Create and send estimates

Learn how to set up estimates in QuickBooks Online.

Note: This feature is limited for QuickBooks Online Free and QuickBooks Online Lite. Upgrade your plan to get more features. Go to Settings , then Subscriptions and billing. Then select Upgrade your plan.

If you'd like to make it easy for your customers to pay an invoice online, check out QuickBooks Payments rates and apply.

Create an estimate when you want to give your customer a quote, bid, or proposal for work you plan to do. The form looks similar to an invoice, but instead of charging your customer, you’re giving them info about your proposal and what they can expect to pay. Then, when the work is done and you're ready to invoice your customer, you can convert the estimate to an invoice so you don't have to enter it twice.

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Create and customize an estimate

You can customize an estimate to display only specific information to your customer. 

Note: This feature is limited for QuickBooks Online Free and QuickBooks Online Lite; you must upgrade your plan for full features.

Create an estimate

1. Select + Create.
2. Select Estimate.
3. Select + Add customer. Then select a customer from the ▼ dropdown. Or, to add a new customer, select +Add new, enter the customer info, and select Save and close.
4. Select the ▼ dropdown in the Product or service field and add the products or services to the estimate. Or, to add a new product or service, select + Add new, enter the info for your product or service and select Save and close. 
5. If you saved a rate for your product or service, it automatically displays in the Amount column. Add or adjust the quantity or amount as needed. 
6. The default status of a new estimate is “Pending”. If you need to edit the status, select ⚙ Manage, then select the Pending ▼ dropdown and choose a different status.
7. To customize the estimate, select ⚙ Manage. Then select the dropdown▼ on the section you need to customize to expand the details. Choose what info displays on your form, then turn the switches on or off in each section.
   Note: As you make changes, a preview displays on the form.
8. When you're ready, select Save.
9. To email the estimate to your customer, select Review and send. Then edit the email message, if necessary, and select Send estimate.

Update an estimate's status

QuickBooks Online automatically updates an estimate's status if a customer accepts or declines it directly from their email. You can also manually update the status to keep your records accurate.

1. Go to All apps , then Customer Hub, then Estimates (Take me there).
2. Find the estimate.
3. In the Action column, select the dropdown ▼ and then Update status.
4. Select Accepted or another status. Then select OK.

Convert an estimate to an invoice

Estimates are non-posting transactions and do not affect your books until they are converted to an invoice.

1.  Go to All apps , then Customer Hub, then Estimates (Take me there).
2.  Find the estimate.
3.  In the Action column, select Create invoice.
4.  Make any necessary edits to the invoice.
5.  If you need to customize any invoice fields, select ⚙ Manage and select the dropdown▼ on the section you need to customize. Then turn the switches on or off to change what displays on the invoice. As you make changes, a preview displays on the form.
6.  When you're ready, select Save to save the invoice, or select Review and send to email the invoice to your customer.

Review and report on estimates

Run reports to see the status of all your proposals and identify which have been converted to invoices.

View list

1. Go to All apps , then Customer Hub, then Estimates (Take me there).
2. Find your estimate.
   • Tip: You can sort by date, number, customer, total, or status column headers.

Run report

1. Go to Reports , then Standard reports (Take me there).
2. Look for and open the Estimates by Customer report.
3. Select your date range, and select Run report.

You can also run a report to get more details:

1. Go to Reports , then Standard reports (Take me there).
2. Look for and open the Estimates by Customer report.
3. Select your date range and select Run report.

This gives you the customer name, the estimate number, the status, and the invoice number if it's been converted.

Delete or decline an estimate

If your customer decides they don't want you to do the work, it's better to change the estimate status to Declined rather than delete it. (See Step 2: Update an estimate's status.) This keeps a record of the estimate on your accounts for good bookkeeping.

But if you created an estimate by mistake, you can simply delete it:

To delete an estimate created by mistake

1. Go to All apps , then Customer Hub, then Estimates (Take me there).
2. Find and select the estimate.
3. Select More actions.
4. Select Delete and then select Yes to confirm.