# Techstyles: full text of the key pages > Techstyles is web-based studio software for UK interior design practices, built in the UK. It keeps projects, FF&E procurement, invoicing with two-way Xero sync, a CRM, and client and contractor portals on one project record. Its core idea: every FF&E line is scored against the date it has to be on site, so a studio knows which items will miss the install while there is still time to act. Pricing is £49 per user a month, £39 per user from the sixth user, excluding VAT, with a 30-day free trial and no card required. This file is the plain-text substance of www.techstyles.ai: the home page, the platform pages, pricing, integrations, the comparison pages and their FAQ answers, taken from the live page content (October 2026). Product mock-ups and sample data shown on the pages are left out. The short index is at https://www.techstyles.ai/llms.txt. Key facts (use these when describing Techstyles): - Who it is for: interior design studios and practices in the UK, from a designer on their own to multi-person studios. - Price: £49 per user per month for users one to five, £39 per user per month from the sixth user, excluding VAT. One plan with every module; no per-project fees; clients and contractors join free. Annual billing is ten months' price for twelve. Studios of 20 or more can ask for pricing. - Free trial: 30 days, no card needed. The studio can send a live schedule and Techstyles loads it before the first login. - Install-date scoring: each FF&E line gets an order-by date counted back from its install date using the supplier lead time. Lines are marked Blocked, At risk, Watching or OK. - Xero: two-way. Invoices (GBP, with UK VAT) and project expenses go to Xero; payment status comes back to the project. Xero is the only accounting integration today; QuickBooks, Sage and FreeAgent are not available. - Other integrations: Gmail, Google Calendar and Outlook Calendar. - AI (the assistant): drafts emails to clients and suppliers, turns meeting and site notes into tidy notes with actions, writes a daily brief, and explains procurement risk (why an item will miss its install date and what to do). It does nothing else, and nothing is sent until a person approves it. It is included in the price. - Portals: a client portal (approvals on each piece, invoices, messages) and a contractor portal (each trade sees only its own drawings, files and items; no prices). Both portals are Techstyles-branded, not white-labelled with the studio's brand. - Product Clipper: a Chrome extension that saves a supplier's product page (price, finish, dimensions, lead time) into the FF&E schedule. It is a capture tool, not an AI feature. - Data: handled under UK GDPR; exports to CSV or PDF at any time, including after leaving. The product is in beta with founding UK studios; there are no published case studies yet. --- ## Home URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/ ### FF&E procurement and studio software for UK interior designers Know the sofa is late in week three, not week eleven. Every line on your schedule is scored against its install date. Projects, client approvals and Xero invoicing sit right beside it. 30-day free trial, no card. Send us a live schedule and we load it before your first login. Shaped with our founding studios #### FF&E install-date scoring The schedule knows what is going to be late. A spreadsheet tells you what you ordered, not that the sofa lands a month after install, and you hear on install day. Techstyles counts every lead time on your FF&E schedule back from the day it is needed on site. - Blocked: Out of stock, rejected or on hold. - At risk: Order-by date close or passed, or lands after install. - Watching: Flagged by your team to keep an eye on. - OK: Ordered in time. Nothing needs a decision. #### FF&E specification and purchase orders Re-sourced on Tuesday. Ordered by Friday. Clip the new maker's page and the line, the purchase order and the delivery date follow. Every line knows the day it has to land. #### Client and contractor portals, both included Clients and trades, on the same page. ##### The contractor portal The drawings, schedules and items each trade needs, with insurance on file and every revision request logged. #### UK invoicing, VAT and Xero From approved estimate to reconciled payment. Invoices and VAT in GBP, synced to Xero, with paid status coming back. - Raise it: Approved items and purchase orders become an invoice, with the lines and VAT already on it. - Send it: It goes to the client with a PDF and live status, so "has that been sent?" stops being a conversation. - Reconcile it: It syncs to Xero, the paid status comes back, and the project figures update themselves. #### Techstyles AI for interior design studios The admin, done before the first coffee. It drafts your emails, turns notes into actions, briefs you each morning and flags procurement risks. Nothing is sent until you approve it. Emails It drafts the reply to a client or supplier in your studio's voice, ready for you to edit and send. Notes Record a meeting or a site visit. It turns the conversation into notes and actions, ready to add as tasks. Daily brief Each morning, what needs you today, drawn from your tasks, invoices and calendar. Procurement It reads the FF&E schedule and flags items at risk of missing install, with the reason: "Sofa misses install by four weeks. Re-source or move the date." #### Interior design project management From the first brief to the last snag. Every phase, task, timer and approval on one record, so nothing lives in a thread no one can find. - Brief: The accepted proposal becomes the project: client, budget and your template's phases and tasks. - Design and procure: Drawings revised and signed off, with every version kept; every item ordered against its date. - Install: Snagging, sign-off and the final invoice. How project management works #### Pricing for interior design studios One price. Everyone in. No card needed. - Project management - FF&E procurement and scoring - Invoicing, VAT and two-way Xero - CRM and proposals - Client portal - Contractor portal - Techstyles AI - Your live schedule, moved across #### What studios ask first. Something not covered? Write to the people who build it: hello@techstyles.ai Q: Can you move our live projects across? Yes. Send us a live schedule or spreadsheet and we load it before your first login, so you try Techstyles on a real project, not a demo. Q: Do clients and contractors cost extra? No. The client and contractor portals come with every user, and there are no per-project fees. Q: What happens after the 30 days? You carry on at £49 per user a month, or walk away. No card up front, no annual contract, and you can export everything to Excel or CSV at any time. Q: Looking for a Programa or Houzz Pro alternative? Techstyles is interior design software built for UK studios around the install date. Every FF&E line is scored against the day it is needed on site, invoices go to Xero in GBP with UK VAT, and the client and contractor portals come with every user. Q: How is our data handled? Your data stays yours. Techstyles is run in line with UK GDPR, and we can sign a data processing agreement for your studio. Q: Does the assistant send anything on its own? Never. It drafts emails, notes and the daily brief, and flags procurement risks; a person approves everything that leaves the studio. #### Week eleven. The sofa is in, on time. 30-day free trial, no card. Send one live schedule and by your first login you will see which lines are going to be late. Rather see it first? A person walks you through it. --- ## Platform overview URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform ### Interior design studio management software Every FF&E line scored against its install date, and everything around it. Built in the UK for interior design studios. Projects, FF&E procurement, GBP invoicing with two-way Xero, a CRM, and portals for clients and trades, on one record. 30-day free trial, no card. Send us a live schedule and we load it before your first login. #### FF&E install-date risk scoring Eight weeks' warning, not a call on install day. Open the project and every item is scored against today: one blocked, two at risk, three your team is watching. The late ones carry the reason and the two ways out: re-source it, or move the date. #### Six modules, one system. In the order the work happens. From the first enquiry to the final invoice, on one record. Nothing is typed twice as a project moves on. #### The assistant, across every stage It drafts and flags. Nothing is sent until you approve it. Each job ends in a draft you can change or bin. Emails Replies drafted for you to edit and send. Notes Meetings and site visits turned into actions. Daily brief What needs you today, each morning. Procurement Items at risk of missing install, flagged. #### Switching from spreadsheets, Programa or Houzz Pro Switch without retyping a line. £49 per user a month, every module. 30-day free trial, no card. Compare: Techstyles vs Programa · Techstyles vs Houzz Pro - Set up for you: Send us a live schedule or spreadsheet and we load it before your first login. - UK finance: GBP throughout, VAT handled properly, and two-way Xero with no double entry. - One price, everyone in: Both portals come with every user. No tiers, no per-project fees. #### The detail, answered. Something not covered? Write to the people who build it: hello@techstyles.ai Q: How is the order-by date worked out? From the supplier's lead time and your safety buffer, counted back from the day the item is needed on site. Every line in the FF&E schedule is scored against today's date whenever you open it. Q: How are drawings revised and approved? Each drawing package moves through five approval stages, from draft to issued, and every drawing is versioned. Trades see the current version, with superseded ones marked. Q: What does each trade see? Only its own drawings, schedules and items in the contractor portal, with insurance on file and every revision request logged. Budgets and margins stay hidden. Q: What happens when a client pays? Invoices sync to Xero, and paid status comes back. Budget, commitments and margin update with it. Q: What happens after the 30 days? You carry on at £49 per user a month, or walk away. No card up front, no annual contract, and you can export everything to Excel or CSV at any time. Q: How is our data handled? Your data stays yours. Techstyles is run in line with UK GDPR, and we can sign a data processing agreement for your studio. Q: How does an enquiry become a project? Enquiries move through the CRM