About CostTrak
Why CostTrak was created
Most contractors do not lose money because they cannot write a quote. They lose money because they do not know the true cost of a job until well after they have quoted it — materials that never get logged against the job, labor that runs long, change orders that get discussed but never written down. CostTrak was built to close that gap: give small contractors the same real-time cost visibility that larger construction companies get from expensive project management platforms, without the setup overhead or the price tag.
Built from software experience and real contractor problems
CostTrak was created by Brad Cedergren, a software engineer and owner of Cedergren Renovations in Minnesota. It combines software development experience with the practical job-costing problems faced by small contractors, including scattered receipts, missed labor, undocumented changes, and discovering margin problems too late.
CostTrak is being built as a focused job-costing and profit-protection system for small contractors. It is not intended to become another oversized construction-management platform.
Who CostTrak serves
Handymen, remodelers, carpenters, specialty contractors, and small crews or owner-operators — typically businesses currently tracking job costs with spreadsheets, paper notebooks, or a mix of disconnected apps.
Product philosophy
- Show real cost visibility before the profit is gone, not after the job closes.
- Fit how contractors already work — photos, notes, receipts — instead of demanding new habits.
- Stay focused on job costing and quoting rather than chasing every feature a construction platform could have.
What CostTrak is deliberately not trying to become
CostTrak is not trying to replace full accounting and payroll software, and it is not trying to become a large-scale construction management platform with scheduling, CRM, and project management bundled in. It is a focused tool for protecting job margin.