Create and send an estimate

An estimate in Dispatch Bros is a priced proposal your customer can open from a link, review, and sign online. You build it under Estimates (inside the Invoices group in the left sidebar): pick a customer, add line items, optionally require a deposit, then send it by email, text, or both. When the customer approves, you can collect the deposit, convert it to an invoice, or turn it into a project.

Before you start

• You need a login with permission to create estimates (owners, admins, and dispatchers have this by default).
• To offer online card payment on the estimate, connect Stripe first (Stripe Connect setup). Without it, estimates still work for approval and signing.
• Reusable line items live in your Items catalog (items catalog) — handy but optional.

Step 1 — Open the estimate builder

1. In the left sidebar, open Invoices → Estimates.
2. Click New Estimate. The Create Estimate page opens.

Step 2 — Fill in the details and pick the customer

• Under Estimate Details, set the Issue Date and an optional Valid Until date. Estimates past their Valid Until date expire automatically. You can also use Link to Job (optional) to attach the estimate to an existing job.
• Choose the brand identity under Sending As — the job source whose name, logo, and contact details appear on the letterhead. This field is required.
• In the Customer section, search by name, phone, or email to pick an existing customer, or enter a new customer's details manually.

Step 3 — Add line items

The Line Items section works in two modes, switchable with the Itemized / Free-form toggle:

• Itemized — structured rows with Description, Qty, Unit Price, and per-line discount and tax percent columns.
• Free-form — a plain text description of the work with a single price. One estimate can mix both row styles.

To add rows:

1. Click Add Line Item for a blank row, or
2. Click Saved Items to search your catalog and insert a saved item with its price, or
3. Click Use Template to apply a saved set of line items at once.

Step 4 — Set totals, deposit, and the card fee

The Summary section shows the subtotal, discounts, tax, and total as you type. Two settings here matter for getting paid:

• Deposit Required — enter a dollar amount, or tap the 10% / 25% / 50% chips to compute it from the current total. If a deposit is set, the customer is asked to pay it when they sign.
• Card fee paid by — choose Client (your card service fee percent is added when the customer pays by card) or Business (no fee is added; you absorb it).

Step 5 — Message, terms, photos, signature

• Client Message — a personal note shown on the estimate.
• Contract & Terms — two things live here. The terms text is your terms and conditions; the customer sees them in their own tab on the estimate page, and you can insert a saved set. Above it, "Add contract" attaches a signable contract that fills itself in from this estimate — see Build a contract from an estimate.
• Add Images — attach photos or files the customer can view.
• Client Signature — controls whether a signature line appears on the document.

Step 6 — Preview and send

1. Click Preview to see exactly what the customer will see — the preview uses the same renderer as the public estimate page.
2. Click Save Draft to store it without sending, or Send Estimate to open the send window.
3. In the send window, check Send via Email (one or more addresses, plus optional Cc, subject, and message — or pick a saved template), Send via Text (a phone number to text the link to), or both.
4. The Let client pay with a credit card checkbox controls online card payment on this estimate. Unchecked, the estimate is sent for approval only — no online payment.
5. Click Send.

What your customer sees

The customer opens a clean web page with your letterhead, the line items, totals, and any attached images or terms — no login needed. They can Print it, Approve Estimate (signing by drawing or typing their name), or use Request changes to decline with a reason. If a deposit is set, a Pay tab collects it after signing. You can see when the customer opened the estimate — the eye icon on the Estimates list turns green and shows the viewed date; before that it reads "Not yet viewed".

Troubleshooting

• "Add at least one line item." — every estimate needs at least one line item with a description before it can be saved or sent.
• You're asked to choose who the estimate is sent as — the Sending As field at the top is required; pick the job source whose branding this estimate should carry.
• The customer says there's no payment option — either the Let client pay with a credit card box was unchecked at send time, or Stripe isn't connected yet. Resend with the box checked, or finish Stripe Connect setup.
• The estimate isn't in the list — check the status tabs (All, Draft, Sent, Approved, Rejected) and the date filter. The empty state reads "No estimates yet. Create your first estimate." only when you truly have none.