Understanding Your Estimate

Every estimate in ContractorScope AI is built from a set of clearly defined sections. This guide explains each section in detail so you know exactly what your clients see and how the numbers are calculated.

Estimate Header

The header is the top portion of your estimate and contains the key identifying information.

Your Company Information

This is pulled from your company profile and appears on every estimate automatically:

Company Name — Your registered business name.
Company Logo — Your uploaded logo, displayed prominently.
Address — Your business mailing address.
Phone and Email — Your business contact information.
License Number — Your contractor license number (if you have entered one in settings).

Client Information

This section shows who the estimate is for:

Client Name — The individual or company you are quoting.
Client Address — The client's mailing address.
Client Email and Phone — Their contact details.

Estimate Details

Key reference information about this specific estimate:

Estimate Number — Automatically generated. Each estimate gets a unique number (for example, EST-2026-0042). This helps you and the client reference the same document.
Estimate Date — The date the estimate was created or last updated.
Valid Until — The expiration date. After this date, the pricing may no longer apply. This is based on your default validity period but can be adjusted per estimate.
Project Name — The descriptive name you gave the estimate (for example, "Kitchen Renovation — 123 Oak Street").
Job Site Address — Where the work will be performed. This may differ from the client's mailing address.

Line Items

Line items are the core of your estimate. Each one represents a distinct piece of work, material, or cost that makes up the project.

Anatomy of a Line Item

Each line item has the following fields:

Field	What It Means	Example
Description	What the item is — clear enough for the client to understand	"Install 30-year architectural shingles"
Category	The trade or phase this item belongs to	Roofing, Electrical, Plumbing, Demolition
Quantity	How much of this item is needed	25 (squares), 500 (sq ft), 8 (hours)
Unit	The unit of measurement	sq ft, ln ft, each, hour, bundle, square
Unit Cost	Your cost per unit (before markup)	$85.00 per square
Markup	Profit margin applied to this item	20%
Client Price	What the client sees per unit (Unit Cost + Markup)	$102.00 per square
Line Total	Quantity x Client Price	$2,550.00
Taxable	Whether sales tax applies to this item	Yes / No
Notes	Optional details or specifications	"GAF Timberline HDZ, Charcoal color"

How Line Item Pricing Works

Here is how the math flows for a single line item:

Unit Cost:      $85.00
Markup (20%):   $17.00
Client Price:   $102.00 per square
Quantity:       25 squares
Line Total:     $2,550.00

The Unit Cost is your actual cost — what you pay for the material or what you pay your labor. The Markup is your profit margin, expressed as a percentage of the unit cost. The Client Price is what appears on the estimate the client receives.

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Clients see the Client Price and Line Total on their estimate. They do not see your Unit Cost or Markup percentage. The estimate the client receives shows a clean, professional price without revealing your margins.

Where Unit Costs Come From

You do not have to set every price by hand. ContractorScope AI picks each unit cost from the best source available, checked in order, and uses the first one that has trustworthy data for that item:

Professional cost book — a maintained, industry-standard labor-and-material cost book (Craftsman costbook data), adjusted to your region. This is the primary source ContractorScope AI prices from, and it covers both labor and material, so the whole line reflects real, local pricing.
Your own actuals — as you log real jobs (about 5 or more samples for an item), the platform collects your actual costs so pricing can be tuned toward the way you price for items the cost book does not cover.
Region-adjusted baseline — a seed price adjusted for your geography when the cost book does not cover the item.
Market index — a pricing index that keeps baseline numbers current.
Provisional fallback — a last-resort catalog price, flagged for you to verify, used only when nothing better is available.

Because the professional cost book sits at the top of this ladder, your estimates start from real, current, regionally-adjusted pricing. For a deeper walkthrough — including tile showers and the Schluter Kerdi system — see Shower Estimates & Estimate Versions.

Sections

Sections are groupings within the estimate that create visual separation. They are different from categories — a section is a labeled divider that you name yourself.

For example, a whole-home renovation might have sections like:

Phase 1: Kitchen
Phase 2: Master Bathroom
Phase 3: Exterior

Each section can contain multiple line items across different categories. Sections make long estimates much easier for clients to read and understand.

Pricing Breakdown

The bottom of every estimate shows a clear breakdown of how the total is calculated.

Subtotal

The subtotal is the sum of all line item totals (with markup already included). This is the price of all the work before tax and discounts.

Line Item 1:   $2,550.00
Line Item 2:   $1,800.00
Line Item 3:     $960.00
Line Item 4:   $3,200.00
                ---------
Subtotal:      $8,510.00

Markup

There are two ways markup can appear on your estimate:

Built-in Markup (Default): Markup is included in each line item's client price. The client sees only the final price per item. The subtotal already includes your margins. This is the most common approach and the default in ContractorScope AI.

Separate Markup Line: If you prefer, you can show markup as a single percentage applied to the whole estimate. This approach is less common but some contractors prefer the transparency.