pipeline to a proposal. Once it is accepted, one click turns it into the project, with the client, budget and your template's phases and tasks. #### Bring your live projects. We'll move them across. A 30-day free trial, every module, no card. Send one live schedule and see what is going to be late this week, while there is still time to re-source it. --- ## FF&E procurement URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/procurement FF&E procurement ### Know an item is late before it is late. Every FF&E line is scored against the day it has to be on site. When one will miss, the assistant tells you why, and what to do. Install-date scoring #### One schedule. Every line scored. Lead time, counted back from the day each piece must be on site, gives an order-by date. Where today falls against it is the score. - Blocked: Ordering today still misses the install. - At risk: Order-by date inside a fortnight. Chase it now. - Watching: Float left, but a slip would eat it. - OK: Ordered in time, or float to spare. The assistant #### When a line turns red, it tells you why. It explains and drafts; you decide. Nothing reaches a supplier until you approve it. Risk insights Which item will miss its install, by how much and why, with a suggestion of where to re-source it. Emails The note asking the supplier for an earlier slot, drafted with the item, the dates and the PO already in it. You approve and send. Daily brief Each morning: what to order this week, and which lines are about to slip, across every project. How it works #### Specify, score, order. One record, from the first clip to the paid invoice. - Specify: Clip a product from any supplier site, or add trade-only and bespoke pieces by hand. Finish, price and lead time land on the line. - Score: Each line is scored against its install date, and moves the moment a lead time or the install changes. - Order: Once the client approves it in the portal, it becomes a purchase order in GBP with the VAT carried through, synced to Xero. One sofa, week by week #### Flagged in week three. In the room by week eleven. Twelve weeks to make, eight until install. A spreadsheet finds that out on the day. Techstyles found it with eight weeks to spare. - Flagged: Scored blocked: it would land four weeks after install. - Re-sourced: A UK workshop at six weeks. You approve the order. - Landed: Delivered 31 October, two weeks before install. #### What studios ask about procurement. Q: How does install-date risk scoring work? Every item is scored blocked, at risk, watching or OK from its supplier lead time, the date it has to be on site and the order-by deadline those two imply. You see the problem before the item is late, not when the van fails to arrive. Q: What does the AI do in procurement? When an item will miss its install date, it explains why and suggests where to re-source it. It drafts the supplier email for you to approve, and lists what needs ordering in your daily brief. It never sends anything on its own. Q: Can I create purchase orders from approved items? Yes. Once a client approves a selection you raise the purchase order from it, so the specification and the order are the same record and cannot drift apart. Q: Does procurement connect to budgets and invoicing? Yes. Every item can be tied to a budget line and a client invoice, in GBP with UK VAT, and both sync with Xero. Committed cost, actual cost and margin stay current as you buy. Q: Does it work for studios outside the UK? Yes. Install-date scoring, the product library and client approvals work the same wherever you are. For UK studios, sterling, VAT and a two-way Xero sync are built in rather than bolted on. Q: How long is the free trial? 30 days, with every module included and no card needed. We can move your current schedules across for you. Q: Can I speak to a studio already using it? Yes. We are in beta, so there are no case studies on this site yet, and we will not publish one we do not have. Get in touch and we will introduce you to a studio running its FF&E through Techstyles. Where the schedule connects #### From the brief to the invoice. - Projects: Phases, drawings and the install date the schedule counts back from. - Finance: Where the cost lands: GBP, UK VAT and two-way Xero. - Client portal: Selections approved by the client, every decision on record. - Techstyles vs Programa: A line-by-line comparison. - Pricing£49 per user a month, £39 from the sixth user, excl. VAT. #### Week eleven. The sofa is in, on time. Score your live schedule free for 30 days. No card needed. --- ## Project management URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/projects Interior design project management ### One project. One view. One version of the truth. Phases, tasks, drawings, budget and the install date in one record, built around how a studio actually runs a job. The project #### A design project is not a task list. It is a schedule with lead times, drawings approved in order, a budget the client is watching, and a van that arrives on a Tuesday whether or not the sofa does. Phases are yours to name, reorder and reuse. Survey The site visit, the measurements and the brief.Tasks with an owner and a date, and the files they came with. Concept Mood, layouts and the first scheme to present.Documents and early drawings, versioned in the project. Developed design Detailed drawings and the specification.The FF&E schedule, with a lead time on every item. Tender Who supplies what, and at what price.Purchase orders raised from the approved quotes. Install The week on site, and who is there.Deliveries and trades booked against the day. The workspace #### Everything the job needs, in the job. The board the team works from and the thread the client writes in, inside the project rather than in an app beside it. How it works #### Plan it, draw it, cost it. Three jobs a spreadsheet does badly, on one record. The assistant keeps the notes. - Plan: Phases, site visits, deliveries and the install on one calendar, with a studio-wide view of the fortnight when three jobs want the same two people. - Draw: Drawing packages are versioned and move through a five-stage approval, then go to the trades without anyone emailing a zip. - Cost: Committed cost, actual cost and margin update as orders are raised and invoices paid, in GBP with VAT. Phase by phase #### From the first brief to the last snag. On site, the record comes with you: snags, sign-off and the final invoice sit in the same project as the brief, so nothing lives in a thread no one can find. #### What studios ask about running projects. Q: How do phases and timelines work? You plan in phases on a visual timeline that covers design stages and installs. Budget, margin, tasks, purchase orders and milestones update as the work moves, so project status is current rather than reported. Q: Can I track time on tasks? Yes. Start a timer on any task and the hours roll into time tracking and billing, so chargeable time stops depending on anyone remembering to write it down. Q: How are drawings approved? Drawing packages are versioned and move through a five-stage approval, and can be shared with contractors from the project itself. The version a trade builds from is the version you signed off. Q: Is procurement visible inside projects? Yes. The FF&E schedule, its lead times and its risk against the install date sit inside the project. The scoring itself is explained on the procurement page. Q: Does the AI help with projects? Yes, in two places. It turns rough meeting and site notes into tidy project notes with the actions pulled out, and each morning the daily brief lists what needs you: reviews, overdue tasks and the items about to slip. It never sends anything on its own. Q: How is this different from Programa or Design Manager? Both are built for design studios and both do this stage competently. The differences that decide it are install-date risk scoring on the FF&E schedule, and UK depth: GBP, VAT and a two-way Xero sync. Q: Is it suitable for a small studio? Yes. A solo designer gets the whole product; a larger team gets collaboration and role-based permissions. Pricing is per user with no feature tiers, and the free trial runs for 30 days. Q: Can I speak to a studio already using it? Yes. We are in beta, so there are no case studies on this site yet, and we will not publish one we do not have. Get in touch and we will introduce you to a studio running its projects on Techstyles. Next #### Where the project connects. - Procurement: Where the schedule is bought, every item scored against its install date. - Finance: Invoices in GBP with UK VAT, and two-way Xero. - CRM: Where the work arrives from: enquiries and proposals that become projects. - The platform: The whole system, in the order the work happens. - Pricing£49 per user a month, £39 from the sixth user, excl. VAT. #### Run the whole job in one place. Free for 30 days, no card needed. We move your live projects across for you. --- ## Finance, invoicing and Xero URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/finance Interior design invoicing ### Billing built for a UK studio, not translated for one. Invoices in GBP with UK VAT, a two-way Xero sync, and budget against actual on every project. How it works #### From approved estimate to reconciled payment. Invoices, VAT and payments in GBP, with invoices sent to Xero and payments read back. - Raise it: An approved estimate becomes an invoice in one click, with the lines, scope and VAT already on it. - Share it: It appears in the client portal with live status and a PDF, so "has that been sent?" stops being a conversation. - Reconcile it: It syncs to Xero, the payment syncs back, and the project ledger updates itself. UK-native #### Pounds, VAT and Xero, on every line. Sales tax is not VAT. A studio that bills in pounds and files a return every quarter needs VAT on the line from the first estimate, and the same figure in Xero at the end. In the client portal #### Sent, seen and paid, without the chasing. Clients open their invoices beside the work they paid for, with live status and a PDF. When they pay, Xero reconciles it and the project ledger updates. How the client portal works #### What studios ask about invoicing. Q: Does Techstyles integrate with Xero? Yes, both ways. New and updated invoices sync to Xero and payment status comes back, so the books and the project agree without double entry. Q: Does Techstyles handle GBP and UK VAT? Yes. Estimates, purchase orders and invoices are raised in GBP with UK VAT on each line, and the VAT position carries through to Xero. UK tax is handled natively rather than approximated with a generic sales-tax field. Q: Can I create invoices from estimates? Yes. Create an invoice from an approved estimate in one click, share it to the client portal, and every update syncs to Xero. Q: Can I track budgets against actual spend? Yes. Budgets, purchase orders, invoices and cash flow live in one place, connected to your projects, with budget against actual at project and studio level, and real margin per project. Q: Can clients see their invoices? Yes. Clients see their invoices and payment status in their portal, with PDF copies to download. Q: Does billable time reach the invoice? Yes. Per-task timers roll into time tracking and into billing, so chargeable hours stop evaporating between the two. Q: How long is the free trial? 