Help Center

Quick guides for getting started and using TheGuys.app.

How TheGuys.app works

TheGuys.app is a crew management platform for contractors. Two roles use the app — Bosses, who win the work and dispatch the team, and Guys, the crew members who do it. The Boss creates a job (often with AI assist that turns a plain description into a structured work order), dispatches it to one or more Guys, tracks every step from arrival to closeout, and pays out automatically through Stripe Connect — 90%+goes to the Guy; the rest covers the platform fee and Stripe's processing cost.

Your clients don't use the app. They're the people who hired you to do the work, and they benefit indirectly: a contractor running on TheGuys.app builds a more consistent, organized crew because every job carries the same structure — required tasks, photo evidence, lifecycle timestamps, signed closeouts. What your client sees is professional work delivered the same way every time.

Add TheGuys to your home screen

You can add TheGuys.app to your phone, tablet, or computer so it opens from an icon like a normal app — full screen, faster to load, no App Store or download needed. Here is how.

Step 1
Open TheGuys in Safari
This only works in Safari on an iPhone or iPad — not Chrome or any other browser.
Step 2
Tap the Share button
It is the square with an arrow pointing up, at the bottom of the screen (or top on iPad).
Step 3
Tap “Add to Home Screen”
Scroll down the share menu until you see it, then tap it.
Step 4
Tap Add
Tap “Add” in the top-right corner. The TheGuys shield lands on your home screen.

On iPhone and iPad this only works in Safari. If you are in Chrome or another browser, open theguys.app in Safari first.

Prime Dispatcher

Prime Dispatcher lives in /settings → Preferences. New accounts arrive with the playbook fully ON.

Prime Dispatcher is the full dispatch playbook — lifecycle tasks and discipline guardrails that keep every job on rails. Tap the master to turn the whole playbook on or off in one move. The toggles below let you tune individually; Custom shows when your settings don't match either preset.

Every sub-toggle has its own ? help icon, and each one is spelled out under What things mean → Settings below.

How to use task controls

Every task you add to a job has a row of controls beneath it. Each control marks the task with a different kind of expectation — what finishes the job, what needs proof, what you'll pay extra for. Start with Required.

Required task: Required marks a task as essential to the contracted work — if it's skipped, the job isn't done. Toggle it off to make the task optional, like a final cleanup, and attach a Bonus to encourage it. When Hard Submit Block is ON in Settings → Preferences, Guys can't submit closeout until every required task is done. Platform tasks (Pre-Check, Check In/Out, closeout tasks) auto-attach per your Prime Dispatcher settings and stay locked Required on the job.
Photo required (camera icon): This task needs a photo before it can be marked complete — proof like before-and-after shots, receipts, or the finished install.
Task notes: Instructions attached to one task only — the small specifics, like “spare key under the planter” or “shut off the main water first.”
Penalty: A penalty is a dollar amount the Guy forfeits if the task is skipped or done wrong, plus a short reason that explains what triggers it. It pairs naturally with required tasks where the cost of getting it wrong is concrete — drywall not finished to spec, closeout photos missing, a deadline blown. The Penalty field can be hidden via Settings → Preferences → Show Penalty field.
Bonus: A bonus is a dollar amount the Guy earns on top of his rate when a condition you set is met — early completion, an extra-clean handoff, a client signature without rework. Use it to incentivize optional tasks or bake a quality bar into a required one. The Bonus field can be hidden via Settings → Preferences → Show Bonus field.

What things mean

Every pill, badge, and term you'll run into on the site, in plain words. Tapping a ? (or a dotted-underline item) anywhere in the app shows the same note in place.

On the dashboard

Dispatched / Viewed pills: Every Guy you dispatch starts in the Dispatched pill and moves to Viewed the moment he opens the job. The green number is Guys who accepted and are still on the job; the red number is declines and back-outs — tap the red count to read each Guy's reason. If a job comes back and you re-dispatch it, the earlier attempt's decline reasons show anonymously as crew notes on the draft.
Task progress bar: One segment per task on the job. Grey = not started. Amber = submitted or skipped, waiting on review. Green = approved. Red = denied.
Live job badges: Quick signals on a working job: Live (start time is here), Starts in 1h, N on site (checked-in Guys), Guy viewed, and total work time recorded so far.
Awaiting Crew: The job is dispatched but not fully staffed yet — some slots are still open. The card shows how many slots are filled so far.
“N waiting on you” (Lead review): Your crew submitted work that needs your OK as the Lead. Open the job and approve or deny each item before it counts.
Lead: On a job that needs a Lead, the first Guy tapped on the dispatch screen is the Lead — the ★ badge marks him. The Lead reviews his crew's submitted work before it reaches the Boss and is the one who submits the closeout. If the Lead declines or backs out, the whole job is cancelled and returns to the Boss for a fresh dispatch. Lead extra pay, when set, is visible only to the Boss and the Lead.
Stale draft: This draft has sat untouched for 150 days. Tap Refresh to mark it still wanted and keep it active.

