{"id":337,"date":"2021-12-20T03:22:36","date_gmt":"2021-12-20T03:22:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/?p=337"},"modified":"2022-01-03T03:24:06","modified_gmt":"2022-01-03T03:24:06","slug":"how-to-create-estimates-in-quickbooks-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/how-to-create-estimates-in-quickbooks-online\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Create Estimates in QuickBooks Online"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Roe<\/a>Whether you sell products or services, you may need to create estimates in QuickBooks Online. Here\u2019s how it\u2019s done.<\/em><\/p>\n

It would be nice if you could just instantly invoice every sale. But sometimes your customers need to know what a particular purchase will cost before they make the decision to buy. So you need to know how to create an estimate. If the sale goes through, you\u2019ll of course want to send an invoice.<\/p>\n

QuickBooks Online automates this entire process. It even helps you track the progress of your estimates by providing a special report. Here\u2019s how it works.<\/p>\n

Just Like An Invoice \u2013 Almost<\/h2>\n

The process of creating an estimate in QuickBooks Online is almost identical to creating an invoice. You click the New button<\/strong> in the upper left and select Estimate<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

When the form opens, you\u2019ll notice one difference right away. Directly below the Customer<\/strong> field, you\u2019ll see the word Pending<\/strong> next to a small down arrow. Click it to see what your options are here. You\u2019ll be able to update its status later. Select a Customer<\/strong> to get started. If this is a new customer, click + Add New<\/strong> and enter at least the name. If you want to build a more complete profile at this point, click Details<\/strong> and complete the fields in the window that opens. To send a carbon copy or blind copy of the estimate to someone else, click the Cc\/Bcc<\/strong> link.<\/p>\n

Next to the Estimate date<\/strong>, there\u2019s a field for Expiration date<\/strong>. Enter that and continue on to add the products and\/or services that will be included, just as you would on an invoice. If you\u2019re generating an estimate for a new product or service, click + Add new<\/strong> in the drop-down list. A panel will slide out from the right that allows you to create one.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll see more options for your estimate at the bottom of the page. You can add a message in the message box (or leave the default message if there is one). You can also Customize it<\/strong>, Make recurring<\/strong>, or Print or Preview<\/strong> it. When you\u2019re satisfied, Save it<\/strong>, and send it to the customer.<\/p>\n

Updating the Status<\/h2>\n

Your estimate will not be considered a transaction until you accept it. To do this, click the Sales<\/strong> link in the toolbar, then All Sales<\/strong>. Find your estimate in the list by looking in the Type<\/strong> column. Click the down arow next to Create invoice<\/strong> to see your other options there. You\u2019ll see that you can Print<\/strong> or Send<\/strong> it or save a Copy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Click Update status<\/strong>. In the window that opens, click the down arrow next to Pending<\/strong>. From the list that drops down, select Accepted<\/strong>. You can also mark it Closed<\/strong> or Rejected<\/strong>. If you choose any of the last three options, another window opens that allows you to enter the name of the individual who authorized the action and the date it was done.<\/p>\n

Click Create invoice<\/strong> if your estimate was accepted. You\u2019ll have three options here. You can invoice your customer for:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • The estimate total.<\/li>\n
  • A percentage of each line item.<\/li>\n
  • A custom amount for each line.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    After you\u2019ve made your selection, click Create invoice<\/strong> to open the form with the amounts filled in based on your preference. Complete anything that\u2019s unfinished but do not change any of the product or service line items<\/span>. Save it, and your invoice is ready to go. You can always check the status of your estimates by running the Estimates by Customer<\/strong> report.<\/p>\n

    Creating and tracking estimates is as easy as working with invoices. You may run into difficulties, though, if you need to do anything beyond that point with estimates, such as modifying it and re-submitting them. We\u2019re here to answer any questions you might have about this. It\u2019s important that you get your estimates and their subsequent invoices exactly right, so you don\u2019t lose money or sales. Let us know if you want to go over these concepts.<\/p>\n

    <\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Whether you sell products or services, you may need to create estimates in QuickBooks Online. Here\u2019s how it\u2019s done. It would be nice if you could just instantly invoice every sale. But sometimes your customers need to know what a particular purchase will cost before they make the decision to buy. So you need to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-337","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-quickbooks","7":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=337"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":339,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/337\/revisions\/339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roecpa.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}