How do I turn a quotation into an invoice?

A quotation is a document with no accounting and no stock effect: it creates no entry and reserves no goods. It is simply a promise of a price for a limited time.

Creating the quotation

1. Open Sales → Quotations — Figure 1 — then Add quotation.
2. Choose the customer and add the items and prices — Figure 2 — and set the expiry date, which is what protects you if prices rise.
3. Print it or send it to the customer; it stays a draft until they come back to you.

When the customer accepts

Open the quotation and press Convert to invoice — or Convert to sales order if delivery is in stages. Every line, price, and discount carries across as it is, so you neither re-key nor mistake a price you already promised.

The difference between the three documents

• Quotation — a promise, with no effect.
• Sales order — a commitment on both sides; it tracks delivered against remaining and creates no entry.
• Invoice — the only document that draws down stock, creates the entry, and puts the amount on the customer’s balance.

Notes

• Do not key the invoice by hand when a quotation exists; converting links the two documents, so you can see what share of quotations actually converts.
• Always set an expiry date; a quotation with no limit comes back to you a year later with the customer demanding that price.
• A quotation does not reserve stock; if the quantity is tight, warn the customer that the offer is subject to availability.