Quoting and invoicing for roofers
SoloDesks is a quoting and invoicing app for self-employed roofers. Price the repair or the full re-roof with the access, the scaffold and the materials itemised, and send a professional PDF before the ladders are back on the van. Take a deposit that covers the tiles and lead you order up front, stage the payments on a job that runs a fortnight, and turn accepted quotes into invoices without typing them twice. It's built for one roofer and a labourer, not a firm with an office.
Free plan, no card needed. £12/month for unlimited when you want it.
Need something to send today? Free roofer invoice template or quote template: itemised, downloadable as a PDF, no signup.
Why roofers use SoloDesks
Scaffold and access on their own line, every time
The customer is comparing you to somebody who left the access out and plans to add it later. Put the scaffold on its own line with a real figure against it, so your quote reads higher and honest instead of lower and wrong, and you've got something to point at when they tell you the other one came in cheaper.
Quote the leak today, not Sunday night
An emergency leak is a phone call, a look from the ground and a promise to send something over. That something goes out three days later, if it goes out at all, and by then the tarpaulin is on and the panic has passed. Send the quote from the driveway while they can still picture the water coming through the ceiling.
A deposit for the lead you've already paid for
Reclaimed slates, lead, ridge tiles and a skip are money out of your account before you've touched the roof, and a merchant won't take back what's been cut. Send a deposit invoice against the job that covers the materials, so a customer who changes their mind in week one leaves you square rather than out of pocket.
Weather delays that don't delay the money
Three wet days turn a five-day job into a fortnight, and the balance sits waiting with it. Split it into stage invoices, strip and felt, then tile, then finish, so the rain costs you time instead of cash flow. Each invoice tracks its own paid or unpaid status against the same job.
Contractor work that's still legible at tax time
Work under a main contractor and a slice comes off your labour before you ever see it. A year of that is a mess if the only record is a thread of texts. Invoice properly with labour and materials on separate lines, because the deduction only ever applies to the labour, and there's a free CIS deduction calculator on the site if you want to check what a payment should have been.
Questions roofers ask
- What is the best quoting app for a self-employed roofer?
- The one that works from the driveway on a phone, because that's where you price the job. SoloDesks is built for solo roofers: itemise labour, materials and access, send a professional PDF quote on the spot, take a deposit against the tiles you've ordered, and turn the accepted quote into an invoice. The free plan covers 10 quotes and 10 invoices a month, no card required.
- How do I quote a roofing job?
- Separate lines for labour, materials, access and waste removal, then a plain statement of what you can't price yet. Nobody can see a deck until the tiles are off, so say that on the quote and put a figure against the likely fix rather than swallowing it. SoloDesks totals it into a PDF you can send before you leave.
- Should scaffolding go on the quote?
- Yes, on its own line with its own price. Burying it in the labour rate makes your quote look expensive for no visible reason, and leaving it off entirely means you're either eating it or having an awkward conversation later. An itemised quote is the one that wins the argument about why the cheap quote was cheap.
- Can I take a deposit before ordering materials?
- Yes. Raise a deposit invoice against the job that covers the tiles, lead and skip, then bill the balance in stages or on completion. Each invoice keeps its own paid or unpaid status, so a job you've fronted a pallet of slates for never turns into guesswork.
- What does SoloDesks cost?
- Nothing to start: 10 quotes, 10 invoices, 10 emailed PDFs and 3 one-tap accept-links a month, with unlimited clients and jobs. Pro lifts the limits, unlocks the premium PDF styles and turns on automatic chasing of overdue invoices. No contract, cancel anytime.
Reading for roofers
Free guides and calculators. No account needed for any of them.
Letter Before Action Template for an Unpaid Invoice (UK)
Small Claims Court for an Unpaid Invoice: What It Costs (UK)
Main Contractor Not Paying? UK Subcontractor Rights
Retention in Construction: How to Get Your Money Back
Should a Sole Trader Use a Debt Collection Agency?
Calculators most roofers actually open
Those are three of nine free calculators. No account needed for any of them.
What are you using now?
Honest write-ups of the four systems most roofers actually run on, including who should keep the one they have.
Send your first quote today
It takes about a minute to set up, and the free plan doesn't ask for a card.
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