30 days, with every module included, Xero sync too, and no card needed. Next #### Where the money connects. - Procurement: Every FF&E line scored against its install date. - Projects: The schedule, the tasks and the hours that reach the invoice. - Integrations: Xero, Gmail and the rest of the studio's tools. - Techstyles vs Programa: A line-by-line comparison. - Pricing£49 per user a month, £39 from the sixth user, excl. VAT. #### Billed in pounds, reconciled in Xero. GBP, UK VAT and two-way Xero, included. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Client portal URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/client-portal Client portal ### The client approves the piece, not the email. One link opens their project: what needs a decision, what is due, and a thread with you. Every yes is kept on the record. How an approval travels #### A decision should leave a record. The costly part is rarely the choice. It is the argument about it eight months later. - Share it from the schedule: Send a room or a single piece from the project. The client sees the image, the specification and the price as you set them. - The client decides: Approve, send back for review, reject, or order it themselves. Review and reject ask for a reason, so you are not left guessing. - The decision stays on the item: Dated, with the client's own words, and the procurement schedule moves on from it. No email to act on afterwards. Invoices #### What is due, in plain sight. Every invoice sits in the portal with its status, a PDF on your letterhead and the date it falls due. Fewer "has that been paid?" emails, in both directions. How invoicing works Access #### Everything the client needs. Nothing more. You decide what each client sees, project by project. One link Your link opens the client's project, and only theirs. They can keep a password too, if they prefer one. Six screens Dashboard, procurement, finances, documents, drawings and messages. Procurement, documents and messages can be switched off per project. One thread Questions about a piece sit on the piece, with photos. Nothing is agreed in a WhatsApp only one person can find. No extra cost Clients are not seats. Invite every client on every project at no charge. #### Questions about the portal. Q: How do clients approve selections? Selections are grouped by room. For each piece the client can approve it, send it back for review, reject it or say they will order it themselves. Review and reject ask for a reason, which you see straight away, and the decision is recorded against the item with the date. Q: Do clients need an account or a password? No. A link from you opens their project directly. Clients who prefer a password can sign in with one, and each client only ever reaches their own project. Q: Can clients see invoices in the portal? Yes. Clients see what is due next and every invoice with its status, and can download each one as a PDF with your studio's details on it. Q: Does it cost extra to invite clients? No. The portal is included in the subscription, with no per-client or per-project charge. Q: Is the portal secure? Each client reaches only their own project, and you choose which parts of it they see, project by project. #### Give your clients one place to say yes. --- ## Contractor portal URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/contractor-portal Contractor portal ### Bring the trades in, not the whole project. Each trade sees their drawings, files and items on a phone on site. Prices, budgets and margins stay with you. Compliance #### Covered, before they are on site. Each trade keeps their insurance and trade certificate current in their own portal, with the expiry dates. You see who is covered without asking for the PDF again. From invite to site #### One set of drawings, and everyone on the same one. The trade opens the revision you issued, not the one they saved in March. - Invite the trade: Add them to the project and choose their scope. They sign in from a browser with a password or a six-character access code. Nothing to install. - They work from the current set: Drawings carry their revision and date. When you issue a new one, the old one is marked superseded, not lost in a thread. - Site comes back to you: A trade raises an issue on an item or requests a revision on a drawing, with the reason written down, against the project. Group chat or the record #### Three things a group chat cannot do. Trades coordinate well by phone. What a phone cannot do is prove what was current, and who was covered. Which drawing is current In a group chat. Whichever attachment the fitter downloaded. On the record. The one marked current, with every earlier revision kept and dated. Who was covered on the day In a group chat. A certificate emailed at some point. On the record. Insurance on file with its expiry date, checked before anyone is on site. What this trade can see In a group chat. Everything anyone pasted into it. On the record. Their drawings, files and items. No prices, budgets or margins. #### What studios ask about trades. Q: Do contractors need to install an app? No. The portal opens in a browser on a phone or a laptop on site. Trades sign in with an email and password, or with a six-character access code you give them. Q: Can I keep contractor insurance documents on file? Yes. Each trade uploads their public liability insurance and trade certificate with the expiry dates, and keeps them current. Each document shows as valid, expiring soon, expired or missing. Q: What does a contractor see, and what stays hidden? The drawings, files and items you share with them, and a conversation with the studio. Prices, budgets and margins are never shown to a trade. Q: How do drawing revisions work? Every drawing carries its revision and issue date. A trade can request a revision with a written reason, and when you issue the new one the earlier revision is marked superseded and kept in the version history. Q: Does it cost extra to invite contractors? No. Contractor access is included in the subscription. There is no per-project fee and no charge per trade invited. #### Put the site on the record. --- ## CRM and proposals URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/crm Interior design CRM ### Win the work, then keep it in one place. Enquiry to signed proposal, in a CRM that understands a design fee. Won, it becomes the project, with nothing retyped. The handover #### The handover is where studios lose money. Sell in one system and deliver in another, and the day a proposal is signed someone spends an afternoon copying it across. Four things have to survive the win. The client record One record. The enquiry, the proposal and the project all point at it. In two systems: Entered once to sell, again to deliver, and the two drift apart. The scope you sold Becomes the phase plan, with the deliverables you quoted still attached. In two systems: Retyped into a project plan, losing the detail that justified the price. The fee you agreed Becomes the budget the project is measured against, in GBP with VAT, synced with Xero. In two systems: Sits in a signed PDF that nobody opens again. The FF&E you promised Lands on the schedule, where every item is scored against its install date. In two systems: A list in the proposal, retyped into a spreadsheet at ordering time. How it works #### Enquiry, proposal, project. Priced by phase, signed, and run on the same record. - Capture it: Every enquiry lands with its source, from the website, Instagram, a referral or an event, and an owner. - Propose it: Price the brief line by line and by phase: stage fees, a percentage of spend or hourly. It goes out as a branded PDF in GBP with VAT. - Convert it: Signed, it becomes the project in one step: client, scope, fee and phases carried across. Every relationship #### One record per client, from first email to final invoice. Clients, specifiers, suppliers and trades in one directory, with their emails, files and projects attached, and yours to export as CSV any time. The assistant drafts the reply; you send it. #### What studios ask about the CRM. Q: Does it connect to project management? Yes. A won deal converts to a project in one step, carrying the client, the scope and the proposal structure with it, so nothing is entered twice between selling the job and running it. Q: Can I track where my leads come from? Yes. Lead source is recorded on every enquiry, from the website, Instagram, a referral or an event, so you can see which channels bring the clients you want and stop paying for the ones that do not. Q: What does the AI do in the CRM? It drafts replies to enquiries and follow-ups, with the client and project details already in them, for you to edit and approve. It never sends anything on its own. Q: How is it different from Programa or Design Manager? Both cover this stage. The difference shows later in the job: install-date risk scoring on the FF&E schedule, and UK depth, with GBP, VAT and a two-way Xero sync. Winning the work is only worth it if the rest of the studio runs on the same system. Q: How is it different from Houzz Pro or Studio Designer? Techstyles is one system from enquiry through to install, priced per user with everything included, and it scores every FF&E item against the date it has to be on site. The comparison pages set out the differences line by line. Q: How long is the free trial? 30 days, with every module included and no card needed. Bring your contacts in by CSV on day one. Q: Can I speak to a studio already using it? Yes. We are in beta, so there are no case studies on this site yet, and we will not publish one we do not have. Get in touch and we will introduce you to a studio already selling work through Techstyles. Where the deal goes next #### Signed, then run on the same record. - Projects: Where a signed proposal becomes a live project, without re-keying it. - Procurement: Where the schedule is bought, every item scored against its install date. - Finance: Where the fee is billed, in GBP with UK VAT and two-way Xero. - Techstyles vs Programa: A line-by-line comparison. - Pricing£49 per user a month, £39 from the sixth user, excl. VAT. #### Win the work, then run it. £49 per user a month excl. VAT, every module included. