The quote lifecycle
Draft to paid, every state a quote can be in, who moves it, and the automatic follow-ups along the way.
Updated September 11, 2026
Every quote walks a defined path, and knowing the stations explains everything the Quotes page shows you.
The path
Draft → (optional review) → Sent → Approved → In progress → Completed → Invoiced → Paid
- Draft: editable freely. Techs can create quotes in the field ("your heater is on its way out"); depending on your settings those arrive as pending review so the office prices them before anything reaches the customer.
- Sent: the customer gets a branded link (text or email) where they approve or decline online, with your logo and colors. You can also approve on their behalf for the handshake deals.
- Approved: work is authorized. You can require a deposit at approval; the customer pays it right on the approval page.
- Completed → Invoiced: finished work becomes an invoice with its own payment link. The invoice page always shows the true remaining balance, net of deposits and partial payments.
- Paid: money received, and if QuickBooks is connected, the invoice, payment, and fees sync over automatically.
The automatic follow-ups
- Reminders: an unanswered sent quote gets polite nudges on the schedule you set (how many days between, how many total). Configure on the Quotes page settings.
- Expiry: a quote past its valid-until date flips to Expired and its approval link stops honoring. Re-quote by reverting it to draft, which resets its reminder counters too.
Declines and cancellations
A declined quote keeps its history (the reason matters; it is pricing feedback). Cancelling is possible even after invoicing when you need to void a bill, and a refund that reopens an invoice can end in cancellation the same way. Nothing numbered ever hard-deletes, so your quote numbering never has holes an accountant will ask about.
Who sees what
Techs see their own quotes plus quotes on pools they service, and internal notes are hidden from them everywhere. Customers only ever see the approval and invoice pages; there is no login, just secure links.
The two settings worth deciding early
- Tech quotes require review (on or off): off means faster, on means priced by you.
- Deposit at approval: for jobs with real material costs, this is the difference between scheduling work and scheduling hope.