On a job

Client job vs Internal job: Client job = work for a paying customer, and it can collect the client's signature. Internal job = your own work (your shop, your properties) — no client involved.
Required task: Required marks a task as essential to the contracted work — if it's skipped, the job isn't done. Toggle it off to make the task optional, like a final cleanup, and attach a Bonus to encourage it. When Hard Submit Block is ON in Settings → Preferences, Guys can't submit closeout until every required task is done. Platform tasks (Pre-Check, Check In/Out, closeout tasks) auto-attach per your Prime Dispatcher settings and stay locked Required on the job.
Photo required (camera icon): This task needs a photo before it can be marked complete — proof like before-and-after shots, receipts, or the finished install.
Task notes: Instructions attached to one task only — the small specifics, like “spare key under the planter” or “shut off the main water first.”
Reference photos (images icon): Photos the Boss attached to a task to show what the work should look like or where things are.
Auto-attached tasks: Steps added to every new job automatically by your Prime Dispatcher settings — Pre-Check, Check In/Out, and the closeout tasks. Manage them in Settings → Preferences.
Flexible start vs Start at: Start at = a set arrival time. Flexible start = the Guy can begin any time between the earliest start and the deadline.
Priority (Routine / Priority / Emergency): How urgent the job is, so your crew knows what they're walking into. It's a signal on the job posting — it doesn't change pay or scheduling by itself.
Must-haves: Hard requirements a Guy needs to take the job — specific tools, gear, or licenses the Boss flagged as non-negotiable.
Slots: How many Guys the job needs (1–15). Guys claim slots when they accept — one Guy can grab more than one — and the job is fully staffed when every slot is claimed.
Unlock windows: How many minutes before the scheduled start Pre-Check and Check In open up. The windows freeze when a job is dispatched — changes only affect future jobs.
Task status icons: Grey circle = not started. Amber check = submitted, waiting on review. Green check = approved. Red triangle = denied. Amber dash = skipped. Grey lock = opens later.
Backing out: Leaving a job after accepting it, inside the allowed window, with a written reason. If the Lead backs out, the whole job is cancelled and returns to the Boss.
Invoice delivery choice: When you finish the last task, you choose: review your invoice first and send it yourself, or let it go out as-is the moment the Boss approves the work.

Crew

Ready vs Pending crew: Ready Guys can be dispatched right now. Pending Guys still have setup to finish — accepting the invite, finishing signup, or connecting payouts.
Pending crew states: Pending Account Setup = signup not finished. Pending Payment Authorization = payouts not connected yet. Syncing = checking with Stripe. Paused = the crew spot is on hold.
Invite nudges (“Sent”): You can nudge each invited Guy once every 24 hours. “Sent” means today's nudge already went out — the button wakes up tomorrow.
AI notes: Short notes the AI keeps about each Guy, built from finished job activity. You can edit them any time, and Revert restores the previous version.
Travel radius: How far from your home base you're willing to travel for work. It's part of your profile — it doesn't block any dispatch.

Money & invoices

Net terms (Net 15 / 30 / 60): Every job carries payment terms picked at creation. On a Net invoice the Boss taps Approve (Net N): that locks the terms and starts the clock — the due date is N days from approval and shows as a countdown. He can pay any time during the term. Immediate-term invoices have no approve step; they go straight to Pay.
Total authorized: The most this job can pay out: the rate times the number of Guys, plus any Lead extra pay. It's the figure you're agreeing to when you dispatch.
Lead extra pay: Optional extra money for the Lead on top of the regular rate. Only the Boss and the Lead ever see it, and it rides onto the Lead's invoice as its own line.
Penalty: A penalty is a dollar amount the Guy forfeits if the task is skipped or done wrong, plus a short reason that explains what triggers it. It pairs naturally with required tasks where the cost of getting it wrong is concrete — drywall not finished to spec, closeout photos missing, a deadline blown. The Penalty field can be hidden via Settings → Preferences → Show Penalty field.
Bonus: A bonus is a dollar amount the Guy earns on top of his rate when a condition you set is met — early completion, an extra-clean handoff, a client signature without rework. Use it to incentivize optional tasks or bake a quality bar into a required one. The Bonus field can be hidden via Settings → Preferences → Show Bonus field.
Added cost: Extra charges a Guy logged on a task, like materials. Green $ = the Boss approved it. Amber ($ in parentheses) = still waiting on the Boss's approval.
Rate includes materials: Yes = the pay rate already covers materials, so Guys can't add material charges to the job. No = Guys log materials used and they're billed on the invoice.
Invoice status: Draft = still being built. Submitted = waiting on the Boss. Approved = the payment clock is running. Paid = money sent. Kicked back = returned to the Guy to fix.
Payment dispute: The bank challenged a card charge (a chargeback). Stripe reviews it. This is separate from kicking back an invoice — the invoice itself doesn't change.
Payment failed: The charge didn't go through — usually a declined card. No money moved. Fix the payment method and hit Pay again.
How the money splits: 90%+ goes to the Guy who did the work, 5% to TheGuys App, and Stripe takes its card-processing cut. The split happens automatically when the Boss pays.
Invoice tax: Tax is a flat dollar amount typed on the invoice — the app doesn't calculate tax rates for you. Total = subtotal − discounts + tax.
Task discount: Price cuts the Boss made on logged items during the job. They're locked onto the invoice automatically — the Guy can't edit them there.
Materials margin: Every catalog material carries a margin. New items inherit your default margin; editing an item's margin detaches it from the default, and “Apply to existing” updates only the items still tracking the old default. When an invoice is built, the billed price is your unit cost marked up by the item's margin.

