You take off a few sheets a month
Core's measurement tools and a tidy Tool Chest handle an occasional takeoff, and the markups list is your summary.
CivilTrace vs Bluebeam for civil takeoff Revu marks up the drawing. CivilTrace takes it off.
Most civil estimators already own Bluebeam Revu, and it's the right tool for marking up, reviewing and sharing a plan set. CivilTrace is a takeoff engine for utilities, erosion control, paving, demolition and foundations that reads the line work and callouts in those same PDFs. Here's where each one fits, and how to run them together.
Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit. Imports Revu measurements and exports a review PDF that opens in Revu.
Side by side
The same civil set, two different tools.
Revu is a PDF tool that measures. CivilTrace is a takeoff tool that reads PDFs. That difference shows up on every row below.
| For civil takeoff | Bluebeam Revu | CivilTrace |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | PDF markup, review and collaboration for every trade. | Civil and sitework takeoff for estimators, built by an earthwork contractor for its own team. |
| Measuring a pipe run | Polylength, one click per vertex. Snap to Content helps the cursor land on the line. | Follow Line: one click measures the run to the next structure, stops at matchlines, bridges symbols drawn over the line and ignores profile grids. |
| Reading the callout | You type size, material and slope into the markup's subject, label or custom columns. | Read Callout fills size, material and slope from 300 LF - 18" RCP @ 0.40%. Rim and invert labels set depth. |
| Finding the rest | VisualSearch finds matching symbols (Core plan and up). | Find like this proposes every line drawn in the same style across all sheets. A count dropped near SSMH-4 or FH picks its type from the label. |
| Item library | A Tool Chest you build or buy, one tool per item. | 9,400+ civil items by system, material and size. Search 8" pvc or 8x8x6 wye; right-click to add a missing size. |
| Trench, bedding and haul | Custom column formulas (Core and up), or Excel after the takeoff. | Built in per run with your own constants: trench width by pipe size, bedding, tons, waste, swell, truck loads and box excavation for structures. |
| Concrete and foundations | Area and volume measurements, with the math in custom columns. | Concrete with waste, rebar by lb/CY, forms, dig and haul from footing dimensions and elevations. |
| Scopes | One markups list, organized by layers, subjects or Spaces. | Five scopes in one project, each with its own library, legend and exports. |
| Excel | Quantity Link ties measurements to a worksheet (Complete and up). CSV and XML export (Core and up). | Excel workbook, production workbook with live formulas and a CSV bid-item list, all from the same calculator as the on-screen totals. |
| Review and markup | The industry standard. Studio Sessions for live review, Bluebeam Cloud on the web and iPad. | Review PDF with selectable, unflattened markups and a layer per scope that opens in Revu. Revu measurements import as items. |
| Scanned sheets | OCR in every plan. Raster sheets are measured by hand. | Built-in offline OCR for outlined CAD text. Scanned sheets open and are measured with manual Trace. |
| Where your data lives | On your PC, plus Studio and Bluebeam Cloud when you use them. | On your PC only. No cloud, no telemetry. |
| Platform | Windows desktop, plus Bluebeam Cloud on the web and iOS. Revu for Mac ended in 2020. | Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit. macOS planned. |
| Licensing | Per named user, billed annually: Basics, Core, Complete or Max. | $79 a month, $780 a year or $4,000 once. Two computers per license, offline for up to 14 days at a time. |
Bluebeam plan details come from Bluebeam's Revu 21 subscription comparison, read on 6 October 2026. Plans and prices change, so check bluebeam.com. Bluebeam and Revu are trademarks of Bluebeam, Inc., which is not affiliated with CivilTrace.
Credit where it's due
When Bluebeam is all you need.
Plenty of estimators never need more than Revu. It's enough when:
The marked-up PDF is the deliverable
If what leaves your desk is a reviewed plan set with legends and a markups summary, Revu is built for exactly that.
