Unavoidable CRM vs Powered Now: an honest comparison for UK trades

Short answer: Powered Now is a UK trade app priced per user, from £28 a month for one person, with certificates, Making Tax Digital and VAT returns built in. It also sells an AI receptionist add-on, PN Receptionist, from £29 a month. Unavoidable CRM is priced per business from £29 a month, includes its AI receptionist on every plan, and adds a full sales pipeline, one inbox for texts, WhatsApp and email, and automatic follow-ups. If you want a trade app with strong tax and paperwork features, Powered Now is a good fit. If you want calls, leads and follow-ups handled in the same place as your jobs, look at Unavoidable CRM.

Prices side by side

Figures are monthly, in pounds, from each company’s pricing page on 22 October 2026. Powered Now states that its prices exclude VAT.

A worked example with call answering

A three-person electrical firm that wants calls answered by AI would pay Powered Now £96 for three Professional users plus £29 for PN Receptionist, so £125 a month before VAT. On Unavoidable CRM it would pay £149 for the Team plan, plus usage: 100 calls of two minutes is roughly £20 to £30, a UK number about £2.65, and texts at a few pence each. For three people Powered Now is likely to cost less. At five people Powered Now Professional plus PN Receptionist is £189 a month before VAT, and our Team plan with similar usage comes out about the same or a little lower.

Where Powered Now is stronger

• Tax and paperwork. Built-in Making Tax Digital and VAT return submission on Professional, plus expense tracking, supplier invoices and purchase orders.
• Certificates and custom forms on Professional and Premium, and drawings and annotations on Premium.
• Unlimited texts and emails from the app on Professional and Premium, so there is no per-text bill to watch.
• Lower cost for small teams. Per-user pricing is cheaper than our Team plan for two to four people.
• Extras on Premium such as a customer portal, an AI receipt and cost scanner, AI text writing and drag-and-drop scheduling.

Where Unavoidable CRM is different

• The AI receptionist is part of the product, not an add-on. It answers 24 hours a day, uses your business name and price list, books visits, and turns callbacks into tasks for you.
• A real sales pipeline. Enquiries from forms, chat, calls and referrals land in one pipeline, with automatic follow-ups. For example: text a new enquiry within 60 seconds, then email if they have not replied after two days.
• One inbox for texts, WhatsApp, email and calls on each customer record.
• Every feature on every plan. You never pick a tier to unlock quote chasing or reminders.
• Team pricing that does not rise per head up to five users.

Texts, calls and AI receptionist minutes are not in our plan price. They go on your own Twilio and Retell accounts at the provider’s price, with no markup from us. Typical costs in October 2026: a UK text about 4p to 5p, the AI receptionist about 10p to 15p a minute, a UK phone number about £2.65 a month. See how usage works.

Where Unavoidable CRM is weaker

• It is a newer product. There are no third-party review profiles yet, so you cannot read hundreds of reviews from other trades before you try it. The free trial is the honest way to judge it.
• It runs in the browser. It works in any mobile browser on iPhone and Android, but there is no app to download from an app store.
• Usage is billed separately. You connect your own Twilio and Retell accounts, which is cheaper over time but is one more set-up step.
• The jump from one to two people. Solo covers one user. A team of two to four people goes on the Team plan at £149 a month.
• VAT returns are not filed from Unavoidable CRM. It syncs with Xero and QuickBooks for the accounts side instead.

Who it suits, and who it does not

Unavoidable CRM suits trades that want missed calls, enquiries and quote follow-ups handled automatically, and teams of around five who would pay more per user elsewhere.

Powered Now suits sole traders and small teams who want MTD and VAT returns inside their job app, unlimited texts, and who are happy to add the receptionist only if they need it.

Unavoidable CRM does not suit a business that wants its VAT returns filed from the same app, or a two-person firm on a tight budget that does not need calls answered.

Switching from Powered Now

Export your customer list as a spreadsheet and import it in Contacts. You can forward your existing number to the AI receptionist, and every plan includes a free 15-minute setup call. Related reading: Powered Now alternatives, how our AI receptionist works and the best CRM for UK trades round-up.

Frequently asked questions

Does Powered Now have an AI receptionist?

Yes. Its pricing page lists PN Receptionist as an add-on on any plan: £29 a month for speech only, or £39 a month with text follow-ups, on top of the plan price. Unavoidable CRM includes its AI receptionist on every plan, and you pay the call minutes to Retell at cost, about 10p to 15p a minute.

Which is cheaper for a team of five?

On the prices published on 22 October 2026, five Powered Now Professional users cost £160 a month before VAT, or £189 with PN Receptionist. Unavoidable CRM Team is £149 a month for five users with every feature, plus your own call and text usage.

Which is cheaper for one person?

They are close. Powered Now Business is £28 a month before VAT for one user, and Unavoidable CRM Solo is £29 a month. Unavoidable CRM includes the AI receptionist; with Powered Now it is an extra £29 or £39 a month.

Can Unavoidable CRM issue certificates?

Yes. It stores numbered certificates against the customer and the job, including Gas Safe and EICR style records, and sends them as a branded PDF.

Can I keep my phone number?

Yes. You can forward your current number to Unavoidable CRM or use a new local number on your own phone account.