Estimating with Microsoft Excel

If you’re still using a yellow pad to create estimating spreadsheets, it might be time to consider computerized estimating software. After all, you probably have a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet program on your computer already.

“We did some surveying of builders around the nation and found that a high percentage—about 38 percent—is doing computerized estimating,” says Jay Christofferson, a licensed general contractor and chairperson of the construction management program at Brigham Young University. “And Excel is used more for estimating than any single program. It’s kind of the default spreadsheet. Everybody has it. So, they don’t have to buy it.”

In addition to being inexpensive to use, computer spreadsheets like Excel can take the drudgery out of doing estimates and make you more efficient. And they save time. “Well-developed spreadsheets may save builders 70 to 80 percent of the time needed to put together an estimate,” Christofferson says.

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According to Christofferson, setting up an Excel spreadsheet is much like preparing an estimate by hand. “It takes a littler longer to set up the first time, but once it’s created, all of the estimates you do afterwards can be done in a fraction of the time,” he says. “Once your estimating spreadsheet is set up, you only need to enter quantities for materials and labor. And many quantities can be automatically calculated by formulas that you create.”

The summary sheet. The summary sheet is a quick overview of all construction costs broken down into major work categories. Most often, they are divided into project overhead and hard costs, and organized according to the sequence of construction. Information or formulas can be entered into cells in the spreadsheet.

The summary sheet also can be used as a cost control tool as the job progresses. “As invoices are paid or draws are taken, variances to the original budget estimate can be monitored and corrections can be made to control costs,” Christofferson says.

Detail sheets. These are pages that contain actual quantities and unit prices for each construction category. Formulas can be entered easily to perform the calculations that typically take up so much time in the estimating process. Once the detail sheets are created, the estimator need only enter quantities for the different items. Line item totals and category totals are calculated automatically and category totals on the detail sheets can be linked to the summary sheet so that it automatically copies the total from the detail sheet.

“Excel spreadsheets can be as simple or as complex as you want to make them,” Christofferson says. “Most people will write up their lists and they know how to do formulas. That’s easy enough to do. But, when users start understanding Excel functions like data validation and VLookup (vertical lookup), then the automation process really speeds up and they can look up information from databases.”

More step-by-step instructions on how to create a fully customized estimating program can be found in Christofferson’s book, Estimating with Microsoft Excel: Unlocking the Power for Home Builders.

There is plenty of help available. Christofferson has developed Estimator PRO, an Excel-based estimating program designed to help small- to medium-sized building and remodeling companies develop customized templates and promises detailed, accurate estimates in less than 90 minutes.

In addition, Synapse Software offers stand-alone Excel-based estimators that set up separate templates for various job types, including: Mini Estimate, which enables quick pricing for small jobs such as powders rooms and porch/deck work; Quick Estimate, which uses your own historical data to produce new home or addition estimates in minutes; and Room Estimate, for developing separate estimates for multiple areas of a residential dwelling or commercial building.

CPR International offers Excel-based software programs for estimating remodeling projects, paint costs, repairs, flooring installations and roofing.