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AI Property Tools

AppFolio vs Buildium

Checked Oct 24, 2026As of October 2026, AppFolio Core starts at $1.49 a unit, needs at least 50 units and adds a minimum spend it doesn't publish, while Buildium starts at $62 a month and doesn't publish how that rises with units. AppFolio fits managers of 50 or more units who want accounting, leasing, maintenance and AI tools in one system. Buildium fits owners and managers of residential or association portfolios who want AI tools and can accept starting-at pricing.

AppFolio Property Manager logo

AppFolio

For property managers · AI features
AppFolio website
AppFolio's website · Image: AppFolio

AppFolio Property Manager is property management software from AppFolio, Inc. It covers online rent, screening, maintenance, accounting and AI assistants, for portfolios of 50 or more units on the Core plan.

Buildium logo

Buildium

For property managers · AI features
Buildium website
Buildium's website · Image: Buildium

Buildium is a property management platform from RealPage, founded in Boston in 2004. It covers small to large portfolios across residential, commercial, student housing and community association properties.

What each costs at your unit count

Cheapest plan from each vendor at each size, worked out from its published pricing rules. Tenant-paid fees aren't included.

5 units20 units50 units200 units
AppFolionot offerednot offered≥ $74.50Core≥ $298Core
Buildiumfrom $62from $62from $62from $62

Feature by feature

AppFolioBuildium
Made forCore requires 50 units plus a minimum spend. Plus and Max also have minimums; amounts not published.1Small to large portfolios. Over 5,000 units or community associations are quoted by phone.2
Rent paymentseCheck (ACH), credit card, debit card, Apple Pay, AutoPay and Flex split rent. Fees not published.3Essential: incoming EFT $2.35, outgoing EFT $0.99, cards 2.99%. Growth incoming EFT $1.35. Premium free for 12 months, then $0.60.4
Tenant screeningFolioScreen Trusted Renter checks background, criminal history, income, employment and ID. Price not published.5TransUnion-powered: $17 per screening, or $35 paid by the applicant. Enhanced screening is $20 on Growth and Premium.6
Leases and e-signCustom lease and renewal offers, with applicant e-signature on any mobile device.7eSignature via Dropbox Sign: $5 per document on Essential, $1 on Growth, unlimited on Premium.8
MaintenanceResident work orders, drag-and-drop technician scheduling, owner billing, Lula Vendor Network dispatch and a vendor portal login.9Work orders, projects, templates, maintenance billing, unit turn automation, HappyCo inspections add-on and an optional Maintenance Contact Center.10
AccountingAuto bank reconciliation, CAM tracking, owner distributions, automated late fees and eCheck payments. 1099 and trust accounting not confirmed.11Bank reconciliation, EFT approvals and financial reporting. 1099 e-filing is $50 per batch plus $4.50 per form. Trust accounting wording not found.12
Owner portalOwner Portal with a separate login.13Owners Portal is listed in the plan table.14
ListingsSyndicates listings to dozens of pay-to-list sites, with featured placement on most. AppFolio says you pay only for verified leads.15Rental Listing Syndication is listed in the plan table.16
AI featuresRealm-X Assistant and Messages start on Core. Flows and advanced workflows are on Plus and Max; Accounting Performer is on Plus (bill entry, financial close) and Max (budgeting).17Lumina AI suite: AI Workforce agents, AI Bill Scan, Write with Lumina AI, an AI Assistant and AI Summarization. Premium includes all available Lumina AI features; AI Workforce is a paid add-on on Essential and Growth.18
ContractNot documentedPriced monthly, with a 14-day free trial and no credit card required.19
App Store ratingAppFolio Property Manager 4.65 from 8,215 ratings. FolioSpace Online Portal 4.82 from 9,969 ratings.20Buildium 4.72 from 4,520 ratings. Resident Center 4.78 from 157,537 ratings.21

Which should you pick?

Pick AppFolio if

Managers of 50 or more units who want accounting, leasing, maintenance and AI tools in one system.

  • Covers rent collection, screening, leases, maintenance, accounting and owner and resident portals in one product.
  • Realm-X AI tools, including Assistant and Messages, are included from the Core plan up.
  • Rent can be paid by eCheck, card, debit and Apple Pay, with AutoPay and split rent.

Watch for: Core requires a 50-unit minimum plus a minimum spend, so small portfolios may not qualify. Plus and Max minimum spend and unit requirements are not published.

Pick Buildium if

Owners and managers of residential or association portfolios who want AI tools and can accept starting-at pricing.

  • 14-day free trial with no credit card required, and monthly plan pricing.
  • Premium includes all available Lumina AI features and the AI Workforce at no added charge.
  • Covers many property types, including community associations, commercial and student housing.

Watch for: Plan prices are shown only as starting at, with the unit-count rule not published. Onboarding is mandatory on Growth and Premium, and the fee amount is not published.

Last checked Oct 24, 2026. Every figure links to the page it came from (see Sources). Found something out of date? Tell us. How we pick and rank: methodology.

Sources 21 sources from 3 sites, including appfolio.com, buildium.com, itunes.apple.comShow

Every fact on this page comes from one of these.

  1. *Minimum spend and 50 unit minimum apply. Contact us for details.appfolio.com/pricing
  2. If you have more than 5,000 units or are looking for pricing for community associations please call 877-396-7876.buildium.com/pricing
  3. FolioSpace supports eCheck (ACH), credit card, debit card, and Apple Pay.appfolio.com/property-manager/resident-experience
  4. Incoming EFT: $2.35 per transaction || Outgoing EFT: $0.99 per transaction || Credit Cards: 2.99% per transactionbuildium.com/pricing
  5. AppFolio includes FolioScreen Trusted Renter, an integrated tenant screening capabilityappfolio.com/property-manager/marketing-leasing
  6. Applicant Paid Tenant Screening: $35 per screening paid by applicantbuildium.com/pricing
  7. have an applicant quickly and easily e-sign it on the spot on any mobile device.appfolio.com/property-manager/marketing-leasing
  8. eSignature, powered by Dropbox Signbuildium.com/pricing
  9. residents can submit work orders and expect immediate attention from your team, with the ability to track and communicate progress.appfolio.com/property-manager/maintenance
  10. Task and Work Order Managementbuildium.com/pricing
  11. Auto Bank Reconciliationappfolio.com/property-manager/accounting-reporting
  12. $50 per batch + $4.50 per formbuildium.com/pricing
  13. Owner Portal Loginappfolio.com/pricing
  14. Owners Portalbuildium.com/pricing
  15. Syndicate your listings with dozens of the top pay-to-list websites, including featured placement on most sites, and only pay for verified leads.appfolio.com/property-manager/marketing-leasing
  16. Rental Listing Syndicationbuildium.com/pricing
  17. Realm-X Performers use agentic AI to independently observe, interpret and act on signals from your dataappfolio.com/ai
  18. Lumina AI is Buildium’s intelligent automation suite built specifically for property management.buildium.com/features/ai-property-management-software
  19. It takes just 30 seconds. No credit card required.buildium.com/pricing
  20. trackName=AppFolio Property Manager | averageUserRating=4.65222 | userRatingCount=8215itunes.apple.com/search
  21. trackName=Buildium | averageUserRating=4.72279 | userRatingCount=4520itunes.apple.com/search