Sterling vs RIB CostX

RIB CostX vs. Sterling

Estimate cost and carbon in one place. Sterling gives you audit-ready outputs, framework alignment, and a faster way to meet commercial and sustainability goals, without changing how your team works.

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At a glance

One platform. No plug-ins required.

Best known for: 
Professional estimating software with integrated 2D and 3D takeoff.

Compliance from the start

Designed for: 
A connected construction platform bringing together estimating, takeoff, cost and carbon, procurement, forecasting and lifecycle planning. 

Why organistaions consider Sterling

Integrated Cost & Carbon Estimating

Whether you're working toward PAS 2080 or preparing for your next framework bid, Sterling brings cost and carbon into a single aligned workflow. No bolt-ons, no exports, no third-party dependencies.

Connected Project Workflows

Connect takeoff, estimating, procurement and forecasting. 

Live Project Cost Control

Sterling supports PAS 2080, ICMS, and public sector frameworks out of the box. You can estimate, report, and share structured data that stands up to scrutiny, without needing to retrofit or reformat.

Secure Cloud Collaboration

Work collaboratively in a secure cloud environment with one trusted source of project data.

How Sterling compares to RIB CostX 

Comparison

SaaS

Effortlessly upload files by dragging and dropping them into the storage interface.

Comprehensive Ecosystem (Integrated Solutions)

Effortlessly upload files by dragging and dropping them into the storage interface.

Automatic Updates

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Multi-dimensional Reporting

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Ease of Use for Data Importing

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Project Unlimited Snapshots / Version Management

Shows the number of compatible file types, ensuring wide usability.

Undo (selective in sequence, unlike Excel)

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Cost & Carbon Estimating to PAS 2080

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Cost Planning

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

See why construction teams are switching to an integrated platform for cost and carbon. 

Comparison

RIB CostX

Sterling

Storage

Storage capacity

The total amount of cloud storage space allocated for your files.

Storage speed

The speed at which you can upload and download files to and from the cloud.

Max upload size

The largest file size you can upload in a single action.

Cloud sync

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

FIle optimization

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Comparison

SaaS

Effortlessly upload files by dragging and dropping them into the storage interface.

Comprehensive Ecosystem (Integrated Solutions)

Quickly find your files with our powerful in-app search functionality.

Automatic Updates

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Multi-dimensional Reporting

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Ease of Use for Data Importing

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Project Unlimited Snapshots / Version Management

Shows the number of compatible file types, ensuring wide usability.

Undo (selective in sequence, unlike Excel)

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Cost & Carbon Estimating to PAS 2080

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Cost Planning

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Estimating, Bill Preparation, Take-off, Rapid Pricing

Protect your data with robust encryption methods tailored to each plan.

Resource-Based Estimating (incl. complex resources)

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Multi-Library Structure Mapping (ICMS, NRM1/2, SMM7, CESMM, HMM, RMM1/2, or custom.)

Manage access with a specified number of user accounts per plan.

Bid Management (Online enquiries, notes, etc.)

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Planning Integration (MS Project, Primavera, or in-built scheduling.)

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Lifecycle Cost and Carbon

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

How Sterling compares to RIB CostX 

Compare the platforms across:

RIB CostX 

Sterling

Comparison

SaaS 

Cloud deployment

The speed at which you can upload and download files to and from the cloud.

Estimating

The largest file size you can upload in a single action.

2D and 3D Takeoff

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Cost and carbon estimating

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Bid packages

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Forecasting

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Lifecycle planning

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Reporting

Explore and manage your data assets, ensuring high-quality, and governed data accessibility.

Integrations
Enterprise security

See why construction teams are switching to an integrated platform for cost and carbon. 

Who Sterling is best suited to

Client Bodies & Asset Owners

Improve governance, assurance and visibility across programmes. 

Main Contractors

Connect estimating, procurement and forecasting within one platform. 

Consultants & Cost Managers

Deliver transparent cost and carbon advice with a complete audit trail. 

Specialist Contractors 

Improve estimating consistency while reducing manual administration.

Moving from RIB CostX to Sterling

See why construction teams are switching to an integrated platform for cost and carbon. 

  • Review existing CostX libraries and templates.

  • Import estimate data through Excel or agreed exchange formats.

  • Configure company standards and resource libraries.

  • Deliver user training and onboarding.

  • Pilot a live project.

  • Roll out across projects and integrate with enterprise systems where required.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know.

Yes. Sterling supports structured migration of estimating data using Excel and other agreed exchange formats. Our implementation team works with you to migrate libraries, coding structures, templates and historical estimating information where appropriate.
Yes. Sterling includes integrated digital takeoff for both 2D drawings and 3D models. Quantities are directly linked to the estimate, reducing manual data transfer and maintaining traceability.
Sterling calculates embodied carbon alongside cost using the same resources, quantities and project structure. This enables teams to compare cost and carbon together without maintaining separate datasets. The platform also integrates with recognised carbon data sources.
Yes. Sterling provides open APIs and integrations with leading construction platforms including Autodesk, Primavera P6, Microsoft Project, Power BI, SharePoint and other enterprise systems, enabling organisations to build a connected digital ecosystem.
Sterling is available as a cloud SaaS subscription with flexible named user and enterprise licensing options. Licensing can be tailored to support individual teams, business units or enterprise wide deployments.
Implementation times vary depending on the size of the organisation and the complexity of existing data. Many customers are able to complete an initial pilot within a few weeks, followed by a phased rollout supported by Sterling's implementation team.
Sterling provides structured onboarding, administrator and end user training, implementation support and ongoing customer success. Training can be delivered remotely or on site and can be tailored to different user groups.
Still have questions?We're here to help.
Contact Sterling Team →

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