Create an estimate

An estimate is a price for work you have not invoiced yet. It sits outside your books entirely: nothing is recorded in your accounts until you convert it to an invoice.

Create the estimate

1. Go to Money In, then choose Estimates.
2. Choose New Estimate.
3. Pick a Contact, or choose Add a new contact to create one first.
4. Choose the Document type: Estimate, Quote, or Proposal. This changes the wording on the document, its PDF, and the email, and nothing else.
5. Check the Estimate reference. It is auto-numbered from the same sequence as your invoices, and you can change it.
6. Set the Estimate date, and how many days the price is Valid for. Leave it blank if the price does not expire.
7. Pick a Currency if you are not quoting in pounds.
8. Add Notes if you like. They appear on the estimate itself, which makes them useful for the assumptions the price depends on.
9. Choose Create estimate.

Kontala opens the new estimate so you can add line items.

Add line items

1. Choose Add estimate item.
2. To quote for something in your catalogue, pick an Item to fill the line from Products & Services. Every field stays editable. For a one-off line, just type the Details.
3. Enter the Quantity and Unit price. Enter discounts as a negative unit price.
4. Choose the VAT rate for the line.
5. Choose Create and finish, or Create and add another to keep going.

Kontala calculates the net total, VAT, and total for you. Lines linked to tracked stock items do not move any stock here: stock only changes once the estimate becomes an invoice and that invoice is sent.

Next: Send an estimate.