Settings

Prime Dispatcher: Prime Dispatcher is the full dispatch playbook — lifecycle tasks and discipline guardrails that keep every job on rails. Tap the master to turn the whole playbook on or off in one move. The toggles below let you tune individually; Custom shows when your settings don't match either preset.
Auto-add Pre-Check task: When a job is built, automatically add a Pre-Check task at the start. Pre-Check verifies the Guy is ready before the job begins — sends a reminder one hour before scheduled start (when enabled). Set how early Pre-Check may be done with the 'no earlier than' window: a whole number of minutes before the scheduled start (0–120; 0 = at the start time). Your Guy sees this earliest time on the job, and the window freezes when the job is dispatched — changing it later never affects an already-dispatched job.
Auto-add Check In & Check Out tasks: When a job is built, automatically add a Check In and a Check Out task together. Your Guy taps Check In on arrival (you see the timestamp on your dashboard) and Check Out when leaving the site (locks in the job duration). They are a pair — a Guy recording hours always has Check Out available, so a job can never have one without the other. Set how early Check In may be done with the 'Earliest Check In' window below: a whole number of minutes before the scheduled start (0–120; 0 = at the start time). Your Guy sees this earliest time on the job, and the window freezes when the job is dispatched. When both Pre-Check and Check In are on, Check In must unlock no earlier than Pre-Check — its window must be at or below the Pre-Check window.
Auto-add Closeout Notes task: When a job is built, automatically add a Closeout Notes task. Your Guy writes a short summary of the work done before submitting the invoice.
Auto-add Closeout Photo task: When a job is built, automatically add a Closeout Photo task at the end. Your Guy captures one final wide-shot of the finished work as documentation. When OFF, the task is skipped and you can still flag individual work tasks for photos one by one.
Auto-add Client Signature task on client jobs: When a CLIENT job is built, automatically add a Client Signature task at the end. Your Guy collects the client's signature on-site as proof of completion. Only added to client jobs — internal jobs skip this.
Auto-add closeout materials & equipment entry: Automatically adds a closeout-level entry where your Guy logs job-wide materials and equipment — items not tied to any single work task. They're added with the same Line Items Used picker as per-task line items and flow onto the invoice the same way.
Pre-Check Alerts: Who gets notified one hour before a job's scheduled start when the Pre-Check task is on the job. Off = no notification. Guy = your Guy receives a reminder. Boss = you receive a reminder so you can check in with your Guy yourself. Both = both of you get notified independently.
Hard Submit Block: When ON, your Guys must complete every required task on a job before they can submit closeout. When OFF, Guys can submit incomplete jobs and you'll see flagged items at approval. Strict mode helps your crew build completion discipline.
Require Live Photo Capture: When ON, Guys can only upload photos taken with the in-app camera at the moment of capture. When OFF, Guys can upload existing photos from their phone's camera roll. Live capture protects against backdated evidence.
Show Penalty field on tasks: When ON, you can set a per-task penalty (dollar amount + reason) on any work task. The penalty triggers at job approval if the task isn't completed. Auto-deducted from the Guy's payout. Turn off to hide penalty inputs from your task list.
Show Bonus field on tasks: When ON, you can set a per-task bonus (dollar amount + condition) on any work task. The bonus is offered at job approval — you decide yes/no whether the Guy met the condition. Added to the Guy's payout when granted. Turn off to hide bonus inputs from your task list.
Tools / PPE / Support / Escalation: When ON, jobs collect Required Tools, Required PPE, an off-site Support Contact, and Escalation Notes during creation. When OFF, those fields are hidden on the job form and the job posts without them.
Urgency / Site Access: When ON, jobs collect an Urgency tier (routine / priority / emergency) and an optional Site Access Notes field. When OFF, both fields are hidden and urgency defaults to routine.
Automation: Automation governs how AI assists you across the platform — catalog entries, crew notes, and the new-job assist window. Tap the master to turn AI features on or off in one move. The toggles below let you tune individually; Custom shows when your settings don't match either preset.
Auto-catalog new line items: When you add a line item that isn't already in your catalog, the entry is created automatically with the price you entered.
AI auto-notes: When enabled, AI generates and updates notes about each Guy based on completed job activity. Disable to stop AI from writing or summarizing any notes for any crew member.
AI assist on new jobs: When enabled, the AI window opens automatically when you start a new job. Disable if you prefer to type directly into the form yourself.
Custom (master toggle): Custom means the switches under a master don't all match ON or OFF — you've set your own mix. Tapping the master snaps everything back ON.
Notification Delivery: How you receive job and account notifications. Email always works. SMS and Both need SMS Notifications turned on first — with SMS off, everything arrives by email no matter what is chosen here. Your choice is remembered: turning SMS back on restores it.
Self-sign internal jobs: When ON, your own jobs (no external client) automatically get a closeout signature task that your Guy signs as proof of completion. When OFF, internal jobs skip the signature step. Off by default — turn on only if your workflow needs the audit trail.
Tasks open before start: How many minutes before a job's scheduled start the worker's tasks open for completion — for jobs that don't include a Check-In step (default 15). Jobs that include a Check-In step take their timing from the Check-In window instead, so this setting is inactive while Auto-add Check In is on. It can't be set later than your Pre-Check window — work can never open before a worker is able to acknowledge the job. Changes apply only to jobs you dispatch afterward; already-dispatched jobs keep the timing they went out with.
Stripe account status: Whether your Stripe account is ready to move money. Details submitted, Charges enabled, Payouts enabled — all Yes means you're fully set up.
Deposit account: The bank account (or debit card) your job pay lands in. Stripe holds the full details — we only ever see the name and last 4 digits. You can change it any time; we'll confirm your password first.
Availability: Days you haven't set stay open 24/7 until you give them hours or mark them closed. Available today OFF, or a start time outside your Work Hours, only grays you out on the Boss's crew screen — he can still send you the job and you can still accept. Time Off is the only hard block: on those dates you disappear from dispatch entirely and no notifications are sent.
Two-Step Login: An extra check at login to prove it's really you. Backup codes are one-time keys that get you in if you lose your second step.

