The Estimate builder lets you preview project costs, margins, and timelines, helping you assess profitability. You can also share estimate information with your clients.
To confirm if your paid subscription has access to the Estimate builder feature, visit our pricing page.
By default, only account Owners and Partners can access estimates.
To access the Estimate builder, go to the Client Management tab in the left sidebar and select Estimates.
Here you can create your first estimate. You'll be required to add an estimate 'Title', 'Client' and you'll have the option to add a 'Rate Card':
Once you've created an Estimate, you can break it down into the difference sections of the project (e.g. research, design, implementation):
Per section, you can add the service items that you want to calculate your profit margins for, including the relevant service information:
Item - your service title
Description - a description of your service
Unit - select flat fee, hourly, or day rate
Quantity - total quantity
Role - the role responsible for the service
Price - the pricing for the service
Markup - the markup percentage
Discount - include any discounts (optional)
Assignee - assign the service to a team member
Cost Rate - the rate that the service will cost the business
Dates - the date range that the project will take place
When you add these details the following information will auto-fill:
Total Cost - total project cost
Estimate - the amount of hours
Profit - total profit
Margin - the margin percentage
Once all of this information is added, you'll see a full breakdown of the Estimate Totals for your total price, total cost, profit and margins:
Additionally, when you create a Deal in Bonsai, you can navigate to the Deals' 'Estimates' tab to connect or review connected Estimates for that client:
