Setting Up Default Estimate & Invoice Settings

Who uses this: Admins — these defaults live in Company Settings, which only the Admin role can view. Availability: All regions.

Default estimate and invoice settings control the content and appearance of every new estimate and invoice your team creates, so records come out consistent without anyone setting them by hand each time. You set them once in Company Settings, and new estimates and invoices pick them up from there.

Overview

The defaults on this page live in three tabs under Company Settings > Estimates & Invoices.

Tab	What it holds
General	The wording, currency, tax label, default tax rate, due date behavior, numbering, company logo, and PDF font size.
Advanced	Cost basis, markup, commission, purchase order, estimate retention, parent billing, and estimate expiration options.
Preview Settings	The company information printed on customer PDFs and the fields that appear on estimate and invoice PDFs.

Some of these defaults can be changed on a single record when one estimate or invoice needs something different. You can change the tax rate on an individual estimate or invoice, the expiration date on an individual estimate, and the due date method and commission method on an individual invoice. The PDF display fields can also be overridden from the Preview screen of an individual estimate or invoice.

Before you begin

Confirm your user role is Admin. Only the Admin role can view Company Settings, where all of these defaults are set.
Decide on your company-wide standards first. The settings on the Preview Settings tab apply to all new estimates and invoices moving forward.
Have your logo file ready if you plan to add one. FieldPulse accepts jpg, png, and bmp files under 3 MB, and compresses the file to an appropriate size after upload.
Confirm the term your company uses for estimates — Estimate, Proposal, Quote, or Bid. The term you pick also appears on customer-facing PDFs.

Step-by-step setup

1. Set your general defaults

Select Company Settings in the left-side menu.
Select Estimates & Invoices in the header. The General tab opens to General Invoice Settings.
Set the fields under General Invoice Settings — Estimate Record Name, Currency Symbol Displayed, and Invoice Tax Name (Tax, HST, GST, or VAT).
Set the fields under Invoice Default Settings — Auto-Populate Due Date Upon, Default Due Date (days), Default Invoice Tax Rate (%), and Default Expiration Date for Estimates (days).
Scroll up and select Save.

Company Settings opened to the Estimates and Invoices General tab, showing Next Estimate/Invoice #, Estimate Record Name, Currency Symbol Displayed, Invoice Tax Name, and the Invoice Default Settings fields

2. Add your company logo

On the General tab, scroll down to Custom Company Logo and turn Use Custom Company Logo on.
Select Upload, then choose your logo file. The logo you pick appears next to the upload button.
Scroll up and select Save.
To see the logo in place, open an estimate or invoice record and select Preview. The logo prints in the document header.

3. Set the PDF font size

On the General tab, set PDF Font Size to 8, 10, 12, 14, or 16 pt. The FieldPulse system default is 8 pt.
Scroll up and select Save.

4. Set your advanced defaults

Select the Advanced tab under Estimates & Invoices.
Turn on the options your company uses and set the values that go with them. See the Advanced tab table below for what each option does.
Scroll up and select Save.

The Advanced Invoice Settings tab showing Enable Invoice Cost Basis, Invoice Cost Visibility, Enable Automatic Markup, Default Markup Percentage, Enable Commission Calculations, and Default Commission Calculation Method

5. Set your preview and PDF defaults

Select the Preview Settings tab under Estimates & Invoices.
Fill in the Invoice Preview Settings fields — Invoice Company Name, License Number, Phone Number, Address, and City — as you want your company information displayed on the PDFs you send to customers.
Work through Default PDF Settings - Estimates, Default PDF Settings - Invoices, and Additional PDF Items, turning on only the fields you want customers to see.
Scroll up and select Save.

Your defaults are set correctly when a team member creates a new estimate or invoice and the wording, currency, tax label, logo, and PDF fields all match your company standards without anyone adjusting the record.

Settings reference

Each tab under Company Settings > Estimates & Invoices holds a different group of defaults.

General tab

Setting	What it does
Next Estimate/Invoice #	Sets the number your next estimate or invoice is created with.
Estimate Record Name	Changes the term Estimate to Proposal, Quote, or Bid, including on customer-facing PDFs.
Currency Symbol Displayed	Sets the currency symbol shown on estimates and invoices.
Invoice Tax Name	Displays tax as Tax, HST, GST, or VAT.
Auto-Populate Due Date Upon	Controls when an invoice due date is set automatically. See the table below.
Default Due Date (days)	Sets the default due date length on new invoices, in days.
Default Invoice Tax Rate (%)	Sets the tax rate applied to new invoices. Can be changed on an individual invoice.
Default Expiration Date for Estimates (days)	Sets the default expiration length on new estimates, in days.
Use Custom Company Logo	Turns on the company logo upload for your estimate and invoice PDFs.
Display Logo In Email Communication Header	Prints your logo in the header of email communications.
PDF Font Size	Sets the font size on new estimate and invoice PDFs — 8, 10, 12, 14, or 16 pt. The system default is 8 pt.

