Creating a comprehensive construction estimate that includes materials, subcontractors, and labor is essential for effective project management. Utilizing Excel templates can streamline this process. Here are some free templates tailored for construction estimates:
ProjectManager's Construction Estimate Template: This template allows you to itemize labor, materials, and profit margins, providing a detailed breakdown of project costs. It's designed to help contractors and project managers create accurate budgets and track expenses.
Levelset's Construction Estimate Template: Available in Excel, Google Sheets, and PDF formats, this template offers sections for materials, labor, and other charges. It includes fields for item descriptions, quantities, unit prices, and total costs, facilitating clear communication with clients.
Smartsheet's Contractor Estimate Template: Designed for contractors, this template enables job estimating and budget tracking. It categorizes expenses from planning and site preparation to exterior finishes, allowing for a thorough list of projected costs and tracking of vendors, task status, and amounts due.
BuildBook's Construction Estimate and Proposal Template: This user-friendly template is designed for contractors, home builders, and remodelers. It includes inputs, pre-built formulas, and construction calculators to help create and share estimates and proposals with clients efficiently.
ConstructionLogs' Free Estimate Template for Excel: This template allows you to compute totals for each category or division, add tax, labor burden, bond, overhead, and profit. It's designed for construction project management professionals to begin estimating for bids or projects promptly.
These templates are customizable to fit the specific needs of your project, ensuring that all aspects of the estimate are covered comprehensively.
Create and Send Estimates in QuickBooks Online
Creating estimates in QuickBooks Online Advanced allows you to provide customers with detailed quotes or proposals for your services or products. Here's how to create and manage estimates:
1. Create an Estimate:
Navigate to the + New button and select Estimate.
Choose an existing customer from the dropdown or add a new one by selecting + Add new and entering the customer's information.
In the Product or service field, select the items you plan to include in the estimate. If the item isn't listed, you can add a new product or service by selecting + Add new and entering the necessary details.
Adjust the quantity and amount as needed.
Customize the estimate by selecting the gear icon (âš™ Manage) and toggling the desired sections on or off. A preview will display your changes.
Once finalized, select Save to store the estimate or Review and send to email it to your customer.
2. Update the Estimate's Status:
After sending the estimate, you can track its status:
Go to Sales and select the Estimates tab.
Locate the estimate and, in the Action column, select the dropdown and choose Update status.
Select the appropriate status, such as Accepted or Declined, and then select OK.
3. Convert an Estimate to an Invoice:
Once the customer accepts the estimate, you can convert it into an invoice:
Navigate to Sales and select All sales.
Find the estimate and, in the Action column, select Create invoice.
Make any necessary edits to the invoice.
Select Save to store the invoice or Review and send to email it to your customer.
4. Review Open Estimates:
To view all your estimates:
Go to Sales and select the Estimates tab.
You can sort estimates by date, number, customer, total, or status by selecting the respective column headers.
For a detailed report, navigate to Reports, search for and open the Estimates by Customer report, set your desired date range, and select Run report.
5. Delete an Estimate:
If you need to delete an estimate:
Go to Sales and select the Estimates tab.
Find and select the estimate you wish to delete.
Select More actions, then choose Delete, and confirm by selecting Yes.
For a visual guide on creating and managing estimates in QuickBooks Online Advanced, you can watch the following video:
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