An honest breakdown. We'll tell you when the free tool is enough and when a subscription makes more sense than us.
Side-by-side on the metrics and features that matter for rental property analysis.
| Feature | Free Calculators BiggerPockets, Zillow |
Shopfolio Deal Analyzer — $29 |
SaaS Subscriptions DealCheck, PropertyMetrics |
|---|---|---|---|
| NOI / Cap Rate | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cash-on-Cash Return | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| DSCR | No | Yes (1.20 min threshold) | Some plans |
| Debt Yield | No | Yes | Rare |
| IRR (multi-year) | No | Yes (10-year hold) | Pro plans |
| Sensitivity Analysis | No | Yes (rent, vacancy, expenses) | Limited |
| Lender Solver | No | Yes (reverse-engineer max price) | No |
| GO / NO-GO Verdict | No | Yes (auto, multi-metric) | Some |
| Schedule E Tax Prep | No | Yes (Rental Tracker) | No |
| BRRRR Cycle Modeling | No | Yes (BRRRR Calculator) | Yes |
| Works Offline | No (web only) | Yes (Excel / Sheets) | No (web/app) |
| You Own the File | No | Yes, forever | No (subscription) |
| Mobile App | Web only | No (Excel/Sheets mobile works) | Yes |
| Property Database / Comps | No | No | Yes |
| No Account Required | Account needed | No account needed | Account needed |
| Cost | $0 | $29 once | $10-50/mo ($120-600/yr) |
Honest answer: if you're looking at your first deal and just need to know "does this property cash flow?" the free BiggerPockets calculator is enough. Use it. Don't buy ours.
Here's when free stops being enough:
When you're putting real money in. Free calculators don't show DSCR or Debt Yield. Your lender checks both. If you walk into a bank quoting only cap rate and cash-on-cash, you look like you haven't done the work. The Deal Analyzer runs every metric your lender runs, so your numbers match theirs.
When you want to stress-test before you offer. What happens if vacancy goes from 5% to 10%? If rates move 50bp? Free calculators give you one answer for one scenario. Sensitivity tables show you the range of outcomes so you can bid with confidence, not hope.
When you want to know your ceiling, not just your floor. The Lender Solver reverses the math: given your loan terms and target DSCR, what's the maximum you can pay? No free tool does this. No subscription tool does either.
At tax time. The Rental Tracker auto-populates IRS Schedule E Part I. Your CPA will thank you, or you can file it yourself.
Under $50K total investment and analyzing your first 1-2 deals? Use the free calculator. Anything above that? $29 pays for itself on one deal by catching one bad assumption.
Start with the free BiggerPockets calculator to learn the basics. If the deal looks promising and you're ready to make an offer, get the Deal Analyzer ($29) to run the lender-grade numbers before committing real money.
Shopfolio is the clear pick. You need depth, not speed. The Deal Analyzer gives you every metric your lender checks, sensitivity analysis, and a GO/NO-GO verdict. $29 once vs $120+/year for a subscription you'll use 5 times.
Consider DealCheck Pro. The mobile app, property database, and portfolio management are worth the monthly fee at that volume. Shopfolio is built for depth per deal, not speed across many.
The Rental Tracker ($29) handles monthly cash flow tracking for 1-3 properties with budget vs actual variance highlighting and IRS Schedule E auto-fill. If you manage 10+ properties, you probably need property management software instead.
The BRRRR Calculator ($29) models the full Buy-Rehab-Rent-Refinance-Repeat cycle. Maximum Allowable Offer via 70% rule, 12-month cash cycle tracking, cash-out refi math, and cash-left-in-deal verdict. Or get the RE Investor Toolkit ($69) for all three tools.
The RE Investor Toolkit bundles all three for $69 (save $18 vs buying separately). Underwrite BEFORE you buy, model the BRRRR cycle DURING rehab, track cash flow and prepare Schedule E AFTER you stabilize.
No subscription. No account. No software to learn. Open the file, fill the blue cells, get the answer.