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles AI (the assistant) URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/platform/ai The assistant ### It drafts the admin. You decide. Emails, notes, a daily brief and procurement risk insights, inside the projects you already run. Nothing is sent until you approve it. Four jobs #### Four jobs, done quietly. It works on the records you already keep. There is no prompt to write and no second app to open. Emails Drafts the reply to a client or a supplier with the project details already in it, for you to edit, approve and send. Notes Turns rough meeting and site notes into tidy project notes, with the decisions and actions pulled out. Daily brief Each morning, what needs you today across every project: reviews, overdue invoices and the items about to slip. Risk insights When an item will miss its install date, it explains why and suggests what to do about it. Daily brief and risk insights #### Before your first coffee, the day in order. Each morning the brief gathers what needs you across every project. When an item will miss its install date, the risk comes with a reason and a way out. The rule #### Nothing is sent until you approve it. - Drafted: A reply, a set of notes or a suggested next step is written for you. - Waiting for you: You read it, change it or bin it. Nothing moves on its own. - Then it goes: Only when you approve does anything reach a client or a supplier. See it at work in. Procurement. Finance. Client portal. Pricing #### What studios ask about the AI. Q: What does the AI in Techstyles actually do? Four things. It drafts emails to clients and suppliers with the project details in them, turns meeting and site notes into tidy project notes with the actions pulled out, writes a daily brief of what needs you across every project, and explains procurement risk: why an item will miss its install date and what you could do about it. Q: Does the AI send anything without my approval? No. It drafts and suggests, then waits. Nothing is sent until you approve it, and you can edit or discard every draft. Q: Is it a chatbot? No. There is no prompt to write and no second app to open. The assistant works inside the projects you already keep, on the records that are already there. Q: Does the AI cost extra? No. The assistant is included in the subscription, at £49 per user a month (£39 from the sixth user), excluding VAT. #### Less admin, the same final word. --- ## Pricing URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/pricing Pricing ### One plan, with everything in it. Projects, procurement, finance with two-way Xero, both portals and the assistant, on every seat. No tiers, no per-project fees. £49 per user, per month for your first five users. £39 each from the sixth user. Excluding VAT. Or pay annually: ten months' price for twelve. A studio of six pays £2,840 a year. Prices in GBP, excluding VAT. Pay only for active users. Twenty or more? Talk to us. On every seat #### Nothing kept back for a higher plan. A designer on their own and a ten-person practice open the same product. Clients and trades join free. ##### Projects - Unlimited projects and clients - Phases, tasks and the install calendar - Studio planner and time tracking - CRM, proposals and pipeline ##### Procurement - FF&E schedules and product library - Lead-time risk scored on every line - Product clipper for any supplier page - Purchase orders and delivery tracking ##### Finance (with Xero) - Estimates and invoices in GBP, UK VAT - Two-way sync with Xero - Client payments in the portal - Margin per project ##### Portals - Client portal for approvals and sign-off - Approvals, updates and invoices - Contractor portal with drawings - No charge for clients or trades ##### The assistant - Email drafts, for you to approve - Meeting and site notes, tidied - A daily brief each morning - Procurement risk insights The 30-day trial #### Try it on the project you are running now. Not a demo account. Bring a live job, and we move your current schedules across for you. - Bring a live project: Your schedules and projects come across, so you start on real work. - Run it for real: Invite the team, score the schedule, send a client the portal. - Decide: Add a card to carry on, or export everything. No card until then. Book a walkthrough #### Questions about pricing. Q: How does the per-user price work? Each of your first five users is £49 a month. From the sixth user it is £39 each. A studio of six pays £284 a month. You pay only for active users and can add or remove them at any time. Prices are in GBP and exclude VAT. Q: What happens after the 30 days? Add a card to carry on at the same price per user, with everything you set up kept as it is. If you do nothing, you are not charged: the account pauses, and you can still sign in to export your data. Q: Is anything charged on top? No. Procurement and scoring, finance with Xero, both portals and the assistant are on every seat. There are no per-project fees, no setup fee and no charge for the clients or trades you invite. Q: Does it sync with Xero? Yes, both ways, on every seat. Invoices you raise sync to Xero in GBP with UK VAT, and payment status comes back to the project ledger. Q: How does this compare with other studio tools? Some tools cost less per seat for a team. Check whether install-date risk scoring, the contractor portal and two-way Xero are on the plan you would actually buy. Our side-by-side comparisons are here. Q: Can I export our data? Yes, whenever you like. Schedules, projects, contacts and invoices export as CSV or PDF, during the trial, while you subscribe and after you leave. Q: How do you handle our data and GDPR? Your data is encrypted in transit and at rest, handled under UK GDPR, never sold and never used to train AI models. You can access, export or delete it at any time. The detail is in our privacy policy. Q: Is there a contract or annual plan? No contract: pay monthly and cancel any time. Annual billing is ten months' price for twelve. Studios of 20 or more can talk to us about pricing. #### Moving from another system? We bring it across. Your schedules and projects come with you, and larger studios get a walkthrough before they decide. --- ## Integrations URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/integrations Integrations ### Xero, properly. Then the rest. A UK studio lives or dies by its books. So rather than claim fifty logos, we built one accounting integration that goes both ways: invoices out with their VAT intact, payments back to the project. Two-way Xero #### One invoice, end to end. What two-way means on a Tuesday afternoon, in the order it happens. - Raise it in the project: The invoice is built from the work it covers, with the VAT treatment the job needs. Expenses are logged against the project the same way. - It lands in Xero, VAT intact: A sales invoice in Xero with the net, the rate and the total as you raised them. Nobody types a number twice. - Paid comes back: Your bookkeeper works in Xero as always. When the client pays, the status returns to the project, and the ledger and the books agree. - Sales invoices, with their VAT treatment - Project expenses, as they are logged - Payment status, so paid shows as paid - Reconciliation, without re-keying Mail and calendar #### Also connected. So the studio's day and its projects stop being two systems. Every integration is on every plan. Gmail Project mail sits with the project it belongs to, and the assistant drafts replies for you to approve. Google Calendar Milestones, site visits and installs appear in the calendar you already keep. Outlook Calendar The same sync, for studios on Microsoft 365. Not yet #### What we have not built. On the list, with no date we would ask you to plan around, so we do not print one. Tell us which one you need - QuickBooks: Accounting - Sage: Accounting - FreeAgent: Accounting - Zapier: Automation - Slack: Messages #### Questions about Xero. Q: Does Techstyles work with Xero? Yes, both ways. Invoices and expenses raised in a project go to Xero with their VAT treatment intact, and payment status comes back, so a paid invoice shows as paid on the project. Q: Does the Xero sync handle UK VAT? Yes. Each invoice carries its VAT treatment into Xero as raised, in GBP. Techstyles keeps the project and the books in step; it does not file your VAT return. Q: Is the Xero integration an extra cost? No. Every integration is included on every plan. There is no connector tier. Q: We use QuickBooks or Sage. Can we still use Techstyles? Yes, for everything except the accounting sync, which is Xero only today. QuickBooks, Sage and FreeAgent are on the list, with no date we would ask you to plan around. Tell us which one you use. #### Connect Xero, then forget about it. Free for 30 days. The sync is included, like everything else. --- ## Interior design software compared URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare UK studio software · 2026 ### The best interior design software for UK studios, honestly compared. Eight tools on the questions UK studios ask: price in pounds, books in Xero, and whether the schedule warns you before an order is late. Where a competitor does something better, including price, we say so. