both ways with Xero, MYOB and QuickBooks Online on every plan, and is a listed app on the Intuit QuickBooks App Store.

Which is better for a NSW workshop?

Workshop Mate has a NSW Prescribed Parts register with Form 2 built in, plus a Capricorn report. If you carry that obligation, those are genuine advantages Workshop Software does not match. On inspections, technical data, the mobile app, QuickBooks, payments and reporting, Workshop Software is the more complete product.

Does either offer a free plan or free trial?

Workshop Mate offers a free international tier for up to 10 jobs a month, and a 14 day trial. Workshop Software has no free tier but offers a 14 day free trial with every feature switched on and no credit card required, followed by human one to one onboarding and no lock-in contract.

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Comparison based on information published by each vendor at the time of writing. Software pricing and features change, so please verify details with each vendor before you commit. Last reviewed August 2026.