Request e-signatures on estimates

Learn how to request e-signatures on estimates in QuickBooks Online.

Get estimates signed and approved by your customers faster. Add a secure signature field to your estimate emails to keep things convenient for you and your customer.

Your customer can sign before they accept or pay a deposit. When activated, your customer sees a signature field in the email you sent. They’ll need to type their full legal name to sign, and QuickBooks:

can’t proceed until they have signed.
emails both of you a signed PDF copy of the estimate.
stores the signed PDF on the estimate record for your future reference.

Note: You can use e-signature on estimates in QuickBooks Online Simple Start, QuickBooks Online Essentials, QuickBooks Online Plus, and QuickBooks Online Advanced.

Turn e-signatures on or off for an estimate

Go to + New, then select Estimate.
Fill out the estimate as you normally would. Add the customer, products or services, and any deposit request.
Select ⚙ Manage, then select the Customization ⏷ dropdown.
Turn on/off Require e-signature.
Select Save to save your changes, or Review and send to email the estimate to your customer.

Note: QuickBooks automatically saves this setting on the estimate form. If you turn on Require e-signature for one estimate, it’ll stay on for new estimates until you turn it off.

See how customers view estimates

Your customer receives the same estimate you emailed them. Once they open the estimate link, a checkout portal appears. They’ll see a signature field they need to complete before they can accept it.

Estimate approval with no deposit

Your customer opens the estimate link from their email.
They review the estimate total and details.
In the Signature field, they enter their full legal name.
They select Accept to sign and approve the estimate.

Estimate approval with a deposit

If you've requested a deposit on the estimate, the signature gets captured in the same step as the payment. Your customer signs and pays in one flow. You don't need a separate signature field for the deposit.

Your customer opens the estimate link from their email.
They select View proposal to review the estimate total and details.
They select Sign proposal. In the Signature field, they enter their full legal name and select Sign.
They select Proceed to deposit payment. Then, they review the deposit amount and select a payment method (Debit, Credit, or Bank).
They enter the payment details.
They select Accept and pay to approve the estimate, and pay the deposit in one action.

Note: If your customers Decline the estimate, no signature gets captured and no PDF gets emailed. If the deposit payment fails, the signature isn't stored. Your customers will need to retry.

Find the signed PDF

Once your customer signs (and pays, if a deposit was requested), QuickBooks will:

generate a signed PDF that includes the customer's signature, their full legal name, and the acceptance date.
email a copy of the signed PDF to your customer.
email a copy of the signed PDF to the From address on the original estimate sent.

Tip: Any Cc or Bcc recipients on the original estimate also receive the signed copy.

store the signed PDF on the estimate record so you can retrieve it anytime.

To retrieve the signed PDF later:

Go to All apps, select the Customer Hub, then Estimates.
Find the estimate.
In the Action column, select the ⏷ dropdown then Download PDF to open the signed copy.

Note: The signed PDF is a record of the original estimate. It shows exactly what your customer signed. If you edit the estimate later, the signed PDF doesn’t change.

Edit an estimate after your customer has signed

Sometimes the scope of work changes after your customer has already signed. If you change an estimate after a customer signs, the estimate returns to pending status. Because the signed PDF can’t be changed, your customer needs to sign the new version.

Edit triggers a need to resend the estimate

QuickBooks prompts you to resend the estimate if you make any of these changes after the estimate has been accepted:

Add, edit, or delete a product or service line item.
Change the amount on any existing line.
Change the deposit request amount or percentage.

Important: Any edits to the customer name, address, or other fields that don't reset the estimate won’t trigger the re-sign. Only changes that affect what the customer agreed to will require a new signature.

Open a signed estimate and change a line item, amount, or the deposit request. A window appears titled Your customer will need to sign again.
Select Continue to proceed with your changes. The estimate status resets to Pending.
Tip: You can also select Go back to cancel and keep the estimate as it is.
Make your edits and select Review and send to resend the updated estimate.
Your customer receives a new email with the updated estimate and signs the new version. QuickBooks generates a new signed PDF.

Important: If a deposit was already paid on the original estimate, editing the amount also affects the deposit. You'll need to refund the paid deposit before you request a new one, since an estimate can't receive two separate deposits. Your customer will then sign the new version and pay the updated deposit.

Know how signatures work with different estimate types

The approval flow your customer sees depends on whether you've requested a signature, a deposit, both, or neither.

Signature required	Deposit requested	What your customer does to approve
On	No	Enters full legal name in the Signature field, then selects Accept. QuickBooks generates a signed PDF.
On	Yes	Selects a payment method, enters payment details, enters full legal name in the Signature field, then selects Pay. QuickBooks generates a signed PDF and captures the deposit in one step.
Off	No	Selects Accept to approve. No signature captured. No signed PDF generated.
Off	Yes	Pays the deposit. Signature not required or captured.

Frequently asked questions

Does e-signature work on the QuickBooks Online mobile app?

Your customer can view a signature-required estimate on any device with a browser, including their phone. However, signing and paying a deposit from the QuickBooks Online mobile app (for you, the business owner) isn’t supported yet. Support for mobile sign-and-pay is coming in a follow-up release.

Can I request e-signature on invoices?

E-signature is currently available on estimates only. Support for e-signature on invoices is planned but not part of the current release.

Is the signed PDF legally binding?

The signed PDF shows exactly what your customer agreed to. It includes their legal name, signature date and time, and a signed acknowledgment accepting the terms. This is an electronic signature under the U.S. ESIGN Act and UETA.

As with any contract, whether it’s enforceable in a specific dispute depends on the underlying agreement and circumstances. Consult your own attorney if you have questions about a specific case.

What happens if my customer's deposit payment fails?

If the payment fails, QuickBooks does n’'ot save the signature and does n’'ot generate a signed PDF. Your customer will see an error and can retry with a different payment method. Once payment succeeds, both the signature and the deposit are captured together.

Can I have multiple people sign the same estimate?

The estimate is signed by a single recipient, typically the primary customer contact. If you need multiple signatures on a single agreement, you can use a dedicated e-signature tool for that document.