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BUSINESS GUIDES

Optional Items in a Quotation: Keep the PDF Total Clear

September 24, 2026

A customer asks for a basic service and wants to know the price of a useful extra. You include both in the quote, but now the grand total looks as if the extra is compulsory. The customer has to ask which amount they actually need to approve.

Keep the base scope and optional extras distinct, and make it explicit which items are included in the quoted total. Do not let an optional line silently increase the main total before the customer selects it.

Base price, optional price and selected price

The base price covers the defined core offer. An optional price tells the customer what an additional item would cost. The selected price is the total for the exact combination the customer agrees to buy.

These figures can all be useful, but they should not compete for attention as three unexplained totals. Label them in plain language and use the same currency and pricing basis throughout.

Worked example: a website handover package

A freelancer quotes USD 600 for a website handover package. A training session is available for USD 100, and an additional document pack costs USD 75. For simplicity, this example excludes taxes and other adjustments.

SelectionPrice
Base package onlyUSD 600
Base package plus trainingUSD 700
Base package plus both extrasUSD 775

If the customer has not selected anything yet, USD 775 should not appear as an unexplained compulsory total. Equally, showing USD 600 while suggesting that both extras are included would understate the selected price.

How to use a simple quotation generator

In the quote PDF generator, ordinary item rows contribute to the calculated total. For an initial base quote, enter the included items as priced rows and describe unselected optional extras in Notes, with their prices and a clear “not included in total” label.

For example: “Optional training session: USD 100. Optional document pack: USD 75. These extras are not included in the USD 600 base total and require written selection.”

If the customer selects training, prepare a revised quote with training as a priced row. The main total should then be USD 700 before any applicable adjustments. Save a new version and identify which earlier quote it replaces.

Do not represent paid extras as free lines

A zero-priced line saying “Training session” can look as though training is included at no charge. Writing “optional” somewhere else on the document may not remove the confusion.

Similarly, inserting a negative adjustment to cancel unselected extras can make the arithmetic harder to understand. A clear base quote with explanatory notes, or separate quotations for distinct selections, is usually easier to review.

Record exactly what the customer accepts

Ask the customer to identify the quotation number, version and selected extras. “Looks good” is less useful than “We accept QT-026-R2, including the training session, at USD 700 before the stated adjustments.”

Keep the acceptance with the final selected quote. Before using Copy to Invoice, confirm that the quotation contains only the agreed chargeable items. The invoice generator should reflect the approved scope and billing stage, not every optional idea discussed.

A checklist before exporting the PDF

  • The base scope is described clearly.
  • Unselected extras are labelled as excluded from the total.
  • Every optional price uses the same currency and stated tax basis.
  • The selected total matches the actual chosen items.
  • The quotation number and version identify the current offer.
  • The PDF does not contain conflicting totals in old notes.

Common questions

Should every extra have a separate quotation?

Not necessarily. A short list of options can fit in notes. Separate quotations are useful when the alternatives have substantially different scope or terms.

Can I add an optional extra to the invoice later?

Only after it has been agreed and becomes billable under the arrangement. Record the approval and describe it as an additional agreed item.

Create a quotation PDF with a clear base price, then update it when the customer confirms their selection.

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