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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Bluebeam

    Score8.9 out of 10
    N/ABluebeam Revu is a PDF management, control, and editing tool. It enables collaboration and markup within shared documents across projects’ life cycles and has takeoff and bid creation capabilities.

    $260

    per year per user

    Google Drive

    Score8.7 out of 10
    N/AGoogle Drive is a cloud file storage, synchronization, and collaboration platform and service, that features Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides for document editing and presentation.

    $6

    per month

    OneNote

    Score7.8 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft's OneNote is a digital note-taking app, supporting photos, annotating, web page clipping, emailing, and synchronizing notes across devices.N/A
    Pricing
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Editions & Modules
    Basics
    $260
    per year per user
    Core
    $330
    per year per user
    Complete
    $440
    per year per user
    Max
    $590
    per year per user
    Basic
    $6.00
    per month
    Business
    $12.00
    per month
    Enterprise
    Contact Vendor for Quote
    per month
    Microsoft OneNote
    Free
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Free Trial
    YesYesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYesYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—Discounts are available for students, educators, and non profit organizations.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Considered Multiple Products
    Bluebeam
    Chose Bluebeam
    We've used these other products in conjunction with Bluebeam mainly because Bluebeam lacks RFI/COR/PO/Mark-up/revision tracking, and doesn't handle punch lists or tasks.
    Incentivized
    Chose Bluebeam
    Bluebeam is a diverse program with many functions and tools, whereas competitive programs only specialize in one or few tasks. Although there are many tools within the program, users can still quickly learn how to use the program to best fit their needs. There is always a help …
    Incentivized
    Chose Bluebeam
    I personally like the tools that Bluebeam offers over Acrobat and feel that, for my company, Bluebeam was much better suited. Scaling tools, markups, as-builts, RFI’s, submittal approval, and detail creation all really show its strength.
    Incentivized
    Chose Bluebeam
    OnScreen: Bluebeam (BB) blows away On-Screen. BB has every feature On-Screen does and it can do way more.

