Terms of Service

Effective date: March 14, 2026

1. About the Service

ApparentLow.io ("ApparentLow," "we," "us") is an IDOT bid intelligence platform that provides historical bid data analysis, price trends, and estimating tools for heavy civil construction professionals. The service is operated by ApparentLow.io.

2. Not Professional Advice

ApparentLow provides data and statistical models to support estimating decisions. It is not financial, legal, or professional advice. All pricing data is derived from publicly available Illinois Department of Transportation records and our statistical algorithms. We make no guarantee of accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose.

You are solely responsible for your own bidding decisions. ApparentLow is a reference tool, not a substitute for professional judgment.

3. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using ApparentLow, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, do not use the service.

4. Accounts

  • You must provide accurate information when registering.
  • One account per person. Do not share your login credentials with others.
  • You are responsible for all activity under your account.
  • Notify us immediately if you believe your account has been compromised.

5. Service Tiers and Payment

ApparentLow offers two tiers:

  • Free: Statewide pricing data, basic search, limited features.
  • Pro: $29/month or $299/year. Includes district-level pricing, market trends, full Estimator Tool access, and Bid Review features.

Pro subscriptions are billed through Stripe. By subscribing, you agree to Stripe's terms of service. Subscriptions renew automatically until cancelled.

Cancellation and Refunds

You may cancel your Pro subscription at any time. Upon cancellation, you retain Pro access through the end of your current billing period. No refunds are provided for partial months. Annual plans may be refunded on a prorated basis at our discretion.

6. User-Entered Data and Confidentiality

When you enter pricing data into ApparentLow (such as unit prices on a contract page or through file upload), that data is stored in your account and treated as confidential.

  • Your pricing data is never shared with other users, contractors, or any third party.
  • Your pricing data is never used in any way that could expose your prices to another party — not through display, aggregation, model outputs, or any other mechanism.
  • Each user's data is isolated at the database query level.

7. Anti-Collusion

ApparentLow does not facilitate bid coordination or collusion in any form. The platform displays historical market data derived from public IDOT records. User-entered pricing data is strictly isolated per account and is never accessible to any other user.

8. Prohibited Uses

You agree not to:

  • Scrape, crawl, or use automated tools to extract data from the platform.
  • Resell, redistribute, or republish ApparentLow data or analysis.
  • Attempt to access another user's data or account.
  • Use the service for any unlawful purpose, including bid rigging or price fixing.
  • Interfere with or disrupt the service or its infrastructure.

9. Intellectual Property

The underlying IDOT bid tabulation data is public record. Our algorithms, analysis, predictions, user interface, and the compiled database are the intellectual property of ApparentLow. You may not copy, reproduce, or create derivative works from the platform or its outputs except for your own internal estimating use.

10. Service Availability

We strive to keep ApparentLow available and reliable, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted access. We may modify, suspend, or discontinue any part of the service at any time, with or without notice.

11. Account Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms, engage in prohibited uses, or pose a risk to other users or the platform. We will make reasonable efforts to notify you before termination, except where immediate action is required.

12. Limitation of Liability

ApparentLow is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising from your use of the service, including but not limited to lost profits, lost bids, or inaccurate predictions.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms from time to time. Material changes will be communicated via email or a notice on the platform. Continued use of the service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated terms.

14. Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois. Any disputes arising from these terms or your use of the service shall be resolved in the courts of Illinois.

15. Contact

Questions about these terms? Contact us at support@apparentlow.io.