Auto-Populate Due Date Upon

Option	When the due date is set
Creation Date	When the invoice is first created.
Finalization Date	When the invoice is finalized. Recommended for most users, because it accounts for the time it takes to prepare the invoice.
No Auto-Populated Due Date	Never set automatically — add a due date to each invoice by hand.

Both the default tax rate and the due date method can be changed on individual invoices when needed.

Advanced tab

Setting	What it does
Enable Invoice Cost Basis	Records the unit cost of line items so you can determine your profit on a job. The line item cost is displayed internally only. See Setting Up Cost Basis and Invoice Profitability.
Invoice Cost Visibility	Sets who can see line item unit costs — Managers only, or Managers and Service Agents.
Enable Automatic Markup	Applies a consistent markup to line items from unit cost and markup percentage to set the unit price automatically. See How to Use Markups & Margins.
Default Markup Percentage	Sets the markup percentage Automatic Markup applies.
Enable Commission Calculations	Calculates and stores commissions from a fixed amount, a percentage of gross sales, or a percentage of gross margin. See Setting Up Invoice-Level Commission.
Default Commission Calculation Method	Sets the commission method used on each invoice. The method and rate can be modified on an individual invoice.
Purchase Order Creation Based on Item Vendors	Set under Company Settings > Orders > General — see How to Manage Purchase Orders.
Keep an Estimate Record when Converting to an Invoice	Retains the original estimate record after it is converted to an invoice. If QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop is connected, this setting is on by default and does not appear on the Advanced tab.
Bill to Parent	Designates a parent customer as the billing party on a child customer’s estimates and invoices, and charges the parent’s card on file. See Setting Up Bill to Parent.
Disable Estimates if Expired	When on, a customer’s dynamic estimate link stops working once the estimate expires. When off, the link stays accessible.

Preview Settings tab

The settings on the Preview Settings tab apply to all new estimates and invoices moving forward.

Section	What you set there
Invoice Preview Settings	Your company name, license number, phone number, address, and city. The company name, address, and phone number are used on the preview invoice sent to the customer.
Default PDF Settings - Estimates	Which contract, line item, totals, customer, job, notes, payment request, and signature fields appear on estimate PDFs.
Default PDF Settings - Invoices	Which contract, line item, totals, customer, job, notes, payment request, and signature fields appear on invoice PDFs.
Additional PDF Items	The estimate PDF title, the invoice PDF title, and the footnote printed on each document.

Default PDF Settings - Estimates

Default PDF Settings - Estimates continued, showing the notes placement, payment request, loan offer, signature request, and custom field toggles

Default PDF Settings - Invoices

Default PDF Settings - Invoices continued, showing the notes placement, payment request, loan offer, signature request, and Default Include PDF toggles

Additional PDF Items

FAQs

Can I show both the per-item tax amount and the post-tax line total? Yes. On the Preview Settings tab, turn on Display Line Item Tax Amount and Display Line Item Total (Tax Inclusive) under the default PDF settings for estimates, invoices, or both. You can also override both toggles on a single record from its Preview screen. Can I change the term “Estimate” to something else? Yes. On the General tab, set Estimate Record Name to Proposal, Quote, or Bid, then select Save — the term you pick also appears on your customer-facing PDFs.

The General tab with an arrow pointing to the Estimate Record Name dropdown, set to Estimate

Can I start my estimate and invoice numbering at a specific number? Yes. On the General tab, enter the number you want your estimates and invoices to start at in Next Estimate/Invoice #, then select Save.

The General tab with an arrow pointing to the Next Estimate/Invoice # field

How do I remove the quantity display from invoices? Go to the invoice preview screen and turn the Display Line Item Quantities toggle off. The quantity then stops showing on both the dynamic invoice preview and the final PDF, for every line item and grouping on the invoice. Can I reposition my notes on the estimate or invoice PDF? Yes. Select the Display Notes Below Invoice Total on PDF checkbox and the notes print below the invoice totals, which keeps the most relevant pieces of the invoice — such as line items and pricing — prominent, especially on invoices with large notes sections.

An invoice preview with Display Notes Below Invoice Total on PDF checked and an arrow showing the notes printed below the invoice totals on the PDF

Will a dynamic estimate link still work after the estimate expires? It depends on the Disable Estimates if Expired toggle on the Advanced tab. When the toggle is on, the dynamic link becomes inaccessible once the estimate expires and the customer cannot open it. When it is off, the link remains accessible.

Still need help?

Reach the FieldPulse support team at support@fieldpulse.com or through the chat feature in the bottom-right corner of your screen.

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Setting Up Default Estimate & Invoice Settings

Overview

Before you begin