"Switched from Jobber after the last price increase. Nexa does everything I needed for $279. Wish I'd done it sooner."
— Verified Christmas light installer, former Jobber customer
The Bottom Line
Christmas Light Installers on Jobber pay $49/month — $588/year. Over three years, that's $1,764. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 5.7 months. The median Christmas light installer earns $35,000/year, so Jobber's annual cost is roughly 1.7% of typical revenue — every year, forever.
Key Numbers
$35,000
Median Christmas light installer income
2%
Typical SaaS spend as % of revenue
5.7 mo
Break-even vs Jobber
$1,485
3-year savings switching to Nexa
What Jobber Is Costing You
The Damage
Jobber monthly$49/mo
Annual drain$588/yr
Year 2 (at today's price)$588
Year 3$588
3-year total$1,764
That's $1,764 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.
Your Jobber subscription has cost you $0.00 since you opened this page.
✗Marketing Suite is extra $79/month on lower tiers
✗Job costing only on Grow plan
✗Expense tracking locked to higher tiers
✗Real cost often $300-600/month for small teams
✗I recently canceled two subscriptions. HouseCall Pro is far superior. This company held me hostage for $8,250 for seven days claiming it was my first
✗Jobber is an overengineered platform that still lacks basic functionality. Confirmation emails cannot include a clear list of services being provided.
✗Their pricing could use some help. Features locked to higher tier should be included as default.
Christmas Light Installers are leaving Jobber every week.
You're not the only one who's had enough.
Why This Matters for Christmas Light Installers
My season starts in September with sales and design and runs until the lights come down in January. Each new customer gets a site visit: measuring rooflines, trees, bushes and walkways, checking where the outlets are, and designing a display that fits their house and budget. Many customers lease the lights from me, so I order commercial-grade LED strands and clips cut to fit each house, labelling everything so it goes back up the same way next year. Install days in November are long: ladders and sometimes a lift, clipping lights evenly along gutters and ridgelines, wrapping trees, and running cords and timers so everything turns on together without overloading a circuit. Safety matters on icy roofs, and I don't work in high wind. Service calls come through the season when a strand goes out or a timer fails. In January we take everything down, test and repair each strand, and store it labelled for each customer. Most of my income is a package price per house covering design, lights, installation, service and removal, with a deposit to book.
Christmas Light Installers face unique challenges: Extremely seasonal: install Sept-Nov, remove Jan-Feb, dead 6 months. Quoting rooflines accurately from ground-level photos. Light inventory management and storage between seasons. Client retention year-over-year requires CRM. On top of all that, Jobber charges $49/month ($588/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median Christmas light installer earns $35,000/year. Software at $588/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your Extension ladder and safety equipment is yours. You bought it once. Nexa works the same way — $279 once for invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, and full accounting. All connected. All offline-capable. You own it like you own your tools.
Your Full Stack Cost
Jobber is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?
Want this breakdown emailed to you?
Your exact Jobber cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.
"I was paying Jobber $49/month and didn't question it until I did the math. $1,764 over 3 years for tools I don't even own. Nexa was $279. Once. Done."
— Christmas light installer business owner
What You Get Instead
Feature
Jobber
Nexa
Invoicing
✓
✓
Scheduling
✓
✓
CRM
✓
✓
Time Tracking
—
✓
Full Accounting
—
✓ (SIMPL)
Task Management
—
✓
Works offline
—
✓
Price
$49/mo forever
$279 once or 3 × $99
3-Year Cost
$1,764
$279
Stop paying?
Lose everything
Keep everything forever
Switching Takes 1-2 Days
Most christmas light installers are fully switched before the weekend.
1
Export your data
Go to Settings → Data Export. Download clients, jobs, and invoices as CSV.
2
Set up Nexa
15-minute setup. Import your client list by CSV; re-enter your services and upcoming jobs.
3
Parallel run
Run both for 1-2 weeks. Finish scheduled jobs in Jobber; book new ones in Nexa.
4
Cancel Jobber
Cancel subscription before your next billing cycle. Download final export.
✓ Run both in parallel. Cancel Jobber when you're confident. Zero risk.
What christmas light installers actually deal with
Extremely seasonal: install Sept-Nov, remove Jan-Feb, dead 6 months
Quoting rooflines accurately from ground-level photos
Light inventory management and storage between seasons
Client retention year-over-year requires CRM
A day in the life of a christmas light installer
My season starts in September with sales and design and runs until the lights come down in January. Each new customer gets a site visit: measuring rooflines, trees, bushes and walkways, checking where the outlets are, and designing a display that fits their house and budget. Many customers lease the lights from me, so I order commercial-grade LED strands and clips cut to fit each house, labelling everything so it goes back up the same way next year. Install days in November are long: ladders and sometimes a lift, clipping lights evenly along gutters and ridgelines, wrapping trees, and running cords and timers so everything turns on together without overloading a circuit. Safety matters on icy roofs, and I don't work in high wind. Service calls come through the season when a strand goes out or a timer fails. In January we take everything down, test and repair each strand, and store it labelled for each customer. Most of my income is a package price per house covering design, lights, installation, service and removal, with a deposit to book.
The tools a working christmas light installer actually owns
Extension ladder and safety equipment
Light clips and fasteners
Light inventory (C9, mini, LED)
Truck and trailer
Why christmas light installers leave the big platforms
jobber: $69/month for 4 months of work. That's $828/year for a seasonal business.
quickbooks: $55/month year-round for a business that's active October through February.
Where christmas light installers actually talk shop
Is Nexa really a Jobber replacement for christmas light installers?
For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. Jobber may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.
$279 seems like a lot.
It's $7.75/month over 3 years. Jobber is $49/month — that's $1,764 over 3 years. Which is more? And if you'd rather split it, Nexa is also available as 3 payments of $99.
Can I pay in installments?
Yes. Nexa is $279 as a one-time payment, or 3 payments of $99 ($297 total). Either way it's a one-time purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees ever.
What if I don't like it?
30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.
Can I import my Jobber data?
Export your data from Jobber as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.
Christmas Light Installers in Los Angeles
The average solo operator there spends about $3,100/year on software — and Christmas light installer face their own version of that math. California's 13.3% top marginal rate hits solopreneurs hard; no local income tax but high state burden. LA City business tax registration required. Contractors need CSLB license. Street vending permits required since 2020.
Drive-time between clients across sprawling metro wastes hours daily
Entertainment-adjacent businesses face feast-or-famine income cycles
High CA compliance costs for self-employed (EDD, FTB quarterly filings)
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Los Angeles metro. Your situation will vary.
If You Need These — Nexa Has Them
Specific gaps Christmas Light Installers run into with Jobber, and what Nexa does instead.
✗
Jobber gapPer-user fees add up quickly
✓
Nexa$279 once for your whole business — no per-user fees, ever.
✗
Jobber gapBasic plan missing key features
✓
NexaEverything in $279 — no tiers, no locked features.
"Jobber raised prices again and I was done. Found Nexa — $279 once. I own it. No more 'we're updating our pricing' emails. Best business decision this year."
— Christmas light installer, switched from Jobber
Stop Losing $588/Year to Jobber
$1,764 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.