Materials catalog

The Materials tab in /line-items tracks items you buy in bulk and resell to clients. Enter the bulk quantity and total cost; the platform calculates your unit price automatically.

When you build an invoice, AI looks up each material in your catalog and applies your margin. Set a default margin once at the top of the tab and override it per item when something doesn't fit the default.

Search and sort at the top of the catalog get you to a specific item without scrolling.

Setting up Stripe Connect

Stripe Connect handles every payment between Bosses, Guys, and clients — money never moves through TheGuys.app itself. To connect, go to /settings→ Stripe Connect card and tap “Connect with Stripe”. Stripe walks you through onboarding (identity, bank account, tax info) and returns you to TheGuys.app when it's done.

Once your account is active, Stripe handles the split automatically: 90%+ to the Guy who did the work, 5%to the TheGuys.app platform, and finally Stripe's processing fee. The split is invisible to you — it happens the moment a Boss approves a completed job and pays.

Availability & dispatch

The Availability card on /settingsholds three settings that tell your Contractors when you're open to work. Only one of them actually blocks a job from reaching you.

Available todayis a sticky on/off switch you control. Flip it off when you're not open to work today; jobs scheduled for tomorrow or later are unaffected. The platform never changes it for you — it stays off until you flip it back on, at which point you're available right away.

Work Hoursare the days and times you normally work — your default weekly schedule. They apply to every job, no matter when it's scheduled.

For a job scheduled today, you appear grayed out on your Contractor's crew screen if Available today is OFF, or if the job's start time falls outside your Work Hours. For a job scheduled for any other day, only Work Hours matter — the toggle is ignored. Grayed out is a signal, not a block — the Contractor can still send you a job posting, and you can accept or decline as usual.

Time Offworks differently. Enter specific dates you've fully blocked out — vacations, holidays, anything you don't want disturbed. During a Time Off date you're completely removed from every Contractor's dispatch radar: no grayed-out badge, no presence on their screen, and no notifications get sent. It's the only setting that hard-blocks dispatch.

SMS notifications

TheGuys App LLC sends SMS text messages to crew members (“Guys”) who have been invited to a Boss's crew. Accepting a crew invitation in the app opts the Guy in to receive job-related texts.

These messages are transactional only — new job dispatches, schedule reminders, and job status updates. We never send marketing or promotional texts. Message frequency varies by job activity. Message and data rates may apply.

Reply STOP at any time to opt out of further messages, or reply HELP for help. For support, email support@theguys.app.

Where to get help

Email support@theguys.app for direct help. Check this Help Center first for common questions.

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