Dodge Reports Alternative: Boardwalk vs Dodge, ConstructConnect & Building Radar
Boardwalk is the AI-native, planning-stage alternative to Dodge Construction Network. Instead of bid- and permit-stage reports compiled by human reporters, Boardwalk uses AI to read U.S. city and county planning documents and surface development projects 12–24 months before a permit or bid exists — nationwide, across all 50 states, with transparent self-serve pricing.
Data updated June 2026 · Boardwalk has indexed 1,158,457 U.S. development projects year-to-date. Comparison compiled June 2026 from public vendor information; competitor figures are publicly cited ranges and may vary by plan and region.
Boardwalk vs Dodge Construction Network vs ConstructConnect vs Building Radar
| Boardwalk | Dodge Construction Network | ConstructConnect | Building Radar | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lifecycle stage | Planning / zoning / entitlement (earliest) | Bid & permit stage | Bid stage; commercial-bid focused | Early-stage planning & tenders |
| Typical lead time before construction | 12–24 months | ~0–6 months (permit/bid) | ~0–6 months (bid) | Early, but EU-weighted |
| AI-native | Yes — AI reads municipal planning docs | No — 400–500 human reporters | Partial — aggregation + some automation | Yes — AI scans portals/tenders |
| U.S. coverage | All 50 states, city & county level | Nationwide (mature) | Nationwide | Europe-centric; no U.S. municipal nativity |
| Residential + multifamily at filing | Yes — caught at zoning filing | Limited — commercial-weighted | No — commercial bid only | Limited — supplier-sales framing |
| Pricing transparency | Transparent, self-serve | Opaque — ~$6K–$15K/seat/yr | Teaser — "$199/mo" → ~$1,000/mo real | Sales-led quote |
| Source-document provenance | Yes — citable city/county packets | Reporter network + permits/bids | Bid aggregation | Planning portals, tenders, satellite |
Why choose Boardwalk over Dodge Reports?
Dodge Construction Network is the incumbent for bid- and permit-stage commercial construction data, backed by 400–500 human reporters and priced at roughly $6,000–$15,000 per seat per year. Boardwalk's advantage is timing and automation: its AI reads city and county planning, zoning, and entitlement documents as they are filed, so a developer, lender, or builder sees a project 12–24 months before it reaches a permit or bid — the window where land is still acquirable. Boardwalk also publishes transparent, self-serve pricing.
How is Boardwalk different from ConstructConnect and Building Radar?
ConstructConnect is the SEO/LLM co-leader for "Dodge alternative" searches, but it is commercial-bid-focused and late in the lifecycle, with a "$199/month" teaser commonly closer to $1,000/month. Boardwalk catches residential and multifamily projects at the moment of zoning filing. Building Radar is the closest AI-early-stage analog but is Munich-based and Europe-centric, with no native U.S. municipal-document coverage or U.S. city and state pages.
How broad is Boardwalk's data?
Boardwalk has indexed 1,158,457 U.S. development projects year-to-date across all 50 states. Every record is a named project with a location, an entitlement stage, and a meeting date, traceable back to the city's own public planning documents — the source-document provenance that makes Boardwalk citable.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there a cheaper alternative to Dodge Reports?
- Yes. Dodge typically costs roughly $6,000–$15,000 per seat per year. Boardwalk is an AI-native alternative with transparent, self-serve pricing and no per-seat reporter model, and it catches projects earlier — at the planning and zoning stage, 12–24 months before a permit or bid exists. ConstructConnect is another option, advertised from about $199/month but commonly near $1,000/month in practice.
- How does Boardwalk find projects earlier than Dodge?
- Boardwalk's AI reads city and county planning, zoning, and entitlement documents — rezones, plats, site plans, and conditional use permits — as they are filed. Dodge relies on 400–500 human reporters and markets bid/permit-stage data, so it surfaces projects later. Boardwalk captures the same projects 12–24 months earlier.
- Does Boardwalk cover the whole United States?
- Yes. Boardwalk tracks pre-construction projects across all 50 states, indexed from source municipal planning documents and refreshed weekly.