Create an estimate

Start with the job story

Before entering numbers, clarify the basic job story:

• Customer name
• Project name
• Interior, exterior, or mixed project
• Main rooms or areas
• Expected conditions
• Customer language

Enter the scope

Use measurements, production assumptions, crew mix, paint products, primer, repair area, trim, doors, windows, and cabinet counts where they apply.

You do not need every advanced detail on the first pass. Start with the parts that materially change price.

Measure rooms without doing the math

Create a Project area for each room or exterior elevation that matters to the scope. For a room, enter length, width, and wall height once. CrafterOps calculates the gross wall area and ceiling area automatically. Use Paint ceiling only when the ceiling is in scope; it is off by default, and the measured ceiling stays visible without affecting price until it is selected. Keep standard doors and windows in the gross wall total; add only painted doors, window cut-ins, baseboards, cabinets, or special repairs when they need separate labor.

An exterior elevation can record its exterior paintable area. Saved area measurements roll up into the estimate totals, while area notes and photos stay attached to the room or elevation they describe.

Choose paint products by scope

An estimate has separate Interior paint default and Exterior paint default selections. A room inherits the interior default and an exterior elevation inherits the exterior default, so mixed projects do not accidentally price all paint from one product.

Use the product selector on a room or elevation only when that area needs a different product. For example, a bathroom ceiling can use a specialty ceiling paint while the rest of the rooms inherit the standard interior product. Material cost and gallons use the selected product's coverage and cost, and gallons are rounded up separately for each product.

Review pricing truth

Before sending, review:

• Direct cost
• Cost with overhead
• Recommended price
• Market adjustments
• Discount
• Target margin
• Final contract price

Save before previewing or delivering

Save the estimate before previewing, printing, or delivering it. The saved estimate remains the working version until you explicitly deliver it.

Previewing or printing is safe for internal review. It does not mark the estimate as sent and does not create an official revision.

The official customer version is created when you either send through the platform or record a manual handoff after sending it another way.

Common mistakes

• Confusing margin with markup
• Marking sent before reviewing customer scope
• Leaving the customer email blank
• Using internal notes as customer-facing scope
• Overriding price without writing the reason
• Forgetting to save a room or elevation after changing its measurements or paint override