Billing an estimate
You can bill an accepted estimate all at once or in stages. For example, you might invoice a deposit before buying materials, another amount partway through, and the balance when the job is finished.
Accepting the estimate doesn’t create or send an invoice automatically. You choose the amount and timing.
Create the first invoice
Open the accepted estimate and find Amount to invoice. It starts with the remaining amount. Enter a dollar amount, such as $2,500, or a percentage, such as 25%, then select Create invoice.
Percentages use the estimate’s original pre-tax subtotal. On a $10,000 estimate, 25% means $2,500, even if you’ve already billed some of the job. You can’t create an amount greater than what remains.
The invoice is created as a draft. Check its details, then send it when you’re ready.
Example: a deposit followed by progress and final billing
For a $10,000 estimate before tax and discounts, you could invoice:
| Stage | Amount to enter | Left to invoice |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit | $2,500 or 25% | $7,500 |
| Progress payment | $5,000 or 50% | $2,500 |
| Final invoice | $2,500 | $0 |
You don’t need to choose a special invoice type for each stage. Enter the amount you agreed with the client. Each invoice remains linked to the estimate so you can follow the billing history.
What gets copied into the draft?
An invoice for the full estimate copies its line items. Any Price TBD line arrives as a $0 placeholder for you to price before sending.
A partial invoice has one Item line identifying the estimate and the portion being billed, for example:
EST-M01 Kitchen remodel: $2,500 of $10,000
The draft also takes the estimate’s subject, notes, tax and discount rates, the client’s payment terms, and any linked project. Tax and discount apply to the portion on that invoice.
What does the client see?
A partial invoice shows the estimate’s total before tax, the amount previously invoiced, and the amount on this invoice. This helps the client see how the current bill fits the overall job.
An invoice for the entire estimate doesn’t need that partial-billing breakdown.
Understand the remaining amount
The remaining amount is the estimate subtotal minus linked invoice subtotals, excluding written-off invoices. It tracks what you’ve invoiced, not what the client has paid. Draft invoices reserve their portion too.
If you delete a draft, its amount becomes available to invoice again. Writing off an invoice also returns its portion to the estimate’s available amount. Check the linked invoices and their statuses before deciding to bill that amount again.
Once the whole amount has been invoiced, the amount box disappears. The invoice history remains on the estimate.
Bill a fixed-fee project
Fixed-fee projects use the same approach. Open the project’s Invoices tab and enter the amount or percentage of the fee you want to bill. Keep logging time to understand delivery costs; that time isn’t billed as extra hourly work.