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TarSignal vs Construction Monitor
Both turn building permits into leads. Construction Monitor covers permits nationally; TarSignal reads 23 permit offices in Charlotte, the Triangle, the Triad, Wilmington, Asheville, Onslow County and Cumberland County and goes deeper there: contractor phones and emails on the permit, a daily email of new filings, and three years of history you can search free.
Choose TarSignal if…
- You sell or build in the North Carolina markets we cover and want the contractor's phone and email with each permit.
- You want new permits in your inbox every morning, not a weekly edition.
- You'd rather start free and pay $199/mo month to month than buy per state.
Choose Construction Monitor if…
- You need permits from many states, or markets we don't cover.
- You want their solar or swimming-pool permit feeds as separate products.
- You need their REST API or FTP delivery today.
Side by side
| TarSignal | Construction Monitor | |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Coverage23 permit offices in Charlotte, the Triangle, the Triad, Wilmington, Asheville, Onslow County and Cumberland County | Nationwide permit data; sold per state, metro or region |
| Buying North Carolina | Buying North CarolinaSign up online; free tier with a login | Online checkout lists Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia and Texas; other states through sales |
| Price | PriceFree, or $199/mo for everything | Per area, monthly: e.g. $187/mo for all of Alabama's permits, $500/mo for the Austin metro |
| Contractor contacts | Contractor contactsContractor name, phone and email where the permit or license record has them | Builder and contractor activity reports; contact details not described on their site |
| New-permit alerts | New-permit alertsEmail every morning at 6 AM, with a CSV | Weekly Editions and hourly-updated Real-time Leads in their web app |
| History | HistoryThree years, searchable free with a login | 33 million permits on file |
| API / bulk data | API / bulk dataQuery API (free trial key), bulk CSV and scheduled S3 drops | REST API and FTP |
What we say about Construction Monitor comes from their own website, as of October 14, 2026. Prices and plans change; check their site for the latest.
Where Construction Monitor is stronger
Breadth. Construction Monitor has been publishing permit data across the country for years, with separate feeds for single-family, solar and swimming-pool permits, and an API and FTP delivery for teams that load data into their own systems.
If your territory crosses state lines, or you sell into markets we don't read, one national source will beat stitching several local ones together.
Where TarSignal is stronger
Depth in the markets we cover. We read each office's own filings every weekday, clean the addresses, and attach the contractor's phone and email from the permit or the state license board, so a lead is someone you can call.
Speed and price of starting. Three years of permits are searchable free with a login, and Pro is one plan, month to month, with daily alerts, the map, contractor lists and exports included.
Questions
Is TarSignal a Construction Monitor alternative in North Carolina?
Yes, for the 23 permit offices we read in Charlotte, the Triangle, the Triad, Wilmington, Asheville, Onslow County and Cumberland County. If you need other states, Construction Monitor covers more of the country.
How much does Construction Monitor cost?
Construction Monitor sells data per area and month. Its online shop listed, for example, all of Alabama's permits at $187/mo and the Austin metro at $500/mo when we checked on October 14, 2026, with online purchase limited to five states. TarSignal is free to start, and Pro is $199/mo.
Does TarSignal include contractor phone numbers?
Yes. Where the permit or the North Carolina licensing board lists them, the contractor's phone and email come with the permit, in search, on the map and in the daily email.
Sources
Checked October 14, 2026.
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Start free: three years of permits from the offices we cover, with the contractor wherever the permit records name one.
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