    Agtek: Bluebeam is a lot easier for take-offs when compared to Agtek's Material TakeOff module.
    Incentivized
    Google
    Chose Google Drive
    We are using Google Drive and other google products from their very first versions. We didn't feel any drawbacks to replace them.
    Due to OneNote sync requirement we use MS OneDrive which we found we complex to use.
    Incentivized
    Chose Google Drive
    Google Drive is the best in all aspects. It is affordable, secure, offers better features and most importantly, it enhances collaboration.
    Incentivized
    Microsoft
    Chose OneNote
    Google Drive has a great user interface in comparison to OneNote.
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    I tried organizing various online hard drive storage products like Dropbox, iCloud and Google Drive and One Drive. However, I like the visual aspects of OneNote when I save a document or webpage. It's simpler and I am able to know immediately if I have found the item I am …
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    OneNote has much more structure and more ability to break out current notebooks/topics than Google Drive. This alone is the selling point of OneNote. Easy to show current notes vs. old notes.
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    OneNote was the best choice over Google Drive because Google keeps changing their products too often removing some features and adding others that we do not need. We also looked at self hosting with ownCloud but the ability to use OneNote on a multitude of devices and no …
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    Evernote worked really well for this - Better than OneNote, but no Pabbly integration which I was switching to. Google Keep is ok, but more for doing sticky-note type notes (even if big ones) rather than sorting a large number of notes. I've also used Nimbus Note - This …
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    Integration with other Microsoft Office products is much better with OneNote than any other note-taking tool. It's also crucial to have cloud-based syncing because I have used other products that only do local storage and you lose a lot of important information if that software …
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    Because many of our organizations use Windows and Microsoft Office suite as business tools, it makes sense to choose OneNote for notetaking and storing information. Other tools don't integrate as well with the Office desktop.
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    OneNote provides better integration into the Microsoft platform. It also excels over Evernote due to OneNote being ad-free and offline supported.
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    I had used IBM Doors for requirement gathering though a document repository. It was hard to maintain as we had to always download the latest docs on a local [drive]. OneNote overcame this issue.
    Incentivized
    Chose OneNote
    I feel that OneNote is a good take on Evernote and even Google Keep which is not listed as far as cloud note taking abilities is concerned with some collaborative abilities. One would use OneNote as they would be more familiar with how MS products works as it is the staple …
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    94%
    Would buy again
    17 Answers
    99%
    Would buy again
    120 Answers
    96%
    Would buy again
    25 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    14 Answers
    99%
    Delivers good value for the price
    114 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    25 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    94%
    Happy with the feature set
    17 Answers
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    117 Answers
    96%
    Happy with the feature set
    25 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    92%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    11 Answers
    95%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    81 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    14 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    92%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    99%
    Implementation went as expected
    93 Answers
    94%
    Implementation went as expected
    16 Answers
    Features
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    10.0
    1 Ratings
    26% above category average
    Google Drive
    -
    Ratings
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    Dashboards10.01 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Standard reports10.01 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom reports10.01 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Data exportability10.01 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Construction Project & Field Management
    Comparison of Construction Project & Field Management features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    9.8
    54 Ratings
    25% above category average
    Google Drive
    -
    Ratings
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    Plan distribution & viewing9.752 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Plan markups & sharing9.854 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Issue tracking & punchlists9.733 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Photo documentation9.736 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Jobsite reports9.831 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document sharing9.847 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    RFI tools9.835 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Collaboration & approvals9.842 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    As-built drawings9.845 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile app10.027 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Submittal design and management9.821 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Checklists9.93 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Change orders9.93 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Estimating
    Comparison of Estimating features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    9.6
    29 Ratings
    24% above category average
    Google Drive
    -
    Ratings
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    Takeoff tools9.728 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Job costing8.45 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost databases10.01 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost calculator10.02 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Bid creation9.98 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    File Sharing & Management
    Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    -
    Ratings
    Google Drive
    8.4
    221 Ratings
    0% above category average
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    Versioning00 Ratings8.7195 Ratings00 Ratings
    Video files00 Ratings7.8190 Ratings00 Ratings
    Audio files00 Ratings8.3184 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document collaboration00 Ratings9.0218 Ratings00 Ratings
    Access control00 Ratings8.0216 Ratings00 Ratings
    File search00 Ratings8.1220 Ratings00 Ratings
    Device sync00 Ratings8.9205 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cloud Storage Security & Administration
    Comparison of Cloud Storage Security & Administration features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    -
    Ratings
    Google Drive
    8.6
    215 Ratings
    1% below category average
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    User and role management00 Ratings9.0202 Ratings00 Ratings
    File organization00 Ratings8.0213 Ratings00 Ratings
    Device management00 Ratings8.799 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cloud Storage Platform
