Interior Design Estimate Template: Fields You Cannot Skip

An interior design estimate template works when every line answers four questions: what exactly the item is, how much must be bought, what it costs you and the client, and when it has to arrive. If one answer is missing, the estimate becomes a price list that cannot drive procurement. Below are the fields to keep fixed in every estimate, why each one matters, and worked examples you can copy into your own template.

Identification fields: what exactly are you buying

These fields remove ambiguity. Two people reading the same line, such as the designer and the person who places the order, must come to the same conclusion about the product.

Field	What to enter	What goes wrong without it
Room	The room or zone where the item goes	No budget per room, no check of quantities against room area
Category	Furniture, lighting, tiles, textiles and so on	No grouping, no link between the item and a construction phase
Name	Short name the client will recognise	The client cannot find the item in a long list
Photo	One clear image of the exact variant	The client approves a text description and is surprised on delivery
SKU or model code	The supplier's exact code, including the variant	The wrong colour or size is ordered
Dimensions	Width × depth × height, or tile format	The item does not fit the space or the delivery route
Finish and colour	Material, colour name or code	Two variants of one model get mixed up
Supplier and link	Company name and a product page URL	Nobody can verify the price or the availability later

Keep one fact in one field

Do not write the colour and the size into the name column. A name like "Oak table 180 matte" cannot be filtered or checked, while separate fields can. This matters most when you later need to send a supplier only their own items.

Price fields: separate your cost from the client price

The most common template mistake is a single "Price" column. You need at least the chain from list price to client price, so you always know what the studio earns on each line.

1. Enter the list price (MSRP) in the supplier's own currency.
2. Enter the discount you receive from the supplier, as a percentage.
3. Calculate the purchase price: list price minus discount.
4. Apply your markup to the purchase price.
5. Take the result as the client price and round it only at this last step.
6. Calculate profit as client price minus purchase price.

Worked example

Illustrative numbers: a sofa has a list price of 1,000 EUR and your supplier discount is 15%. The purchase price is 850 EUR. With a 25% markup the client price is 1,062.50 EUR and the profit is 212.50 EUR.

Note that a 25% markup on cost is not a 25% margin. Here the profit is 20% of the client price. Decide which of the two your template shows and label the column clearly. For quick checks, use the markup calculator.

Currency and totals

Store each item in the currency of the supplier and show the converted amount in the project currency. This way a price change in one currency does not force you to retype the line. Also add a flag for "price on request" so that such lines do not silently count as zero in the total.

Quantity fields: net amount, reserve and packaging

For furniture the quantity is simply a number. For tiles, flooring, wallpaper and paint, one quantity field is not enough, because you buy whole packages and need a reserve for cutting and waste.

Field	Example value	Purpose
Unit	m²	What the net quantity is measured in
Net quantity	18.4	Area or amount actually needed
Reserve, %	10	Cutting, breakage, later repairs
Pack size	1.44 m² per pack	Smallest amount you can buy
Quantity to buy	15 packs	The number that goes into the order
Price basis	per m² and per pack	Lets you compare offers from different suppliers

Worked example

Illustrative numbers: the net floor area is 18.4 m² and the reserve is 10%, so you need 20.24 m². At 1.44 m² per pack that is 14.06 packs, so you buy 15 packs, which is 21.6 m². If the tile costs 62 EUR per m², one pack is 89.28 EUR and the line total is 1,339.20 EUR. The client price must be calculated from the packs you buy, not from the net area.

Split items across rooms

If one product goes into several rooms, keep it as one line with a quantity per room. You get one purchase and one payment, but still see how much each room costs. Check that the sum of room areas matches the project area before you calculate materials.

Status, dates and payment fields

A template that stops at price is a quotation. A template that tracks status and dates is a working procurement tool. These are the fields that make the difference:

• Approval status: requires approval, approved, rejected. Rejected items must drop out of the totals but stay visible.
• Order status: ordered, in transit, delivered, accepted, installed.
• Delivery time: the supplier's lead time, preferably in business days.
• Order-by date: the last day you can place the order without delaying the site.
• Planned and actual delivery dates: kept separately, so you can see how often dates slip.
• Payment status: invoice requested, advance paid, fully paid, with the amounts.
• Documents: invoice or quote number and the file or link.
• Measurement flag: yes for built-in furniture, wall panels, windows and interior doors, where the supplier needs site dimensions first.