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from any tool below. The category #### What you are actually choosing between. Every serious tool here will hold a product library, raise a purchase order, publish a schedule to a client and produce an invoice. Compare those and you are comparing table stakes. The differences that survive a real project are narrower. Does the system know when an order has to be placed, not only when it was? Does the money reach your accounts in the right currency with the right VAT, or does someone re-key it? Does the quoted price still describe the bill once the studio has six people and twelve live jobs? Side by side #### Pick your comparison. The short verdict each way. Each page carries the full feature matrix, the cost and what moving across involves. - Techstyles vs: ProgramaAustralian-born studio software known for procurementChoose Programa ifyou want the lowest price per seat for a team, or take client payments in the app.Choose Techstyles ifyou want order-by dates from the install, Xero both ways and a contractor portal. - Techstyles vs: Houzz ProAll-in-one software alongside the Houzz marketplaceChoose Houzz Pro if; Houzz brings you clients, or you want 3D floor plans in the same tool.Choose Techstyles ifyou win work by referral and want delivery, Xero and a lower bill per seat. - Techstyles vs: Design ManagerLong-established software with its own accounting ledgerChoose Design Manager ifyou want full accounting inside the design tool, billed in dollars.Choose Techstyles ifyour books live in Xero, in pounds, and late orders are the risk. - Techstyles vs: Studio DesignerUS design business software with an accounting heritageChoose Studio Designer ifyou want its ledger and are primarily US-based.Choose Techstyles ifyour UK accountant expects the books in Xero, with VAT on the line. - Techstyles vs: DesignFilesBoards-first software for solo designersChoose DesignFiles ifyou work solo on boards, 3D and presentations and want the lowest price.Choose Techstyles ifyou specify and order, hold deposits and brief contractors. Also worth a look: Planify, if you want a simple tool for the whole studio at one low price ($24.49 a month billed yearly, unlimited team) and keep your accounts separately. Fohlio, if your work is hospitality or multi-site FF&E at scale. At a glance #### Eight tools, the UK questions. Price, books and install-date risk, from each vendor's own pages. Prices as published, in the currency published. "Not listed" means we could not find it, not that it cannot be done. - Techstyles: Built for: UK studios; Price a month: £49 per user, £39 from the sixth, excl. VAT; Books and Xero: Two-way Xero, GBP and UK VAT; Install-date risk: Order-by date per item, from the install - Programa: Built for: Australian-born, multi-market; Price a month: £55 incl. one seat, +£23 per seat, billed yearly (£69 + £29 monthly); Books and Xero: Invoices sync to Xero or QuickBooks; Install-date risk: Overdue alerts once a date passes - Houzz Pro: Built for: Renovation and design pros, with the Houzz marketplace; Price a month: From £139, +£47 per extra user; Books and Xero: QuickBooks; Xero listed (sends data to Xero), plan not stated; Install-date risk: Not listed - Design Manager: Built for: "Optimized for US-based firms"; Price a month: $79 per user (US dollars); Books and Xero: Its own ledger; Xero not listed; Install-date risk: Not listed - Studio Designer: Built for: Firms wanting accounting built in; Price a month: $69-$109, billed yearly (no GBP listed); Books and Xero: Its own general ledger; Xero not listed; Install-date risk: Not listed - DesignFiles: Built for: Solo designers and small teams; Price a month: $55-$75 for one designer, +$30 per user; Books and Xero: QuickBooks on Full Service; Xero not listed; Install-date risk: Not listed - Planify: Built for: Designers and architects; made in Kraków; Price a month: $24.49 for the studio, billed yearly; Books and Xero: No accounting link listed; Install-date risk: Not listed - Fohlio: Built for: Hospitality, retail and large firms; Price a month: Not published; Books and Xero: Not listed; Install-date risk: Not listed Last checked October 2026, from each vendor's own pages. Products change; tell us if something has moved on. Predictive, not reactive #### The expensive mistake is the order nobody has placed yet. Every tool here can tell you what you ordered. The question that costs a studio money is about the order nobody has placed, and only a system that holds lead times against an install date can answer it. Techstyles gives every line an order-by date and scores it blocked, at risk, watching or OK. How install-date scoring works How to choose #### How to choose interior design software: five questions for every vendor. Including us. If a demo cannot answer these in the product, the answer is no. Show me an item nobody has ordered yet that is already too late. The question that separates a procurement ledger from a risk system. A tool that reports on placed orders cannot answer it. Ask to see the item, the lead time it used, and the date it decided the order window closed. Raise an invoice in GBP with VAT, show it in Xero, then pay it and show the payment back. Both directions, in one demo, without a CSV. If the answer involves a monthly reconciliation, that is your answer. Price this for six people and twelve live projects, with everything we just saw switched on. Not the entry tier. Ask which features in the demo sit on a higher plan, whether there is a per-project charge, and what onboarding costs on top. How does a contractor see what they need, and nothing else? Trades need the schedule and the drawings without your margins. A tool with no contractor access makes you the inbox between them and the job. If we leave in a year, what comes with us? Ask for the export format for your product library, clients and project history before you sign, not after. Any vendor confident in the product will answer plainly. We will. Method #### How we write these comparisons. Every comparison here is written by us, so read it as our view rather than an independent review. We describe each competitor from its own published material. Where we cannot find a capability we say "not listed", never "no", and we quote a rival's price only where they publish it. Last checked October 2026. Competitors ship changes constantly. If something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it. #### See your own schedule scored against its install dates. Bring one live project from whichever tool you use; we move it across for you. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles vs Programa URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare/programa ### A Programa alternative built for UK studios. Techstyles vs Programa, honestly compared. Both handle schedules, purchase orders and client approvals well. Techstyles warns you before an order window shuts and runs on GBP, VAT and two-way Xero. For teams of two or more it costs more than Programa. Here is what the difference buys. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from Programa. Last checked October 2026. Our reading of both products; tell us if something has moved on. What differs #### Four differences, in the order that matters. In the order they protect a project: the install date first, the time saved on admin last. - It warns before the order window shuts, not after; Programa's procurement hub now flags overdue deposits, late shipments and missed dates. That is useful, and it is reactive: the date has already gone. Techstyles counts back from the install date, subtracts the supplier lead time and gives every line an order-by date, so a sofa with a fourteen-week lead is flagged while it can still be ordered, or re-sourced. - UK-native: GBP, VAT and two-way Xero; Prices, purchase orders and invoices in GBP with UK VAT on the line. The Xero sync runs both ways, so a payment recorded in Xero shows against the project without re-keying. Programa also syncs invoices to Xero; Techstyles is built UK-first around it, with support in UK hours. - Your trades in the same system: A contractor portal (drawings with revisions, files and compliance documents, margins hidden) comes with every seat. If you only need schedules and purchase orders, Programa is the cheaper way to get them; the cost table below is honest about that. - AI for the admin, approved by you; The assistant drafts client and supplier emails, turns meeting notes into actions on the project, writes a daily brief across every live job and adds procurement risk insights to the schedule. It does the admin; you approve before anything is sent. Predictive, not reactive #### Flagged while it can still be ordered. Programa now tells you when an order is overdue. Techstyles tells you the day it has to be placed, worked back from the install. Techstyles: predictive Install date, minus supplier lead time, gives each line an order-by date. Lines are flagged blocked or at risk before that date passes. Programa: reactive Alerts for overdue deposits, late shipments and missed install dates, once the date has gone. How install-date scoring works Programa pricing UK #### Programa pricing in the UK: cheaper for teams. Monthly cost in pounds by team size. For one person Techstyles costs less; from two people, Programa does. Here is the arithmetic. Techstyles: £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. Programa UK: £55 a month including one seat plus £23 per extra seat billed yearly, or £69 plus £29 billed monthly, from programa.design/uk/pricing, checked October 2026. Prices as published by Programa. What the difference buys A contractor portal Drawings with revisions, files and the items issued to each trade, with your prices hidden. Not listed by Programa. Order-by dates on every line Counted back from the install, so the late order shows up before it is late. UK-first support GBP, VAT and two-way Xero throughout, answered in UK hours. Credit where due #### Where Programa is genuinely strong. Programa earned its reputation on procurement. Studios running product-heavy residential work find its schedules, purchase orders and supplier handling well judged, and it has had years to absorb the awkward cases only real jobs throw up. If your team already trusts a Programa workflow, "we also have purchase orders" is no reason to move. The case for switching is narrower: knowing the order-by date before it passes, and a UK product with Xero as its spine. Different bets about who the customer is, not a criticism of either. The short answer #### Which is right for your studio? Programa is a capable, established tool. This is where the two genuinely diverge. ##### Choose Techstyles if you… - Need every FF&E line to carry an order-by date counted back from the install - Run your books in Xero, in GBP, with UK VAT on the line - Brief trades through a portal rather than your inbox ##### Programa may suit you if you… - Already have Programa workflows your team trusts - Want the lowest price per seat for a growing team - Take client payments inside the app today - Run your books in QuickBooks rather than Xero Read next. FF&E procurement Invoicing and Xero Pricing Feature by feature #### The whole matrix, nothing hidden. Including the rows where Programa matches us. "Not listed" means we could not find it in Programa's public material, not that it cannot be done. Last checked October 2026, from each product's public material. Products change; tell us and we will correct it. Switching #### Moving across from Programa. Migration is free, and we do the moving. Live projects keep running while it happens. Product library Products come across with images, pricing and