    Comparison of Cloud Storage Platform features of Bluebeam and Google Drive and OneNote
    Feature
    Bluebeam
    -
    Ratings
    Google Drive
    8.9
    214 Ratings
    3% above category average
    OneNote
    -
    Ratings
    Performance00 Ratings9.2212 Ratings00 Ratings
    Reliability00 Ratings9.1214 Ratings00 Ratings
    Storage Reports00 Ratings8.587 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Small Businesses
    CMiC Construction Platform
    Score7.5 out of 10
    IDrive Online Backup and Object Storage e2
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Google Keep
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Autodesk Build
    Score8.6 out of 10
    Apple iCloud
    Score8.4 out of 10
    Google Keep
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Revit
    Score8.9 out of 10
    ownCloud
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Google Keep
    Score9.2 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.9
    (66 ratings)
    8.5
    (224 ratings)
    8.3
    (74 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    1.0
    (2 ratings)
    10.0
    (6 ratings)
    10.0
    (13 ratings)
    Usability
    9.8
    (4 ratings)
    8.8
    (54 ratings)
    7.7
    (14 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (7 ratings)
    8.8
    (3 ratings)
    Support Rating
    1.0
    (11 ratings)
    1.0
    (49 ratings)
    8.7
    (10 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    BluebeamGoogle DriveOneNote
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Bluebeam
    The program is great for editing construction drawings, stamping/approving official documents and overlaying revised documents to see design changes. You can use it as an estimating takeoff tool, estimating database, document control, cloud document storage, the list goes on! Bluebeam poses many applications for the user to utilize for the desired needs. There may be some other software that has one specific function that can perform the specific task better, but Bluebeam is a holistic program with many tools for use.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    It is possible to share files and folders with up to 200 email addresses, as well as with persons outside the company.Use the drop-down arrow to select who may see, comment on, or change the file or folder before sending out an invitation.I am very much impressed with this feature
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    In my opinion OneNote is a must for anyone who does business. It’s versatile, stable and sustainable. It can keep private information private - like passwords. It can be used for collaborative work - like standard operating procedures. It is fairly easy to use and far superior to pen and paper. When used for meeting notes, it can be flagged with icons that are searchable - like ideas or important items. You can even create Outlook tasks on the fly
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Bluebeam
    • Once you set Bluebeam Revu as your default PDF handler, it launches immediately when clicking a PDF to open. The speed with which it opens documents is impressive.
    • Creating PDF's out of other documents, such as Word, Excel, JPG's, etc. is simple.
    • Digitally signing documents is a simple, secure process. You can keep your signature password-protected, yet still access it quickly.
    • The Bluebeam Revu mobile application ( I use the iOS version on an iPad Pro), is awesome. Not only does it handle PDF's like you would expect it to, it allows for effortless digital signing of documents on the fly. Nice to be able to quickly sign a document and email right back out from the tablet no matter where I am.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    • Any user with access can store a file using different platforms like Android, IOS, Windows, or Ubuntu (Desktop version)
    • You can share files with any number of different users with different access rights or you can even keep it public by providing the access link and assign different rights for public access
    • You can open Excel/Word files using google software Sheets/Docs in the browser environment without having to install software like Microsoft Office etc on your Windows OS
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Because of its flexibility and ability to hold different types of content (text, images, tables), it is a great tool for collecting content from different resources and organizing it in one place.
    • Technical support analysts are using sections for their support case analysis; they paste pieces of logs, screen-shots, document their steps in troubleshooting etc., all in one section, to get the full picture yet stay organized.
    • The logic of content structure; Notebook>Section>Page>Paragraph, allows you to manage and collect all needed information by the areas of the user's responsibility. For example; each of my projects has its own section, in which each page is a task.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Bluebeam
    • If you have several tabs open and you try to drag one out for a side by side view then you do not have all the modification options and you have to combine them back together.
    • There is a lag time when hitting the print option.
    • There is also a lag time when opening files, sometimes I think the window is frozen.
    • I wish the basic version also had basic file editing, as in editing a document as Adobe does.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    • Having a little bit more control and clarity over what is shared and how it is shared would be a useful improvement.
    • Could be more robust and flexible as far as assigning restrictions.
    • Google Sheets could be enhanced because Excel really is not there yet as a product with equal capabilities as there are still quite a few limitations to the functionality.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • The table editing tools are too simplistic and lack the features found in other Office products.
    • Some content loses its rich text formatting when being pasted into OneNote. A workaround is to paste the content first into Outlook or Word and then copy/pasting that into OneNote.
    • Microsoft is moving away from a local install of OneNote, which means notebooks have to be in the cloud in Office 2019. This will actually reduce the usefulness of OneNote in some environments and opens the door to competitor products.
    • Update: Microsoft has now announced that it will continue to support OneNote 2016 through 2023. https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/Office-365-Blog/Your-OneNote/ba-p/954922
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Bluebeam
    Bluebeam is a powerful PDF viewer and mark-up tool. We are more familiar with it than Adobe Acrobat Pro or other viewers, and it has more features geared towards construction document managers than Acrobat Pro does.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    It's perfect for me. It keeps things saved and is easy to remove items if needed. Also, I very much enjoy the formatting options. Along with the integrations it has for SSO. Overall, this is the most user friendly system I have ever come across.
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    As this is not a compulsory tool in our organization, I would say all depends on the decision makers, however since this is a part of MS Office, I am sure we will have it for as long as we will possibly need it. However, I would not be so sure, if it was a separate product
    Read full review
    Usability
    Bluebeam
