Skimmer is one of the most well-known names in pool service software, and for good reason — it was one of the first dedicated platforms built for pool companies, and it helped a lot of businesses move away from paper and spreadsheets.
But the pool service software market has matured since Skimmer launched. New platforms offer more features at lower prices, and many pool companies are re-evaluating whether Skimmer is still the best fit for their business.
This article breaks down the factual differences between Skimmer and EZ Pool Biller — pricing, features, and what's included versus what costs extra. We'll keep it honest. Skimmer does some things well. But there are measurable gaps that are costing pool companies money.
The Cost Difference
Let's start with the numbers, because for many companies, this is what drives the conversation.
Base Pricing
| EZ Pool Biller | Skimmer | |
|---|---|---|
| Base monthly price | $35/mo | $98/mo |
| Per extra service location | $0.50 | $2.00 |
| Users / technicians | Unlimited | Varies by plan |
| Contract required | No | No |
The base price difference alone is $63/month ($756/year). But the per-location cost is where it really adds up.
Cost at Scale: Real Numbers
Here's what each platform costs at different company sizes:
50 service locations:
- EZ Pool Biller: $35 + (50 x $0.50) = $60/month ($720/year)
- Skimmer: $98 + (50 x $2.00) = $198/month ($2,376/year)
- Annual savings: $1,656
100 service locations:
- EZ Pool Biller: $35 + (100 x $0.50) = $85/month ($1,020/year)
- Skimmer: $98 + (100 x $2.00) = $298/month ($3,576/year)
- Annual savings: $2,556
200 service locations:
- EZ Pool Biller: $35 + (200 x $0.50) = $135/month ($1,620/year)
- Skimmer: $98 + (200 x $2.00) = $498/month ($5,976/year)
- Annual savings: $4,356
For a 100-location company, switching from Skimmer to EZ Pool Biller saves $2,556 per year. That's enough to cover a month's worth of chemicals, a new piece of equipment, or a significant chunk of a technician's wages.
And that's before you factor in the features that EZ Pool Biller includes at no extra charge that Skimmer either charges for or doesn't offer at all.
The schedule view makes it easy to manage routes across multiple technicians — included at every pricing level.
Feature Differences That Matter
Price is important, but it's not everything. Here's where the two platforms differ on functionality.
Payroll Tracking
EZ Pool Biller: Built-in payroll management. Track technician hours, calculate pay (hourly, per-stop, or hybrid), generate payroll reports, and export to your payroll provider. Included in the base price.
Skimmer: No payroll features. You need a separate tool (Gusto, ADP, or manual calculation) to handle technician pay. That means tracking hours in one system and calculating pay in another.
For companies with 2+ technicians, built-in payroll saves 2-4 hours per pay period and eliminates the cost of a separate payroll tracking tool.
Route Optimization
EZ Pool Biller: Route optimization is included in the base price. The system automatically sequences stops to minimize drive time and distance.
Skimmer: Route optimization is available as a paid add-on. Without it, you're manually ordering stops or paying extra for a feature that directly affects your daily efficiency.
Depending on your route density, optimization saves 30-60 minutes per technician per day. Over a month, that's 10-20 hours of recovered time per tech. For a two-tech operation, that's 20-40 extra hours you can put toward servicing more customers.
QuickBooks Integration
EZ Pool Biller: QuickBooks sync is included. Invoices, payments, and customer data flow to QuickBooks automatically.
Skimmer: QuickBooks integration is a paid add-on, available only on higher-tier plans.
If you use QuickBooks for your accounting (and most pool companies do), this add-on cost on Skimmer needs to be factored into the total price comparison.
Mandatory Photo Prompts
EZ Pool Biller: You can require technicians to take photos at configurable points during each service stop. The tech cannot mark the visit as complete until the required photos are submitted. This is built into the mobile app at no extra charge.
Skimmer: Photo capture is available, but mandatory prompts that block visit completion are not a standard feature in the same way. The enforcement mechanism differs.
Mandatory photo prompts are a quality control feature that many growing companies consider essential. When your technician knows a photo is required at every stop, the quality of service stays consistent whether you're watching or not.
Chemical Tracking
EZ Pool Biller: Chemical reading logging is included in the base platform. Technicians enter readings via the mobile app, and the data is stored in the customer's service history.
Skimmer: Chemical tracking is one of Skimmer's core features and is included. Both platforms handle this well.
This is an area where the two platforms are comparable. Both store per-visit chemical data and make it accessible from the customer record.
Customer Portal
EZ Pool Biller: Customers get access to a self-service portal where they can view service history, see upcoming visits, pay invoices, and update their payment method. Included in the base price.
Skimmer: Customer-facing features exist, including a customer portal for viewing service history and reports. The scope of self-service billing features differs between platforms.
Inventory Management
EZ Pool Biller: Built-in inventory tracking for chemicals and parts. Monitor stock levels, track usage per stop, and get low-stock alerts. Included.
Skimmer: No built-in inventory management. You need a separate system to track chemical and parts inventory.
For companies that go through significant chemical inventory, tracking usage per route per day helps identify waste and forecast purchasing.