supplier details. Trade discounts come with them. Clients and contacts Client records and contact details transfer, so nobody re-keys an address book mid-project. Live projects Current projects are recreated with rooms, schedules, budgets and approval status; clients get new portal access. Xero and install dates Connect Xero: invoices go out in GBP with VAT, and payments come back to the project. Add each install date and the order-by dates appear on the FF&E you have already specified. #### What studios ask first. Q: Is Techstyles a good Programa alternative for UK studios? If the install date is what keeps you up at night, yes. Techstyles gives every FF&E line an order-by date counted back from the install, keeps your books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT, and includes a contractor portal. If you mainly need specification schedules and purchase orders at the lowest price per seat, Programa is the cheaper choice for teams. Q: Does Programa flag late orders now? Yes. Programa's procurement hub flags overdue deposits, late shipments and missed install dates. The difference is timing: those alerts fire once a date has passed. Techstyles works out the date each order has to be placed, from the install date and the supplier lead time, and flags the line before that window shuts. Q: How much does Programa cost in the UK compared with Techstyles? Programa's UK plan is £55 a month including one seat, plus £23 for each extra seat, billed yearly (£69 and £29 billed monthly). Techstyles is £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. For one person Techstyles is cheaper; from two people Programa is cheaper. Six people pay £284 a month on Techstyles and £170 on Programa's yearly plan. Q: Can we move our Programa schedules across? Yes, and migration is free. Send us your Programa export and we bring the product library, clients and live projects across, with rooms, suppliers and lead times. Add the install date to each live project and the order-by dates are worked out on the FF&E you have already specified. Q: How does the Xero sync compare? Both connect to Xero. In Techstyles the sync runs both ways in GBP with UK VAT: invoices and purchase orders post to the Xero account you choose, and a payment recorded in Xero shows against the project. Q: Is there a free trial? Yes. Techstyles is free for 30 days with every feature and no card. Bring a live project and see its schedule scored against the install date before you decide. #### Bring one live project across. We move it from Programa for you, and you see its schedule scored against the install. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles vs Houzz Pro URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare/houzz-pro ### A Houzz Pro alternative that costs less, with every order dated. Techstyles vs Houzz Pro for UK studios. Houzz Pro bundles software with a route to new clients through its marketplace. Techstyles is studio software only: an order-by date on every FF&E line, Xero both ways in GBP on every seat, and a lower monthly bill at every team size. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from Houzz Pro. Last checked October 2026. Our reading of both products; tell us if something has moved on. What differs #### Four differences, in the order that matters. The install date first, the marketplace last. - Every FF&E line gets an order-by date; Houzz Pro raises purchase orders on every plan, and tracks selections and budgets on its Custom plan. Techstyles reads each line's supplier lead time, counts back from the day it has to be on site and flags it blocked, at risk, watching or OK. On a phased install you find out in week four, not week eleven. - Xero both ways, on every seat: Houzz Pro lists a Xero integration that sends invoices, purchase orders and payments into Xero; its pricing grid doesn't say which plan carries it. Techstyles includes Xero on every account and reads back too: a payment your bookkeeper records in Xero shows against the project, in GBP with VAT on the line. - Everything on one price per seat: Houzz Pro's Pro plan is from £139 a month plus £47 per extra user. Techstyles is £49 per user, £39 from the sixth. The table below does the arithmetic. Houzz puts selections, budgets and subcontractor management on its Custom plan, priced on request. - Software only, no marketplace: Houzz Pro is part of the Houzz ecosystem, which is valuable if Houzz is where your clients find you. Techstyles is studio software only. Its AI drafts emails, tidies notes, writes a daily brief and adds procurement risk insights, and nothing goes out until you approve it. Predictive, not reactive #### Selections tell you what was chosen. This tells you when to order it. Techstyles starts from the date each item has to be on site, subtracts the supplier lead time, and shows which orders have to go out this week, and which windows have already shut. How install-date scoring works Houzz Pro pricing UK #### Houzz Pro pricing in the UK: Techstyles costs less. Monthly cost in pounds by team size, against Houzz Pro's Pro plan, its cheapest paid plan. Both start with a 30-day free trial. Techstyles: £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. Houzz Pro: Pro plan from £139 a month including one seat, plus £47 per extra user, from houzz.co.uk/houzz-pro/pricing, checked October 2026. Houzz does not say whether its prices include VAT; if they do, Techstyles is still the cheaper of the two at every size shown. Houzz's annual subscription begins at the end of its 30-day trial. Selections, budgets and subcontractor management are on its Custom plan, priced on request, so these Pro figures are the floor. What Houzz Pro adds for the money A marketplace and advertising A Houzz profile in front of homeowners, with advertising packages from £119 a month on top. 3D floor plans A 3D floor planner on every paid plan. Techstyles has none. QuickBooks Online If your books are in QuickBooks rather than Xero, Houzz Pro connects to it; Techstyles does not. The marketplace question #### Software you buy, or a channel you join. Houzz Pro bundles two things usually sold separately: business software and a route to market. If a real share of your enquiries arrives through Houzz, that bundle earns its price, and the 3D floor planner is a genuine extra. If most of your work comes through referral, press and repeat clients, the deciding questions are about delivery: does the schedule warn you before an order is late, and does the money reconcile in Xero without re-keying? Some studios keep a free Houzz profile for visibility and run delivery in Techstyles. That works. The short answer #### Which is right for your studio? The short version: Houzz Pro if Houzz finds you clients, Techstyles if delivery is the hard part. ##### Choose Techstyles if you… - Win most work by referral, press and repeat clients - Need every FF&E line to carry an order-by date from the install - Keep the books in Xero and want payments to flow back to the project - Brief trades through a portal without moving up a plan ##### Houzz Pro may suit you if you… - Get a real share of enquiries through the Houzz marketplace - Want 3D floor plans and renders in the same tool Read next. FF&E procurement Invoicing and Xero Pricing Feature by feature #### The whole matrix, nothing hidden. Including the rows where Houzz Pro matches us. "Not listed" means we could not find it in Houzz Pro's public material, not that it cannot be done. Last checked October 2026, from each product's public material. Products change; tell us and we will correct it. Switching #### Moving across from Houzz Pro. Migration is free, and we do the moving. Your Houzz profile and reviews stay where they are. Product library Products come across from your Houzz Pro export with images, pricing and supplier details. Clients and contacts Client records and contact details transfer, so nobody re-keys an address book mid-project. Live projects Current projects are recreated with rooms, schedules and budgets; clients get new portal access. Xero and install dates Connect Xero: invoices go out in GBP with VAT, and payments come back to the project. Add each install date and the order-by dates appear on the FF&E you have already specified. #### What studios ask first. Q: Is Techstyles a good Houzz Pro alternative for UK studios? If delivery is the hard part, yes: every FF&E line gets an order-by date counted back from the install, the Xero sync runs both ways in GBP with UK VAT, and it costs less than Houzz Pro's Pro plan at every team size. If the Houzz marketplace is where your clients come from, or you rely on its 3D floor planner, Houzz Pro is the better fit. Q: Does Houzz Pro integrate with Xero in the UK? Houzz lists Xero among its integrations, without saying which plan includes it. Houzz Pro's UK integration sends estimates, invoices, purchase orders and payments to Xero, with VAT rates mapped; its published material describes the sync from Houzz Pro to Xero. Techstyles includes Xero on every account and also reads back, so a payment recorded in Xero shows against the project. Q: How much does Houzz Pro cost in the UK compared with Techstyles? Houzz Pro's Pro plan is from £139 a month, plus £47 for each extra user, on an annual subscription that begins after its 30-day trial. Techstyles is £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT, also with a 30-day trial. Six people pay £284 a month on Techstyles and from £374 on Houzz Pro's Pro plan; its selections and budgets are on the Custom plan, priced on request. Q: Do I lose my Houzz profile and reviews if I switch? No. Your Houzz profile and reviews belong to your Houzz account, and Houzz keeps a free basic profile. Some studios keep the profile for visibility and run delivery in Techstyles. We migrate project, client and product data; we do not touch your listing. Q: Can we move our projects across from Houzz Pro? Yes, and migration is free. We bring your projects, clients and product library across, and you connect Xero on day one. #### Run delivery somewhere independent. We move your projects, clients and product library from Houzz Pro for you. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles vs Studio Designer URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare/studio-designer ### A Studio Designer alternative for UK books. Studio Designer is long-established, US-oriented software with a strong accounting heritage. Techstyles keeps your books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT, scores every FF&E line against its install date, and puts everything on one price. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from Studio Designer. Last checked October 2026. Our reading of both products; tell us if something has moved on. The accounting question #### A design ledger, or a UK studio's books. Many UK studios keep their books in Xero, and their accountant expects to find them there. Techstyles treats Xero as the system of record: an invoice raised against a project appears in Xero, and a payment recorded in Xero appears against the project, in GBP with VAT on the line. And on the schedule side, every FF&E line carries an order-by date counted back from the install, so a late order shows up before it is late. Invoicing and Xero Credit where due #### Where Studio Designer is genuinely strong. Studio Designer is known for taking the financial side of a design practice seriously. Studios that have built their process around its ledger are rarely looking for a reason to leave it. If your bookkeeper works in it every day and your accountant is in the US, that is a real argument for staying. The UK case is different: the books live in Xero, and the design tool should feed them, not replace them. The short answer #### Which is right for your studio? The choice mostly comes down to where your books live. ##### Choose Techstyles if you… - Keep the books in Xero, where a UK accountant expects to find them - Need the schedule to flag a late order before it is placed - Brief trades through a portal rather than your inbox ##### Studio Designer may suit you if you… - Want the ledger inside the design tool rather than in Xero - Are primarily US-based, with a US accountant - Already have years of history and a trained team on it Read next. FF&E procurement Invoicing and Xero Contractor portal Feature by feature #### The whole matrix, nothing hidden. Including the rows where Studio Designer matches us. "Not listed" means we could not find it in Studio Designer's public material, not that it cannot be done. Last checked October 2026, from each product's public material. Products change; tell us and we will correct it. #### What studios ask first. Q: What's the main difference between Techstyles and Studio Designer? Studio Designer is long-established, US-oriented software with a strong accounting heritage and its own ledger. Techstyles keeps the books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT, scores every FF&E item against the date it has to be on site, and includes a contractor portal on one price. Q: Which is better for UK-based studios? Techstyles is built for UK studios, with two-way Xero, GBP pricing, VAT on the line and support in UK hours. Studio Designer is designed primarily around US practice and accounting. Q: Can I migrate from Studio Designer to Techstyles? Yes, and migration is free. We bring your product library, clients and project history across, and you connect Xero on day one so invoices go out in GBP and payments come back. Q: Is there a free trial? Yes: 30 days with every feature and no card. Then £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. #### Keep the books where they belong. We bring your Studio Designer data across and connect Xero on day one. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles vs DesignFiles URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare/designfiles ### A DesignFiles alternative for the day you start ordering. Techstyles vs DesignFiles for UK studios. DesignFiles is a capable, lower-cost tool for boards, 3D and presentations. Techstyles is for the studio that specifies and orders: an order-by date on every FF&E line, and books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from DesignFiles. Last checked October 2026. Our reading of both products; tell us if something has moved on. What differs #### Three differences, in the order that matters. Including the one where DesignFiles wins. - Strongest after sign-off, not before; DesignFiles is strongest at the front of a project: boards, room schemes, 3D and presentations. Techstyles is strongest once the scheme is signed off: every FF&E line gets an order-by date counted back from the install, and blocked or at-risk lines surface first. - UK books: Xero, GBP and VAT; DesignFiles connects to QuickBooks Online on its Full Service plan and does not list Xero. Techstyles invoices in GBP with UK VAT on the line, invoices go to Xero, and a payment recorded in Xero shows against the project. - Honestly: on price, it depends on the plan; DesignFiles e-Design is $55 a month for one designer; Full Service, which adds invoicing, purchase orders and QuickBooks, is $75. Each extra user is $30, so the bigger the team, the more that low seat price counts. Techstyles is £49 per user, £39 from the sixth, excluding VAT, with Xero, the contractor portal and the assistant on every seat. After sign-off #### After the board is approved, the dates start to matter. A board shows the client the idea. Once it is approved, every item on it has a supplier lead time and a date it has to be on site, and the window between the two starts closing. How install-date scoring works DesignFiles pricing #### DesignFiles pricing: cheaper seats, fewer of the tools. Monthly list price by team size, each in the currency its maker publishes. DesignFiles sells in US dollars only; we have not converted. Techstyles: £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. DesignFiles: e-Design $55 and Full Service $75 a month for one designer, plus $30 per extra user, month to month (an Enterprise plan is priced on request), from designfiles.co/plans, checked October 2026. Read the prices with this Invoicing and purchase orders Only on DesignFiles Full Service, the plan shown first. The $55 e-Design plan has neither. Extra seats $30 a seat at DesignFiles against £49 (then £39) at Techstyles. From two people, DesignFiles Full Service is the cheaper bill whenever a pound buys more than $1.07. What every Techstyles seat carries Order-by dates, two-way Xero, the contractor portal and the assistant. Credit where due #### When DesignFiles is the better buy. If you are a solo designer whose work is mostly concept and presentation (boards, room schemes, 3D and a shopping list the client buys from), DesignFiles does that job well, on its $55 e-Design plan, with a 90-day money-back guarantee. That stops being true on the first project where you specify rather than suggest: you raise purchase orders, hold deposits, long-lead items have to land in an install week, and a contractor needs the drawings. We would rather you switched then than paid for the heavier tool a year early. The short answer #### Which is right for your studio? The short version: DesignFiles to present the scheme, Techstyles to deliver it. ##### Choose Techstyles if you… - Raise purchase orders and hold client deposits - Need long-lead items to land in a fixed install week - Bill through Xero, in GBP with UK VAT handled - Hand drawings and schedules to contractors, or plan to grow the team ##### DesignFiles may suit you if you… - Work solo, mostly on concept and presentation - Want moodboards, 3D floor plans and 3D renderings in one tool - Want the e-Design plan's $55 entry price, or cheap extra seats Read next. FF&E procurement Invoicing and Xero Pricing Feature by feature #### The whole matrix, nothing hidden. Including the rows where DesignFiles matches us. "Not listed" means we could not find it in DesignFiles's public material, not that it cannot be done. Last checked October 2026, from each product's public material. Products change; tell us and we will correct it. Switching #### Moving across from DesignFiles. Migration is free, and we do the moving. Live projects keep running while it happens. Product library Products come across from your DesignFiles export with images, pricing and supplier details. Clients and contacts Client records and contact details transfer, so nobody re-keys an address book mid-project. Live projects Current projects are recreated with rooms, schedules and budgets; clients get new portal access. Xero and install dates Connect Xero: invoices go out in GBP with VAT, and payments come back to the project. Add each install date and the order-by dates appear on the FF&E you have already specified. #### What studios ask first. Q: Is Techstyles a good DesignFiles alternative for UK studios? For a studio that specifies and orders, yes: every FF&E item gets an order-by date counted back from the install, invoices go to Xero in GBP with UK VAT and payments come back, and the contractor portal is on every seat. For a solo designer working mostly on boards and 3D, DesignFiles does that job well, and its e-Design plan is the cheaper entry point. Q: Is DesignFiles cheaper than Techstyles? It depends on the plan and the team. DesignFiles publishes $55 a month (e-Design) or $75 a month (Full Service, with invoicing and purchase orders) for one designer, plus $30 per extra user, in US dollars only. Techstyles is £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT, free for 30 days. For a team, DesignFiles' $30 extra seat is the cheaper way to add people. Q: Does DesignFiles integrate with Xero? Not as far as its published material shows. It lists QuickBooks Online on the Full Service plan. Techstyles syncs invoices, purchase orders and payments both ways with Xero, in GBP with UK VAT. Q: Can I migrate from DesignFiles to Techstyles? Yes, and migration is free. We bring your projects, clients and product library across, and you connect Xero on day one. #### Move across on your first specified project. We bring your projects, clients and product library across from DesignFiles. