Requiring a customer e-signature on QuickBooks Online estimates
QuickBooks Online can require a customer to e-sign an estimate before approval or deposit, and any later edit sends it back for a fresh signature.
QuickBooks Online can require a customer to sign an estimate electronically before it counts as accepted, and it can collect a deposit in the same action. The switch that controls this is easy to miss, and the rules around editing a signed document surprise plenty of people, so we have laid out the full workflow here.
Where the toggle sits
The setting lives on the estimate form itself. Open + New and choose Estimate, then expand the customization panel on the right side of the screen. There you will find a switch labeled Require e-signature.
Fill the estimate in as you normally would: the customer, the products or services, and a deposit request if you want money up front. With the toggle on, either save the estimate or choose Review and send to email it straight to the customer.
One behavior to watch. The form remembers your last choice, so once you turn the requirement on, every new estimate starts with it on until you deliberately switch it off. If you only want signatures on certain jobs, that default is worth checking before each send.
Which plans include it?
The e-signature option is available in QuickBooks Online Simple Start, Essentials, Plus, and Advanced. If the toggle simply is not on the form, the plan tier is the first thing to rule out.
What does the customer do?
The customer receives an email containing a link to the estimate. They open it, check the total and the line details, then type their full legal name into the signature field and select Accept. That typed name and the acceptance date become the signature of record.
When the estimate carries a deposit request, payment is built into the same flow. The customer picks a method, whether debit card, credit card, or bank transfer, enters their payment details, and selects Pay. A single action signs the estimate, approves it, and takes the deposit.
Where the signed PDF goes
Once the customer signs, QuickBooks produces a PDF showing the signature, the typed legal name, and the date of acceptance. Copies go out by email to the customer and to the From address on the original send, and anyone listed as Cc or Bcc on that send receives a copy as well.
The signed PDF is also stored on the estimate record. To retrieve one later, go to All apps, open Customer Hub, then Estimates, locate the estimate, and choose View PDF in the Action column.
Editing a signed estimate starts the process over
This is the part that catches people. Open a signed estimate and change anything material: add, edit, or delete a line item, change the amount on an existing line, or adjust the deposit request, whether the amount or the percentage. A window appears titled “Your customer will need to sign again.”
Choose Continue and the platform accepts your changes, but the estimate status resets to Pending and the earlier signature no longer stands. Choose Go back and nothing changes; the signed version stays exactly as the customer approved it. After continuing, finish your edits and select Review and send. The customer receives a new email, signs the updated version, and QuickBooks generates a new signed PDF to replace the old one.
Why does an edit reset the signature?
The logic is straightforward. The signed PDF is a record of the exact document the customer approved. If the numbers underneath it could change silently, that record would stop meaning anything, so the software treats any change to lines, amounts, or the deposit as grounds for a fresh approval. It can feel like a heavy hand when you only meant to fix a typo, but it protects both sides: the customer never signs one document and receives another.
The short version
For anyone quoting jobs before starting work, the e-signature flow turns an estimate into something close to a signed agreement, without printing, scanning, or chasing paperwork. Three things are worth remembering. The toggle lives in the customization panel on the estimate form. It stays on for new estimates until you turn it off yourself. And any edit made after signing sends the document back to your customer for a fresh signature before the approval counts again.