Buildium Pricing (2026): Plans, Fees and What Landlords Really Pay

Is Buildium worth it at your size

Buildium’s subscription doesn’t change with unit count on Essential, at least up to 40 units, so the per-door cost falls fast as you grow.

Units	Essential per year (monthly billing)	Per door per month
1	$744	$62.00
5	$744	$12.40
20	$744	$3.10
40	$744	$1.55

At 1 to 5 units, Buildium is a lot of software for the job. You pay $744 a year, plus $99 per bank account, for accounting and owner tools a self-managing landlord rarely uses. A free rent app plus free bookkeeping from Stessa covers the same day-to-day work.

At 20 units, Buildium starts to earn its price. $3.10 per door buys a general ledger, owner and resident portals and standard and bulk reporting, the kind of books that make tax season shorter.

At 40 units, $1.55 per door is cheaper than DoorLoop, and much cheaper than AppFolio, which requires 50 units and a minimum spend.

Landlord-paid and tenant-paid fees

Fee	Essential	Growth	Premium	Who pays
Incoming EFT (rent)	$2.35	$1.35	Free 12 months, then $0.60	Landlord or resident, your choice
Outgoing EFT (vendors, owners)	$0.99	$0.99	$0.99	Landlord
Card payment	2.99%	2.99%	2.99%	Usually resident
Business bank account setup	$99 each	10 free	100 free	Landlord
Screening (landlord-paid)	$17	$17	$17	Landlord
Screening (applicant-paid)	$35	$35	$35	Applicant
Enhanced screening	n/a	$20	$20	Landlord or applicant

E-signatures cost extra on Essential, cost less on Growth and are free on Premium. The pricing page has the current per-signature rate.

The real yearly cost at 1, 5 and 20 units

Assuming Essential on monthly billing, one business bank account, and a $1,650 rent paid by EFT every month:

Units	Subscription	Bank setup	First year	EFT fees per year
1	$744	$99	$843	12 x $2.35 = $28.20
5	$744	$99	$843	60 x $2.35 = $141
20	$744	$99	$843	240 x $2.35 = $564

If you pass EFT fees to residents, $843 is your full first-year bill. If you absorb them, 20 units comes to $843 + $564 = $1,407, or about $5.86 per door per month. After year one, the $99 setup drops out.

A realistic 20-unit year on Essential

The table above assumes one bank account and every tenant paying by EFT. A more typical setup looks like this:

• Subscription: $744 on monthly billing.
• Two bank accounts (operating and security deposits): 2 x $99 = $198 in the first year.
• 18 tenants paying by EFT: 18 x 12 x $2.35 = $507.60 a year, paid by you or by them.
• 2 tenants paying by card: at 2.99% of $1,650, each pays $49.34 a month, or $592.08 a year.
• Paying 10 vendor invoices a month by EFT: 120 x $0.99 = $118.80 a year.

If you pass EFT fees to tenants, your first-year cost is $744 + $198 + $118.80 = $1,060.80, about $4.42 per door per month. If you absorb the EFT fees too, it’s $1,568.40, or $6.54 per door.

What Growth and Premium add for the money

Growth costs $130 a month more than Essential. For that you get customization, reporting automation, enhanced screening ($20), lower EFT fees ($1.35), cheaper eSignatures, business analytics, live phone support and 10 free bank accounts.

Premium costs $400 a month. It adds free inspections, free eSignatures, free incoming EFT for the first 12 months (then $0.60), full AI and automation, and the Open API.

For a self-managing landlord with up to 40 units, Essential covers the core work. Growth earns its price for management companies that need an account per owner and want to call support.

Hidden and add-on costs

Transaction fees are the most common pricing complaint in Buildium’s public reviews. Reviewers also say Buildium has raised prices several times since the RealPage acquisition. The charges that add up:

• EFT fees on every incoming payment, $2.35 on Essential.
• $99 per bank account on Essential. Some states require security deposits to be held separately, which can mean a second account.
• E-signature fees on Essential.
• Outgoing EFT at $0.99 each when you pay vendors or owners electronically.
• Live phone support only on Growth and up.

Ways to pay less

• Pay annually. Essential drops from $744 to $669.60 a year, a $74.40 saving.
• Pass the EFT fee to residents if your market accepts it, or encourage EFT over cards. A card payment on a $1,650 rent costs $49.34, against $2.35 for EFT.
• Keep bank accounts to what you need. Each one costs $99 on Essential.
• Pay for screening yourself. At $17, landlord-paid screening is cheaper than the $35 applicant price. Screening only your top one or two applicants keeps the total low.
• Don’t upgrade for fee savings alone. At 20 units, Growth saves about $240 a year in EFT fees and costs $1,560 more.

Is annual billing worth it

Annual billing takes 10% off every plan: Essential drops from $744 to $669.60 a year, Growth from $2,304 to $2,073.60, and Premium from $4,800 to $4,320. The catch is commitment. If you’re on a free trial and not yet sure Buildium suits you, run the trial and a month or two on monthly billing first. Once you’ve moved your leases, balances and bank accounts in, switching away is enough work that most landlords stay, and the annual price is the better deal.

Cheaper options than Buildium

RentRedi costs $144 a year for unlimited units, with a $1 tenant ACH fee. It lacks owner portals and full accounting but handles listing, screening, leases and rent.

TurboTenant, Avail and Innago are free for landlords, with tenants paying $2 to $2.50 per ACH payment.

Rentec Direct Starter costs $25 a month for up to 10 properties and includes accounting.

For bookkeeping alone, Stessa and Baselane have free plans with bank feeds and Schedule E reports.

DoorLoop costs more ($199 a month minimum), and AppFolio requires 50 units.