Choosing property management software usually comes down to more than checking boxes on a feature list. If Buildium and Avail are both on your shortlist, you’ll want to look at how each platform handles the work that gets more complicated as your business grows.
This comparison breaks down those differences so you can see where each platform fits, where the trade-offs show up, and which one makes more sense for how you operate today and where you want to go next.
What we’ll cover:
- How Buildium and Avail compare at a glance
- Pricing and plans for both platforms
- How important features stack up
- Integrations, support, and scalability
- Recommendations by manager type, plus frequently asked questions
Buildium vs Avail At a Glance
Buildium vs Avail at a Glance
Buildium and Avail both cover many of the same day-to-day property management workflows. The differences show up in how much depth each platform gives you once the business gets busier.
Buildium includes full double-entry accounting, owner portals and statements, deeper support, partner integrations, and open API access in some plans. That can mean less repetitive admin work, fewer manual handoffs between systems, and more help when your team needs to change or expand a workflow.
Avail keeps the entry point low with a free tier built around the core needs of self-managing landlords, but teams managing properties for clients may need more than basic rent collection, leasing, and basic financial tracking. Buildium’s property management accounting, owner reporting, broader integrations, and more advanced workflows for teams handling that added complexity, without the platform feeling more complex, itself.
| Platform | Pricing Model | Free Trial | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buildium | Tiered monthly plans | Yes (14-day, no credit card) | Growing property management companies with client, accounting, and operational complexity |
| Avail | Free tier or $9/unit/month | No (free plan available) | Owners managing their own rental properties |
Our Take
Avail’s free plan can be a practical fit for owners managing their own rentals and looking for a core set of tools, but Buildium is better suited to property management companies that need deeper accounting, owner reporting, integrations, and workflows built for growth.
Pricing and Plans Compared
Buildium and Avail use two different pricing models. Buildium offers three subscription tiers with starting monthly prices, while Avail offers a free plan or a paid plan priced per unit.
Buildium Pricing
Buildium offers three plans, each with a different mix of features, support, and included services:
- Essential: $62 per month to start, covering core accounting, maintenance, and leasing, basic communications, and an AI Assistant. Incoming bank transfers run $2.35 per transaction on this plan.
- Growth: $192 per month, adding more customization, reporting automation, enhanced tenant screening, lower eSignature and transaction costs ($1.35 per incoming transfer), and AI-assisted communications and analytics. Buildium lists this as its most popular plan.
- Premium: $400 per month, adding an open API, the full AI and automation suite, free inspections and eSignatures, and All Property Management lead credits. Incoming transfers are free for the first year, then $0.60 each.
All plans include a free 14-day trial, and no credit card is required to start.
Avail Pricing
Avail keeps its structure simple with two plans:
- Unlimited: $0 per unit for unlimited units, with rental listings syndicated to major rental sites, applications and tenant screening, state-specific leases with digital signing, online rent collection, maintenance tracking, and a tenant portal.
- Unlimited Plus: $9 per unit each month, adding FastPay next-day deposits, waived bank-transfer charges, custom application questions, lease customization, and a branded property website.
On the free plan, tenants pay $2.50 per bank transfer, which Unlimited Plus waives, and card payments add 3.5%. Because Unlimited Plus is priced per unit, its subscription cost increases with your unit count. At around 7 units, the $9/unit Plus plan already costs more than Buildium’s flat $62/month Essential plan, and that gap widens as the portfolio grows.
When comparing plans, also weigh what you may need beyond the free tier, including accounting, owner reporting, integrations, and team workflows.
Property Management Accounting
Buildium’s accounting is built specifically for property management. It includes full double-entry accounting with bank reconciliation, owner statements, 1099 e-filing, property-level financial reporting, and trust accounting for managing client funds.
That means rent, vendor bills, owner draws, deposits, and other transactions can stay in the same accounting system instead of being tracked separately and reconciled later. Owners can also access statements and reports through their portal without waiting for your team to pull them manually.
Avail focuses on income and expense tracking for landlords managing their own rentals. Buildium’s deeper accounting becomes more relevant when your team is managing client funds, reconciling multiple accounts, and producing regular financial reporting for owners.
Online Rent and Fee Collection
Buildium keeps payments closely connected to resident records and property accounting, while Avail offers a comparable core payment workflow with tenant-paid fees on its free tier.
Buildium has online payment capabilities with autopay, bank transfers, and card options. Payments post directly to the ledger and each transaction flows into Buildium’s accounting system, so balances and records stay connected.
Avail offers direct-deposit rent collection, automatic recurring payments, and next-day deposits through FastPay on the paid plan. On the free plan, tenants pay $2.50 per bank transfer, and card payments add 3.5%.
Leasing, Applications, and Tenant Screening
Both platforms offer online applications, tenant screening with credit reports, and state-specific lease templates with e-signatures.
