Build an early estimate before every product has been selected. Use the Preliminary Budget to plan item costs, additional costs, and design fees, then compare those estimates against actual product costs as you begin sourcing and making selections.

Create a project using Quick Start or Manual Setup.

If you plan to start with a budget, use the Manual Setup option. This lets you enter a client budget, markup, shipping percentage, and tax percentage during project creation. These fields are optional, and any values you enter will automatically populate your Budget when you set it up.

In your project, select Budgets, then Set Up Your Budget.

If you entered a client budget during project setup, it will already appear here. To change it, click the amount. If you have not entered one, select Set Total Client Budget. Enter the amount and press Enter to save.

2. Select New Row, then Blank row.
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3. Enter the item name and assign its Area. Item Code, Schedule, and Type are optional.

4. Enter your estimated designer cost, quantity, and markup, as applicable.

5. Review the extended client price before adding the next item.

Use Display Options to review your estimate by Areas, Schedules or Types. Each view shows the item costs allocated to those groups. Entering a group budget target does not add that amount to your Preliminary Total.

Review Additional Costs and Design Fees, including any values carried over from project setup, before comparing the Preliminary Total with your Total Client Budget.

Keep refining the Preliminary Budget until you are ready to move into product selection and active pricing. Moving to Working preserves a Preliminary Snapshot and is a one-way step. Review Move from Preliminary to Working Budget before advancing.