    I'm constantly finding that Bluebeam Revu does more than I knew it could. And when I find something that it can't do, I've found that Bluebeam truly listens to its user base and will work to incorporate any good suggestion when feasible.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    It's easy enough to use for computer users of all ages and skill levels. I am an advanced user, and I think the hardest part might be showing someone how to download and set up the app on their device if they weren't too familiar with computers, but overall it is very easy to understand.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    I find OneNote incredibly usable. I'm fairly middle of the road when it comes to tech savvy-ness. The platform was very easy to learn and explore. I like that OneNote is no clunky and offers a clean interface. This is important when it comes to deciding if a tool is usable for multiple people.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Bluebeam
    No answers on this topic
    Google
    Always available
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Bluebeam
    No answers on this topic
    Google
    The documents load fairly quickly and also update in real time, especially given the fact that multiple people can be using it at once. The "Offline" feature works great to allow the user to make edits and access the document without access to the internet, and then sync changes later once they're back.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Overall, I rate OneNote's performance highly. In general, notebooks, sections and pages load quickly. OneNote integrates with other apps and info ca easily be shared/copied to and from the tool to other tools. Moreover, Notebooks tend to sync quickly meaning shared notebooks are up to date almost immediately provided there are no syncing issues.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Bluebeam
    Its hard for me to give a rating on this one as we rarely have to use the support feature for Bluebeam. However, when we have used it, they have been ultra supportive in helping us get exactly what we needed. I know another engineer was trying to figure out a feature and the rep gave a detailed tutorial on how to complete the task
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    It takes a few days for customer support to get back to you. Although, I have not had to use support too often. Once you get an email back, they are very thorough and work hard to fix the problem quickly. It is a really great resource and a great way to get the help you need if you're stuck. A phone call also works quickly but you have to call during specific times.
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Since it is part of Microsoft Office and used across the globe there are a lot of support options available. It's quickest to just do a google search which will have plenty of articles to help you since there are so many OneNote users but as an Office customer you also have access to Microsoft support and I have had good experiences with their support (probably because I'm with a large company who is a large customer to them).
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Bluebeam
    No answers on this topic
    Google
    The effective google workspace using training that my organization received and was conducted by me (as a team lead of the ICT team) was mind-blowing and as a result, our staff is performing well in terms of using the application for their daily jobs than before. Now, in my institution, all teachers and all the administrative personnel are very much interested in cloud storage facilities, in previous my institution was afraid of losing all important documents in the cloud storage. But, after having received the training they are now realized that if anyone has only one google account then he or she can use 15GB of cloud storage freely and they are now happy because now it is not necessary for anyone to carry the traditional pen drive.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Bluebeam
    No answers on this topic
    Google
    It's an extremely easy software to implement, once you sign up for a google account you automatically have access to google drive with a set amount of storage space. The business or Google Suite accounts have more storage space than a regular free account, but setting up and accessing google drive is very easy in both cases
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Bluebeam
    We feel there is not another program out there that would compare to Bluebeam at this current time. Some of the other programs out there do not include studio or the overlaying process which is one of our main uses. The ease of hyperlinking makes this product stand out the most.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    In short, Google Drive is better for independent users who store a normal amount of stuff. OneDrive makes more sense for businesses and teams that are doing heavy-duty storage or large-scale syncing. Realistically, though, most users will fall somewhere in between the two, where either platform would meet their needs.
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    I tried using Evernote and it is an equally usable tool, however, I prefer the interface and capabilities of OneNote. OneNote seems much easier to use and understand. I think that may primarily be because OneNote is a Microsoft application and I am very used to using Microsoft applications such as Word, Excel, etc. I also use OneNote to keep my grocery list. It does as good of a job as the grocery list applications out there, only I like the flexibility I have with OneNote and how I specifically do my shopping.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Bluebeam
    No answers on this topic
    Google
    I have always been able to access
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Bluebeam
    • A major positive aspect is being able to take your computer home without taking the entire set of paper drawings. They have made it so easy to navigate a set of drawings that I can work at home using only the digital drawings.
    • Collaboration with owners and architects has been a great feature. Setting up a Bluebeam studio and having everyone get in and mark things up, then having the architect be able to go in and see what markups have been added, has made the constructability review process much much better.
    • Even when not working on drawings, Bluebeam is a very good tool for working with standard PDF documents. The markup tools are very easy to use.
    • The negative aspect is the takeoff function because some people would like estimators to use the Bluebeam takeoff because it would make their job easier down the road; however, the actual act of doing a full scale takeoff in Bluebeam would require much more time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Google
    • It has given our operation remote capabilities
    • Easier to access and understand client's need through collaborative enviroment
    • availability to digital resources fast and easy
    • saved our operation hundreds of dollars in physical storage (both investment and maintenance)
    • our operation became easier for new staff to get onboard: small learning curve to use it
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • OneNote has become our organizational standard method of taking electronic notes (though some still prefer pen and paper.) It has been a zero cost outlay due to its freely available nature.
    • Its integration with other Microsoft Office products makes it easy to share notes and content between products, allowing for easy collaboration where needed.
    • OneNote's integration with OneDrive ensures that individual's notes are always safe and secure, taking away the tedious responsibility of backup from the user, and makes it happen seamlessly in the background.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Bluebeam Screenshots

    Screenshot of Bluebeam Cloud with Markup ListScreenshot of Bluebeam Cloud with Tool ChestScreenshot of Bluebeam Revu MarkupScreenshot of Bluebeam Revu Studio Session

    Google Drive Screenshots

    Screenshot of Google Drive PriorityScreenshot of Comment on Microsoft Files in Google DriveScreenshot of Shared drives