How to calculate the order-by date

1. Take the date when the item is needed on site, usually the start of installation.
2. Subtract the delivery time quoted by the supplier.
3. Subtract a buffer for approval and payment, for example one week.
4. Write the result in the order-by column and sort the estimate by it.

Illustrative example: installation starts on 1 June, delivery takes six weeks, and the buffer is one week. The order-by date is 13 April. If the client has not approved the item by then, the delay is already visible in the estimate.

Client version and internal version

The same estimate is read by different people. The client needs a clear specification. You and your procurement manager need the full economics. Design the template so that one data set produces both views, rather than keeping two files that drift apart.

Field	Client version	Internal version
Photo, name, SKU, dimensions	Yes	Yes
Quantity and client price	Yes	Yes
List price, discount, purchase price	No	Yes
Markup and profit	No	Yes
Supplier invoices and payments	Only if agreed	Yes
Delivery dates	Yes, usually actual only	Planned and actual

Checklist before sending an estimate to the client

• Every line has a room, a photo and a SKU.
• No line has an empty price or an unmarked "price on request".
• Packaged materials show whole packs, not net area.
• Rejected items are excluded from the total.
• Internal columns (purchase price, markup, profit) are hidden.
• Alternatives are shown under the main item and clearly labelled.
• The total matches the sum of the rooms.

How to do it in ArchiBoard

The fields above are already built into the estimates feature, so you do not have to maintain a spreadsheet template. The full description of every screen is in the estimates help chapter.

1. Open the project and go to Estimates, then click "Add item". Paste the product link and click "Auto-fill". The name, photo, price and currency, brand, SKU, dimensions, availability, delivery time, packaging and unit are filled in. Check the fields and click "Save item".
2. If you already have an estimate in Excel, CSV, PDF or Google Sheets, click "Import", upload the file or paste the link, check what each column means, choose the room and click "Import". Details are in the import chapter.
3. Open the item card and enter the net quantity, the reserve in percent, and "Pieces per package" or "m² per package". The "Qty" column then shows how much to buy in whole packages.
4. Switch the estimate view to "Economics" to see the chain MSRP, supplier discount, procurement, markup, profit and client price. If you change an amount, the percentage is recalculated, and the other way round.
5. Use the checkboxes for the column groups Description, Finances, Delivery and Payment to show only the fields you need. For the supplier, advance, invoices and dates, open "Vendor & payment" in the item row.
6. Click the status of an item and choose "Change Status" to move it through approval, order, delivery and acceptance. You can add a comment and an attachment.
7. To send the client a clean version, click "Export to PDF", choose the rooms, set prices and photos on or off, and click "Download PDF". Purchase price, markup and profit are not included in the client PDF.

FAQ

How many fields should an estimate template have?

Enough to answer what, how much, at what price and when, which is usually 20 to 25 fields. More than that slows you down, because nobody fills them in. Fewer than that, and you will keep asking suppliers and clients for missing data. Make the identification, quantity and price fields mandatory and keep the rest optional.

Should the client see the purchase price and markup?

That depends on your contract model and on what you agreed with the client. If you charge a fee or a markup that is not disclosed line by line, use a client version without internal columns. If you work openly on a cost-plus basis, show them. Either way, keep the internal fields in the data so profit stays visible to you.

Which extra fields do custom-made items need?

Add the supplier quote number and date, a measurement flag with planned and actual dates, the production lead time and the approval of drawings or samples. Custom items often have an advance payment, so also add advance amount and remaining balance. The quote total should become the purchase price of the line.

How do I show the client a cheaper alternative?

Add the alternative as a separate row under the main item, with its own photo, SKU, supplier and price. Label it clearly as an alternative. In the client document show two totals: the base total and the total with alternatives. This way the client compares options without losing the approved base specification.

Do I need a separate template for each project type?

No. Keep one set of fields and change only the categories and the room list. A bathroom renovation and a furnished apartment need the same price, quantity, status and date fields. What differs is how many items need measurement or packaging, and those are optional fields of the same template.