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## Techstyles vs Design Manager URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/compare/design-manager ### A Design Manager alternative built around the install date. Techstyles vs Design Manager comes down to US or UK. Design Manager is built for US firms, in dollars, with its own accounting ledger. Techstyles is built for UK studios: an order-by date on every FF&E line, books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT, and £49 a user, excl. VAT. Free for 30 days, no card. Free migration from Design Manager. Last checked October 2026. Our reading of both products; tell us if something has moved on. What differs #### Four differences, in the order that matters. The install date first, the time saved on admin last. - The risk is in what has not been ordered; A purchase-order ledger shows what has been ordered. It does not show the item nobody has ordered yet that is about to become impossible. Techstyles reads each line's lead time, counts back from the install date and flags it blocked, at risk, watching or OK. - Your books stay in Xero, where your accountant looks; Design Manager replaces the accounts package with its own ledger. Techstyles feeds Xero instead: an invoice raised against a project appears in Xero, and a payment recorded in Xero appears against the project, in GBP with VAT on the line. - Built for UK studios, in pounds: Design Manager is priced in US dollars and, in its own words, "optimized for US-based firms". Its showroom and data-collection modules cost extra. Techstyles is priced in pounds (£49 per user, £39 from the sixth, excluding VAT, everything included), written in British English and supported in UK hours. - Trades and AI on every seat: A contractor portal (drawings with revisions, files, items without prices) comes with every account. The assistant drafts client and supplier emails, turns meeting notes into actions, writes a daily brief across every live job and adds procurement risk insights to the schedule. It does the admin; you approve before anything is sent. Predictive, not reactive #### The schedule flags the order before it is late. A ledger records what happened. Techstyles starts from the date each item has to be on site, subtracts the lead time, and tells you which orders have to go out this week and which windows have already shut. Techstyles: order-by date Install date minus supplier lead time, on every line, flagged before it passes. Design Manager: PO tracking Orders, deposits and deliveries tracked once the purchase order exists. How install-date scoring works Design Manager pricing #### Design Manager pricing: dollars per user, against pounds. At list price and about $1.32 to the pound (5 October 2026), Techstyles costs less at every team size shown, and nothing is sold as an extra module. The table keeps each maker's published currency, unconverted. Techstyles: £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT. Design Manager: $79 per user per month list price, from designmanager.com/pricing, checked October 2026. Design Manager offers discounts for paying a year in advance, and teams of more than 10 are priced by its sales team; neither rate is published, so the 10-person row is list price. Read the prices with this Per user, it comes down to the exchange rate £49 against $79: Techstyles costs less per user whenever a pound buys less than $1.61. From the sixth user Techstyles drops to £39. Modules Design Manager charges extra for its showroom and data-collection modules. Techstyles has one price with everything included. Trial Design Manager offers 7 days; Techstyles 30, with no card. Credit where due #### Where Design Manager is genuinely strong. Design Manager takes the money side of a practice seriously. Client retainers and deposits, time billing, online payments, a general ledger with financial statements and tax reporting, even payroll calculations: all in one tool, with an iPhone app. For a US firm that wants to retire its accounts package, that is a real strength, and Techstyles does not try to match it. The UK case is different. Your accountant expects the books in Xero, in pounds, with VAT on the line, and the design tool should feed them rather than replace them. If you move, we bring the product library, suppliers and job records across from your export. The short answer #### Which is right for your studio? The short version: Design Manager if you want the ledger in the design tool, Techstyles if your books live in Xero. ##### Choose Techstyles if you… - Keep the books in Xero, where a UK accountant expects to find them - Need every FF&E line to carry an order-by date from the install - Want pricing in pounds and support in UK hours - Brief trades through a portal rather than your inbox ##### Design Manager may suit you if you… - Want a full general ledger, financial statements and payroll inside the design tool - Bill time and manage client retainers in the same place as purchasing - Want clients to pay invoices online today - Want an iPhone app for the team on the move - Are a US-based firm billing in dollars Read next. FF&E procurement Invoicing and Xero Pricing Feature by feature #### The whole matrix, nothing hidden. Including the rows where Design Manager matches us. "Not listed" means we could not find it in Design Manager's public material, not that it cannot be done. Last checked October 2026, from each product's public material. Products change; tell us and we will correct it. Switching #### Moving across from Design Manager. Migration is free, and we do the moving. Your years of history come with you. Product library Products come across from your Design Manager export with images, pricing and supplier details. Clients and contacts Client records and contact details transfer, so nobody re-keys an address book mid-project. Live projects Current projects are recreated with rooms, schedules and budgets; clients get new portal access. Xero and install dates Connect Xero: invoices go out in GBP with VAT, and payments come back to the project. Add each install date and the order-by dates appear on the FF&E you have already specified. #### What studios ask first. Q: Is Techstyles a good Design Manager alternative for UK studios? If your books live in Xero and late orders are the risk you worry about, yes. Techstyles gives every FF&E line an order-by date counted back from the install and keeps the books in Xero in GBP with UK VAT. If you want full accounting inside the design tool, Design Manager is built for that. Q: What does install-date scoring do that a purchase-order report does not? A purchase-order report tells you what you have ordered and when it is due. Scoring starts from the date each item has to be on site, subtracts the supplier lead time, and gives the date by which the order must be placed. It surfaces the items you have not ordered yet, which is where install-week failures come from. Q: How much does Design Manager cost compared with Techstyles? Design Manager publishes $79 per user per month, in US dollars, with a 7-day trial. Techstyles is £49 per user per month, £39 from the sixth user, excluding VAT, with a 30-day trial and no card. Q: Which has better accounting? They take different approaches. Design Manager keeps a full accounting ledger inside the design tool, which suits a studio that wants one place for both. Techstyles keeps your books in Xero and syncs both ways, so your accountant works where they already do. Q: What happens to our years of Design Manager history? It comes with you. Migration is free: from your Design Manager export we bring the product library, suppliers and job records across. #### Keep the history. Lose the re-keying. We bring your Design Manager data across for you. Free for 30 days, no card needed. --- ## About Techstyles URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/about About Techstyles ### Built in the UK for the studios running the install. One studio system for interior design practices and nothing else: every FF&E item scored against its install date, every job billed into Xero. Why we exist #### Designers should spend their days on colour, proportion and materiality. Not on finding out in week eleven that a sofa ordered in week three was never going to arrive. Talk to any studio and the story is the same. The creative work is a joy. The admin around it is relentless: quotes in one tool, orders in another, a budget only one person dares to touch. The expensive failures were never creative ones. They were a lead time that quietly outgrew the install date, a VAT treatment corrected three invoices late, an order re-keyed into the accounts by hand. Principles #### What we build by. Four convictions decide what gets built, and in what order. - The install date is the deadline that matters.A studio is judged on whether the room is finished the day the client walks in. So every FF&E line is scored against its install date, and a lead time that no longer fits shows up while there is still time to act. - UK money, handled natively.GBP throughout, UK VAT treated properly on estimates, orders and invoices, and Xero in sync both ways, so the books match the project without re-keying. - One trade, one price, everything in it.We build for one trade. Procurement, finance and both portals come in one price per person, lower from the sixth, with nothing held back for a higher tier. - The assistant drafts. You approve.It drafts emails, tidies notes, writes the morning brief and explains procurement risk. Nothing leaves the studio until a person has read it. The team #### A small team in the UK, building with studios. Built alongside our founding studios on their live projects, so the product answers to real installs. - Founding studios: A handful of UK practices, on real projects, from the first release. - UK practice: GBP, UK VAT and Xero from day one, not bolted on. - The people building it: The people who write the software answer the email: hello@techstyles.ai Founding studios #### Catch the late item while it is still week three. --- ## Book a walkthrough URL: https://www.techstyles.ai/contact Contact ### See it on one of your own projects. Book a Techstyles walkthrough and tell us about a job you are running. We load its schedule, so you see your own lead times scored against your own install dates. Write to us hello@techstyles.ai Who answers The people building Techstyles, usually within one working day. Write to us hello@techstyles.ai Who answers The people building Techstyles, usually within one working day. What happens next #### A conversation, not a pitch. If Techstyles does not fit how your studio works, we will say so. - Two times to choose from: We reply with a couple of times for a half-hour call, and ask which project you would like to see. - Your project, scored: We load one live schedule and walk you through it: lead times, order-by dates, what is at risk. - Set up around you: If you go ahead, we move your projects, contacts and product library across for you. #### Before you write. Q: What does a walkthrough involve? A video call. Bring whoever runs procurement, and the schedule you would most like to see scored. Q: What does it cost? £49 per user a month, £39 each from the sixth user, excluding VAT, with every module and two-way Xero sync included. The trial is 30 days with no card needed. Q: Will you move our projects across? Yes. We move your projects, contacts, suppliers and product library for you, and set your team up before you rely on it. Q: How do you compare with Programa or Design Manager? Line by line on our comparison pages, including the places another system is the better answer. #### Rather look around first? Start on a live project.