Unlevered vs KBKG
KBKG is the cheapest, fastest way to get a depreciation schedule — self-guided software that returns a result in minutes. Unlevered is the engineered, signed alternative when you'd rather a professional rebuild the property and stand behind the numbers. Here's the honest difference, and when each one is the right call.
What KBKG is good at
KBKG's DIY tools — Cost Seg Pro (from $495 a report) and the Residential Cost Segregator (around $450) — are the cheapest and fastest way to get a cost segregation schedule. You drive the software yourself and get a result in minutes, from a brand that has been in cost segregation and tax credits for decades. If you want the lowest sticker price and an instant number, KBKG is hard to beat on either.
KBKG vs Unlevered, head to head
Every price shown is a figure the provider publishes; where a firm doesn’t publish pricing, it says so. Marketing and performance claims are left off deliberately — this compares what you can verify.
| Criterion | KBKG | Unlevered |
|---|---|---|
| Method | DIY / self-guided software — you answer the questions and it returns a schedule in minutes | Engineered and deterministic — the property is rebuilt from its own source documents, room by room, before anything is estimated |
| Sign-off & audit posture | No professional sign-off — you drive the software, so the audit posture is yours to carry | Unlevered prepares and signs the engineering study; your CPA is optional and, when involved, remains the sole return preparer |
| Read a real report first? | No public sample study to read first | Yes — full anonymized studies you can read page by page |
| Turnaround | Minutes — you generate the schedule yourself | Engineered, then human-reviewed before delivery |
| Residential / STR price | Cost Seg Pro from $495 per report; Residential Cost Segregator about $450 | $5,000 single-unit / $10,000 multifamily, billed to the owner (published) |
| Property fit | A simple, well-documented property and an owner comfortable defending their own numbers | Residential rentals and short-term rentals, with the full study readable before you buy |
Figures current as of August 2026; check KBKG’s site for the latest.
Where Unlevered differs
The honest case for choosing Unlevered over KBKG — not a claim that it wins on every axis. The table above says where KBKG is the better fit.
The dollars are engineered per component, not answered into a questionnaire
KBKG's software prices your study from the answers you enter. Unlevered prices the deduction component by component from a governed cost catalog, verifies each component against the property's own documents and photos, and matches every component to its room. That item-level, evidence-checked build captures more defensible short-life 5- and 15-year basis than a DIY questionnaire, because each number is tied to a real component rather than approximated from a form.
Why the engineered study is worth more than a DIY tool
Here is what justifies the higher price. Every component classification in an Unlevered study carries its citation; the study is engineered from the property's own source documents and is fully reproducible — the same inputs produce the same study; and it ships with filing-ready workpapers — the §481(a) catch-up, the depreciation schedule, and the fixed-asset schedule — that reconcile to the tax forms. Built to the IRS Cost Segregation Audit Techniques Guide, it is a study your CPA can stand behind number by number in an audit. A DIY tool shows none of that work and leaves the audit posture on you.
You can read the work before you buy
KBKG returns your own schedule in minutes but publishes no finished study to inspect. Unlevered publishes complete anonymized studies — the basis walk, the room-by-room reclassification with citations, the full depreciation schedule — so you judge the method before paying.
Price is the honest reason to choose KBKG
At roughly $450–$495, KBKG costs a fraction of an engineered study. If your property is straightforward and you know the rules, that gap is real and worth weighing — this page isn't arguing you should always pay more.
Unlevered’s founder made the case for the deterministic method in Accounting Today: the core calculation must be reproducible from the same inputs, with AI kept to peripheral verification rather than the number itself.
The case study
The difference shows up in a second look.
A client brought us a $3,000 top-down study they no longer trusted. Reverse-engineering it, we found $120,425 it had buried in the 39-year line — a movable gym and sauna that belong in the 5-year class. Across the studies we price component by component, we find roughly 5–15% more in identified deductions than a top-down study. That is what hyper-granular pricing, verification against the property’s own documents, and component-to-room matching buy you — and why an engineered study is worth more than a template estimate.
Read the full case studySee a full engineered sample study
The best way to compare providers is to read one finished study, page by page. These are real, anonymized Unlevered studies — the basis walk, the room-by-room reclassification with citations, and the full depreciation schedule. They’re free to read; tell us where to send them.
The studies are free to read. We’ll only use your email to follow up about a cost segregation study — no spam.
Common questions
- Is KBKG or Unlevered better for a short-term rental?
- For a short-term rental that is simple and well-documented, and where you are comfortable carrying the audit posture yourself, KBKG's DIY software is the cheaper, faster option. If you would rather a professional rebuild the property room by room and sign the engineering study — and you want to read a finished STR study before you buy — Unlevered is built for that. Both handle short-term rentals; the difference is who does the engineering and who stands behind it.
- What's a good KBKG alternative?
- If you like KBKG's price and speed but want a professional to perform and sign the study rather than driving software yourself, an engineered provider is the alternative. Unlevered prepares and signs the engineering study, prices the deduction component by component against the property's own documents and photos, publishes full anonymized studies you can read first, and keeps your CPA optional. Other engineered residential options include Overline and RE Cost Seg; the comparison hub covers them side by side.
- How does Unlevered compare to KBKG?
- KBKG is DIY software from about $450–$495 that returns a schedule in minutes with no professional sign-off. Unlevered is an engineered, deterministic study at a published $5,000 single-unit / $10,000 multifamily, prepared and signed by Unlevered with your CPA optional, and you can read a full anonymized study before deciding. KBKG wins on price and speed; Unlevered wins on engineering, sign-off, and transparency.
Compare on the work, not the pitch.
Read a real Unlevered study end to end, or see what your property qualifies for. CPAs and advisors can apply for access.
See what your property qualifies for and read a full sample study.
Refer a client and get filing-ready schedules with audit-ready documentation.