Job costing is not required for doing Estimates, but industries that use a lot of products, such as landscaping, might benefit from job costing to keep track of variable and fixed costs, and also to determine a more accurate profit margin. You also can use Direct Costs to account for hourly wages for contract employees. For your own salary and office staff and expenses, you’d charge these to Variable & Fixed Overhead—in other words, your cost of doing business.
Using job costing in SA can help you assess your budget for a job, and determine whether the revenue will be enough to make the job worthwhile.
Set Up Job Costing Items for Estimates
You can set up job costing for estimates under Settings > Accounting > Job Costing.
On the “Direct Costs” tab, include overhead items that aren’t consistent, such as additional products or staff, and equipment rental. These are direct costs necessary for doing the job that is being estimated.
On the “Variable & Fixed Overhead” tab, include the cost of doing business. These are indirect costs, such as salaries for office staff, office rent, and equipment maintenance.