Add prices, waste, markup and sales tax to your estimate
Where each part of a line's price comes from, how waste, markup and tax are calculated, and the difference between a number you type on a row and one that comes from a template or the project settings.
A line in Estimates is priced in four steps: quantity, waste, unit cost, markup. Sales tax comes in through templates. Here's where to set each one and how Plankore does the arithmetic.
The formula
For a line you price yourself:
- Qty (with waste) = Qty × (1 + Waste % ÷ 100)
- Cost = Qty (with waste) × (Cost / unit + Labor / unit)
- Total price = Cost × (1 + Markup ÷ 100)
So 100 SQ FT at 10 % waste, $2.00 material and $1.50 labor per SQ FT, with 15 % markup, comes to 110 × 3.50 × 1.15 = $442.75.
Templates work the same way for each part, with two extras: a part can round its quantity up to a whole unit, and a part can carry a tax rate. See Template inputs and formulas.
Set a price on a row
- Open Estimates.
- On the object's row, click Cost / unit and type the material cost for one unit.
- Click Labor / unit and type the labor cost for one unit.
- Press Enter, or click away.
Prices are per unit of what you measured: per square foot or metre for an area, per foot or metre for a length, each for a count. Switching the project's units converts your prices for you.
Waste
Waste % raises the quantity before it's priced. Type 10 for 10 %. Qty (with waste) shows the result, and that's the quantity every cost is multiplied by.
On a line that came from a template, waste is set in the template's part and can't be changed on the row. Hover the cell and Plankore says Set on the Assembly or Part this row came from. To change it for that one object, right-click the part in the Takeoff tab, choose Properties and edit Waste % under Pricing. To change it for future applies, edit the part in the Templates panel. See Create your own templates.
Markup
Markup is a percentage added after the line is priced. Type 15 for 15 %. It applies to material and labor together, and each row has its own, so you can mark up subcontracted work differently. There's no project-wide markup field. For the same markup everywhere, put it in your templates.
Sales tax
Sales tax isn't a column in the table. Instead, Sales Tax 1 and Sales Tax 2 are project settings on the Project Details tab, entered as percentages. Every template in the project that references them uses the same values, so you set them once. See Project Details and Settings.
A template part applies tax through its Tax % and its estimating formulas. Lines you price by hand on a row don't have a tax field, so if you need tax on them, either apply a template or add it to your markup.
Where a number comes from
| You want to change | Do it here | Affects |
|---|---|---|
| The price of one object you measured | The row in Estimates | That row only |
| The price of one part from a template, on one object | Right-click the part in the Takeoff tab, choose Properties, then Pricing | That object only |
| The price a template gives every time you apply it | Open the part in the Templates panel and edit Cost Each, Waste, Round up to and Markup | Future applies |
| Sales tax for the whole project | The Project settings card on Project Details | Every template line that uses it |
If something goes wrong
- Total price is $0.00. The row has no unit cost yet. Type one, or apply a template.
- The total doesn't match your calculator. Use Qty (with waste), not Qty, and add material and labor before applying markup.
- Sales tax didn't change anything. Only template lines that reference the tax settings use them. A hand-priced row ignores them.
- "Sales Tax 1 was not saved, enter a number". The field only takes numbers, like 8.25.
Still need help?
Email hello@plankore.ai and we'll reply within 48 hours. So we can find your work quickly, include the email you sign in with and the name of the project.