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Most contractors prefer built-in markup because it presents cleaner pricing to clients. Showing a separate "markup" or "overhead and profit" line can sometimes lead to client pushback on margins. Choose the approach that works best for your market.

Tax

Tax is calculated on items marked as taxable. Here is how it works:

The system looks at each line item's Taxable toggle.
Taxable items are summed to get the taxable subtotal.
Your tax rate is applied to the taxable subtotal.

Taxable items total:    $4,350.00
Non-taxable items:      $4,160.00
Tax rate:               8.25%
Tax amount:             $358.88

What is typically taxable?

Usually Taxable	Usually Not Taxable
Building materials	Labor and installation
Fixtures and appliances	Permits and fees
Equipment purchases	Design and consulting
Supplies and consumables	Demolition labor

warning

Tax rules vary by state and even by county. Some states tax labor, some do not. Some have different rates for different types of materials. Always verify the rules for your jurisdiction. ContractorScope AI defaults can be configured per your local requirements, but you are responsible for applying the correct rates.

Discounts

Discounts appear after the subtotal and before tax (or after tax, depending on your configuration).

Percentage Discount — A percentage off the subtotal. Example: 5% off = $425.50 discount on an $8,510 subtotal.
Flat Discount — A fixed dollar amount. Example: $500 off.

Discounts include an optional description so the client understands why the discount is being applied (returning customer, seasonal promotion, bundled project, etc.).

The Final Total

The total is what the client owes if they accept the estimate.

Subtotal:        $8,510.00
Discount (5%):   -$425.50
Tax (8.25%):     +$358.88
                 ----------
Total:           $8,443.38

This total is the most prominent number on the estimate. It appears in large text at the bottom and is the figure the client will focus on.

Terms and Conditions

Below the pricing, every estimate includes terms and conditions. These protect both you and your client.

Payment Terms

How and when the client is expected to pay:

Due on Receipt — Payment expected when the estimate is accepted.
Net 15 / Net 30 — Payment due within 15 or 30 days of invoicing.
Progress Payments — Common for larger projects. For example: "50% due at signing, 25% at rough-in completion, 25% at final completion."
Custom Terms — Whatever payment arrangement you and the client agree on.

Standard Notes

These are the notes you configured in your company profile and estimate settings that appear on every estimate:

Warranty information
Insurance and licensing details
Scope limitations (what is NOT included)
Change order policy
Material allowance notes
Timeline expectations

Per-Estimate Notes

You can add notes specific to this particular estimate:

Special conditions discovered during the site visit
Material selections pending client decision
Access requirements or scheduling constraints
Assumptions you are making about the job

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Be specific about what is included AND what is not included in your scope. Clear scope definitions prevent misunderstandings and protect you from scope creep. For example: "This estimate includes interior painting of walls and ceilings only. Trim, doors, and exterior are not included."

Estimate Status

Every estimate has a status that tracks where it is in the process:

Status	What It Means
Draft	You are still working on it. Not visible to the client.
Sent	Delivered to the client. Waiting for their response.
Viewed	The client has opened and viewed the estimate in the portal.
Accepted	The client has accepted the estimate. Time to start the project.
Declined	The client declined the estimate.
Expired	The validity date has passed without a client response.
Revised	You updated the estimate after it was sent. A new version is available.

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You receive a notification when a client views, accepts, or declines your estimate. This helps you know when to follow up. If an estimate has been in "Sent" status for a few days with no activity, it might be time to give the client a call.

Versioning

When you revise an estimate after it has been sent:

The original version is preserved in the estimate history.
The revised estimate gets a new version number (V2, V3, etc.).
The client is notified that an updated estimate is available.
Both you and the client can view the complete history of changes.

This keeps a clear record of what was quoted and when, which is important for project documentation and dispute resolution.

What Clients See vs. What You See

It is important to understand that clients see a simplified version of your estimate:

You See	Client Sees
Unit cost and markup breakdown	Client price only
Markup percentages	Not shown
Your internal notes	Not shown
Draft estimates	Not shown
Estimate status tracking	Their own estimate status
Full category details	Grouped line items
Edit and revision tools	Accept / Request Changes buttons

The client-facing estimate is designed to look professional and be easy to understand, without revealing your internal pricing structure.

Next Steps

Ready to send your estimate? See Exporting and Sharing for all your delivery options.
Curious how the Investment ROI figure on an estimate is calculated? See Investment ROI.
Want to turn accepted estimates into invoices? Set up QuickBooks Integration.
Need help with your account or billing? Visit Account and Billing.

Estimate Header​

Your Company Information​

Client Information​

Estimate Details​

Line Items​

Anatomy of a Line Item​

How Line Item Pricing Works​

Where Unit Costs Come From​

Categories​

Sections​

Pricing Breakdown​

Subtotal​

Markup​

Tax​

Discounts​

The Final Total​

Terms and Conditions​

Payment Terms​

Standard Notes​

Per-Estimate Notes​

Estimate Status​

Versioning​

What Clients See vs. What You See​

Next Steps​