You bid trades CivilTrace doesn't cover
CivilTrace is civil only: utilities, erosion control, paving, demolition and foundations. MEP, finishes and roofing stay in Revu.
Where CivilTrace pays off
When the takeoff is the job.
The gap opens on real civil sets: long utility runs, dozens of callouts, and the math that follows every one of them.
Long utility runs
One click per run instead of a click per bend. Dashed CAD exports chain into one run, symbols drawn over the line are bridged, and runs stop at matchlines so nothing is doubled.
Callouts become quantities
Size, material, slope, rim and invert come off the sheet and into the item, shown to you to confirm. Nothing is re-typed into a subject line.
The math follows the measurement
Trench, bedding, haul, concrete with waste and production hours are computed per run with your constants, then written to a workbook, a production sheet and a review PDF that agree.
Use both
A workflow that keeps your reviewers in Revu.
CivilTrace does the measuring and the math. Revu stays where it's strongest: the review.
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1
Take off in CivilTrace
Open the plan set, set the scale once, and measure the civil scopes with Follow Line, Read Callout, Count and Area. Already measured some of it in Revu? Import those measurements as items and keep going.
-
2
Export the review PDF and the workbook
One menu writes a review PDF with selectable, unflattened markups, quantity comments and a layer per scope, plus the Excel workbook, production workbook and CSV bid-item list.
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3
Review in Revu, estimate from the workbook
Your reviewer opens the PDF in Revu, toggles scopes by layer and comments the way they always have. The quantities go on to your estimate, or into HCSS, B2W or Procore through the CSV.
The review export is a snapshot. Edits made in Revu don't flow back into CivilTrace, so finish the takeoff first and review second.
Switching
What changes, and what doesn't.
The keyboard
F Follow Line, P Trace, S Count, A Area, T Read Callout, and the F8 edge-following AGTEK users know. Ctrl+K searches every command.
Your Tool Chest
You don't rebuild it. The library ships with 9,400+ items by system, material and size, and a missing size is a right-click away.
Your reviewers
They stay in Revu. The review PDF opens there with a layer per scope, and nothing about their process changes.
Your license
Monthly, annual or perpetual, two computers per license, offline for up to 14 days at a time. Start with the free 7-day trial on your own plan set.
FAQ
Bluebeam questions, answered.
Is CivilTrace a replacement for Bluebeam?
For civil takeoff, yes: measuring, counting, the item library and the trench, concrete and production math all live in CivilTrace. For markup, review and Studio collaboration, no. Most teams run both, with Revu on the review side.
Can I bring in measurements I already made in Revu?
Yes. CivilTrace imports existing Revu measurements as items, so a half-finished set doesn't have to be started over.
Does the CivilTrace review PDF open in Revu?
Yes. It's a PDF of the original sheets with selectable, unflattened markups, quantity comments and a layer per scope, so it opens in Revu or Acrobat. It's a snapshot: edits made in Revu don't sync back to CivilTrace.
Does CivilTrace have something like Quantity Link?
Not a live link. CivilTrace writes the Excel workbook, the production workbook and the CSV bid-item list from the same calculator as the on-screen totals, so the numbers match without a link to maintain.
Which Bluebeam plan do my reviewers need?
Any plan that opens a PDF and shows layers, including Basics. CivilTrace doesn't need Bluebeam installed at all; the review export is for whoever checks the bid.
Can I try CivilTrace on my own plan set?
Yes. Email kebraearthwork@gmail.com for a 7-day trial key, download the installer, and open a set you've already taken off in Revu to compare the quantities.
Try it on your next civil bid
CivilTrace for Windows
Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit. One-click installer, about 160 MB. Free for 7 days with a trial key (measure and view; exports unlock with a plan), then $79 a month, $780 a year or $4,000 once.
The download starts right away. File: CivilTrace-Setup-x64.exe. Every feature, scope and export is on the home page.