The Full Feature Comparison
Here's the complete side-by-side:
| Feature | EZ Pool Biller | Skimmer |
|---|---|---|
| Recurring billing & AutoPay | Included | Included |
| Chemical tracking | Included | Included |
| Mobile app (iOS & Android) | Included | Included |
| Route optimization | Included | Paid add-on |
| QuickBooks integration | Included | Paid add-on (higher tiers) |
| Payroll tracking | Included | Not available |
| Inventory management | Included | Not available |
| Mandatory photo prompts | Included | Limited |
| Customer portal | Included | Available |
| Notifications & reminders | Included | Included |
| Unlimited users | Yes | Varies by plan |
| Data export | Yes | Yes |
The pattern is clear: EZ Pool Biller includes more features in its base price, and that base price is significantly lower. The total cost of ownership gap widens as you add the features you actually need.
All customer data, billing, and service history in one view — no add-ons required.
What Skimmer Does Well
It would be dishonest to pretend Skimmer has no strengths. Here's where credit is due:
Brand recognition. Skimmer has been in the market longer and has strong name recognition in the pool service industry. Many pool company owners heard about Skimmer first.
Chemical tracking. Skimmer's chemical logging and dose calculation features are mature and well-built. This has been a core focus of the product since its early days.
Community. Skimmer has built an active community of pool service professionals. The value of peer connections and shared knowledge is real, though not exclusive to any single platform.
Service report emails. Skimmer's automated service report emails to customers are well-designed and have become an expected feature that customers appreciate.
These are genuine strengths. The question for your business is whether those strengths outweigh the cost premium and the feature gaps outlined above.
Migration: How Switching Actually Works
The fear of switching software keeps many companies on platforms they've outgrown. The concern is understandable — you have hundreds of customers, years of service history, and billing configurations that took hours to set up.
Here's what the migration from Skimmer to EZ Pool Biller actually involves.
Step 1: Data Export from Skimmer
Export your customer list, service schedules, and billing information from Skimmer. This is typically a CSV export that takes a few minutes.
Step 2: Free Data Transfer
EZ Pool Biller provides free data migration assistance. Send your exported data to the migration team, and they'll import your customers, routes, and billing configurations. No charge, no matter how many customers you have.
The imported data includes:
- Customer names, addresses, and contact information
- Service schedules and route assignments
- Billing rates and frequencies
- Payment method information (where transferable)
- Service notes and property details
Step 3: Verify and Adjust
Review the imported data in EZ Pool Biller. Spot-check 10-20 customers to make sure rates, schedules, and notes transferred correctly. Make any adjustments needed.
Step 4: Set Up Payment Processing
Connect your Stripe, PayPal, or ACH payment processor. If your customers' payment methods are on file with a transferable processor (Stripe is the most common), they can migrate with the data. Otherwise, you'll need to collect payment methods — the customer portal makes this easy by letting customers enter their own card.
Step 5: Go Live
Switch your technicians to the EZ Pool Biller mobile app. Most techs adapt within a day — the interface is straightforward, and the core workflow (view route, navigate to stop, log visit, mark complete) is similar across platforms.
Total time from start to finish: approximately 30 minutes of your time, plus whatever time the migration team needs on their end (typically same-day turnaround).
Best Time to Switch
The cleanest transition is at the beginning of a billing cycle — the 1st of the month is ideal. This gives you a clear cutover date where Skimmer handles everything through the prior month and EZ Pool Biller takes over from the new month forward. No split billing, no confusion.
What Pool Companies Say After Switching
The most common feedback from companies that have moved from Skimmer to EZ Pool Biller:
"I didn't realize how much I was paying in add-ons." When route optimization, QuickBooks sync, and other features are paid extras, the monthly cost creeps up without you noticing. A single bill that covers everything makes the true cost transparent.
"Payroll tracking alone was worth the switch." Companies with 2+ technicians consistently cite built-in payroll as the feature that saves them the most time. Calculating per-stop pay or tracking hourly rates in a separate system is tedious work that's easy to automate.
"The migration was easier than I expected." Fear of data loss is the biggest barrier to switching. When the actual process takes 30 minutes and the data transfers cleanly, the barrier disappears.
Run the Numbers for Your Company
Here's a quick formula to estimate your annual savings:
Current Skimmer cost: $98/mo + (your locations x $2.00) + add-on fees = monthly total x 12
EZ Pool Biller cost: $35/mo + (your locations x $0.50) = monthly total x 12
Your annual savings: Skimmer annual total - EZ Pool Biller annual total = savings
For most companies between 50-200 locations, the savings range from $1,656 to $4,356 per year — and that's before accounting for the time saved with included features like payroll and route optimization.
For a detailed side-by-side comparison with more feature breakdowns, visit our EZ Pool Biller vs Skimmer page. To see the full feature set, check out the features overview.
Transparent billing history with all transactions in one place — no add-ons, no hidden fees.
Try It Risk-Free
EZ Pool Biller has no contracts, no setup fees, and no cancellation penalties. Start a free trial, import your data, and run both platforms side-by-side for a billing cycle if you want to compare directly.
If it works, cancel Skimmer and save $1,700-4,300 per year. If it doesn't, you haven't lost anything.
Start your free trial — migration assistance is included at no charge.