Create a quote
A quote is a binding price offer you send a customer. This guide shows how to create one and save it as a draft, ready to send. Creating a quote has no effect on your accounts.
Before you begin
- You need at least one active customer. If you haven't added them yet, see Add a customer.
- It helps to have your products and tax rates set up so you can add lines quickly, but you can also type lines by hand.
- The Quotes feature must be switched on for your organisation. If it's off you'll see a Feature Not Available message — see Quotes, estimates and proforma invoices explained.
Steps
- Go to Sales → Quotes and select New Quote.
- Choose the Customer the quote is for. Only active customers appear in the list.
- Set the Currency the quote is priced in. Change it if you're quoting in a currency other than the one shown.
- Check the Date. It defaults to today.
- Set the Valid Until date — this is required. It defaults to 30 days ahead. The quote expires automatically after this date, so choose how long you want the offer to stand.
- Add any Notes you want to appear on the quote (optional).
- Add your lines under Line Items. First check the Amounts are selector beside the heading: Tax exclusive (the default — prices are net, VAT added on top) or Tax inclusive (prices are gross with the VAT extracted, so each line's total equals quantity × the price you typed — handy when quoting retail prices). The choice is saved with the draft and carries onto the invoice if the quote is converted. For each line:
- Optionally pick a Product to fill in the description, unit price and tax rate for you.
- Enter a Description (required) — describe the work or item in as much detail as you need.
- Enter the Quantity and Unit Price.
- Choose a Tax Rate if the line is taxable, or leave it as No Tax.
- Select Add Line to add another row, or the red cross to remove one.
- Select Create Draft.
[Screenshot required: New Quote page showing the Customer, Currency, Valid Until fields and the Line Items editor]
What happens next
Your quote is saved as a Draft and you land on its details page. At this point:
- It has no number yet — the QUO- number is assigned when you send it.
- Nothing has gone to the customer, and your accounts are unaffected.
- You can Edit Draft, Send… it, or Delete Draft.
When you're ready to send it to the customer, see Send a quote or estimate.
Important notes
- Quantities and prices are held to two decimal places. Enter a quantity of at least 0.01 and a unit price of zero or more.
- Every line needs a description. A quote must have at least one line before it can be sent.
- A draft can be changed or deleted freely. Once sent, a quote is locked and you'd create a revision to change it.