Avail leans into do-it-yourself leasing, with state-specific lease templates and locally tailored clauses.
The bigger difference is what happens after approval. With Buildium, applicant and lease information carries into the same system your team uses for resident records, charges, payments, and accounting, so staff aren’t re-entering the same details as a prospect moves from screening to signed lease to active resident.
Property Maintenance Management
Avail supports maintenance tickets, photo uploads, and forwarding requests to maintenance professionals.
Buildium adds more coordination tools for teams managing a higher volume of work across staff and vendors. You can manage maintenance requests through structured work orders with vendor assignment, staff task tracking, status updates, and property-level history. That gives teams one place to follow a request from submission through completion as work moves between coordinators, vendors, and property managers.
Teams that need broader coverage can also add Buildium’s Maintenance Contact Center, where trained agents answer maintenance calls 24/7.
Communication and Resident and Owner Portals
Buildium’s Resident Center gives residents access to payments, documents, maintenance requests, and messaging, while the owner portal gives clients direct access to financial reports, statements, contributions, and draws.
Avail gives tenants self-service access to payments, maintenance requests, and documents.
Buildium extends that access to property owners and keeps more of the communication and account activity tied to the same system. For property management teams, that can mean fewer routine status requests, less time pulling reports manually, and a clearer record of what residents and owners have already received or reviewed.
Integrations and API Access
Avail doesn’t offer API access or a partner marketplace, so connecting outside tools generally means working around the platform rather than through it.
Instead of replacing the property management system every time your needs change, Buildium gives you more room to extend the workflow around it.
It offers an open API (premium plan) and a marketplace of partner integrations, giving teams more options when a specialized workflow falls outside the core platform. That can matter as a business adds tools for areas such as payments, maintenance, insurance, resident services, or business intelligence.
Customer Support and Onboarding
Avail is quick to set up on your own. You create an account, connect a bank account, and start listing or collecting rent, with no cost on the free plan. Support comes by email, and Unlimited Plus adds priority care with faster response times.
Buildium includes ticket support and access to Buildium Academy on every plan. Growth and Premium add live phone support, and new customers on those plans receive guided onboarding that includes data migration and a customized training plan.
Buildium’s structured onboarding becomes more relevant when you are moving an existing portfolio rather than starting from scratch. Data migration, process setup, and staff training can all affect how quickly a team gets back to normal operations after switching software.
Scalability and Who Each Platform Is For
Growth creates more than a higher door count. It brings more transactions, reporting, maintenance activity, owner communication, and staff coordination.
The dividing line between these platforms is less about portfolio size and more about operating model:
- Avail can continue to work for owners managing their own rentals.
- Buildium is better suited to property management companies adding clients, staff, accounting complexity, integrations, and more structured workflows.
Choosing the Property Management Software That Grows with You
The right choice comes down to how you run the business. Avail offers an appealing low-cost option for landlords handling their own rentals, while Buildium gives professional property management teams more depth and room to grow across accounting, client reporting, integrations, and day-to-operations.
If you want to see how Buildium works in more detail, start with a 14-day free trial or walk through the platform with a product specialist on a guided demo.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main differences between Buildium and Avail? Buildium uses flat monthly pricing tiers, includes a 14-day free trial, offers phone support on higher plans, and includes an open API for custom integrations. Avail offers a free plan for self-managing landlords, uses per-unit pricing on its paid plan, and does not include owner reporting, API access, or double-entry accounting. Buildium also scales across more property types, including community associations and student housing.
Is Avail free? Yes. Avail’s Unlimited plan is $0 per unit for unlimited units. Tenants pay a small bank-transfer charge on that plan, and the Unlimited Plus plan ($9 per unit each month) waives it.
Does Buildium offer a free plan? Buildium does not have a free plan, but it offers a 14-day free trial. Paid plans start at $62 per month and scale with the number of units you manage.
Which platform has stronger accounting? Buildium runs full double-entry accounting with bank reconciliation, owner statements, and 1099 e-filing. Avail offers income and expense tracking, which suits owners tracking their own units but does not include the accounting depth needed for third-party management.
Can I manage properties for other owners with Avail? Avail is built for owners managing their own units and does not include owner portals or statements for reporting to third-party clients. Buildium is built for third-party management companies and includes owner portals and statements for client reporting.
Which platform fits a growing portfolio? The better fit depends on how the portfolio is growing. Avail can continue to work for landlords adding their own rental units, especially if they mainly need leasing, rent collection, and maintenance tools. Buildium is better suited to property management companies adding clients, staff, reporting requirements, accounting complexity, integrations, or additional workflows as they grow.
Can I switch from Avail to Buildium? Yes. On Buildium’s Growth and Premium plans, an onboarding team imports your existing data and builds a training plan to get your business running on the platform.
