Create a quote: Overview
From proposal to payment, all in one link: how a quote moves, who moves it, and where each step is explained.
A quote in Cord is a living document with its own link. Your team builds it in the internal editor; your client reviews, negotiates, signs, and pays from the link without creating an account. The quoting engine is the same in the 12 countries where Cord operates (Mexico, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, and Peru); what changes between countries is the fiscal document that closes the cycle (see Approval and invoicing).
Requirements
- Permission: creating, editing, sending, and resending requires the Quotes permission. Marking a quote as approved or rejected, and deciding internal approvals, requires Approvals. The account owner has every permission.
- Plan: every plan can quote. Limits change by plan (see below).
- Country: any of the 12 markets. CFDI 4.0 stamping is exclusive to Mexico.
Quote statuses
Cord uses eight statuses. They are the same in the app, the public link, the API, and webhooks.
| Status | What it means | Who triggers it |
|---|---|---|
| Draft | Saved, but the client doesn’t have an active link yet. | The seller, with Save draft. A quote waiting for an internal approval also stays a draft. |
| Sent | The link is active and the client can review it. | The seller, with Create and send, Send to client, Modify and resend, or by dragging the card on the board. Also a manager with Approve and send. |
| Viewed | The client opened the link for the first time. | The client. Only a real open with the tab visible counts; your own preview doesn’t (see What your client sees). |
| Approved | The client signed the full proposal or only some lines. | The client, with Approve quote and Confirm and sign. The seller can use Mark approved if approval came another way. |
| Rejected | The proposal closed without a sale. | The client, with Reject and Confirm rejection. The seller with Mark rejected. |
| Expired | The validity date passed without a decision. | Cord’s daily process, which checks sent or viewed quotes whose validity date has passed. A workflow can also expire it earlier. |
| Paid | The charge is settled. | Cord, when it confirms an online payment; or the seller with Record payment. |
| Invoiced | The fiscal or commercial document was issued. | The seller, with Stamp CFDI 4.0, Issue invoice, or Issue pro forma. |
Valid transitions are strict. For example, only a Sent or Viewed quote can be approved or rejected, and only an Approved or Invoiced quote can move to Paid. If two people act on the same quote at the same time, the first one wins and the second is asked to reload and try again.
Expired isn’t final. An Expired quote still allows Modify and resend. When you click Send new version, the validity starts over from that day with the same length it was sent with (if it was 30 days, it expires in 30 days) and the quote goes back to Sent. If you need a different length, client, currency, or terms, use Duplicate quote (see Quote management).
The workflow, step by step
- Build with AI (optional). Paste the client’s order or upload a photo or PDF and Cord fills the lines from your catalog.
- Choose the client. In step 1, Who are you quoting?, you search for or create the client and choose their payment terms.
- Add products and negotiate. In step 2, What are you quoting?, you add products, kits, or free lines and adjust each line’s Price without touching your list price.
- Set the terms. In step 3, Terms, you choose validity, how it’s paid (single payment, deposit and balance, or milestone plan), currency, and monthly retainer.
- Review and send. In the Review and send summary you decide whether prices already include tax, apply a discount or coupon if you want one, confirm the total, open the Preview, and send the link by email, WhatsApp, or wherever you talk to your client.
- Negotiate on the link. The client asks, comments on lines, or proposes a counteroffer; you reply with a new version.
- The client signs. Cord keeps the technical evidence of the approval.
- Collect and invoice. Payment is enabled on the link and you issue the document that applies to your country.
Every guide in this section
Create a quote
- Generate with AI: text, PDF, or photo turned into lines.
- Client data: create or pick a client, price tier, and tax data.
- Products and pricing: catalog, kits, volume, suggested price, and margin.
- Discounts and coupons: a discount on the subtotal by percentage or amount, and coupons with validity dates and a usage cap.
- Advanced options: the Terms step (validity, how it’s paid, currency, and retainer), tax-inclusive prices, and defaults.
- Preview and sending: summary, preview, autosave, shortcuts, sending, and what the client receives.
- Internal approvals: discount, amount, and margin caps that require sign-off.
- Approval and invoicing: from the client’s yes to the fiscal document.
Interaction and closing
- What your client sees: the link step by step and which signals your team gets.
- Chat and comments: the general conversation and per-line threads.
- Negotiation and counteroffers: counteroffer, partial approval, rejection, and versions.
- Approval and evidence: the signature and its audit trail.
Sales management
- Home and views: Home widgets and the quotes board.
- Quote management: filters, actions by status, duplicating, and versions.
- Clients and statements: directory, client profile, import, and export.
- Tasks and follow-up: to-dos with due dates.
- Notifications: what Cord alerts you about and through which channel.
- Reports and performance: what each report measures.
Limits by plan
| Limit | Free | Starter | Pro | Scale | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active quotes (draft, sent, viewed, or approved) | 5 | 50 | No cap | No cap | No cap |
| Quote sends per month | 5 | No cap | No cap | No cap | No cap |
| AI builds included per month | 3 | 20 | 50 | 500 | No cap |
| Lines per quote | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 |
| Live presence and client attention | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Internal approvals | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Paid, invoiced, rejected, and expired quotes don’t count as active. On Free, the AI cap is hard; from Starter up, AI overage is billed. When you hit the active-quote cap, Cord tells you how many active quotes your plan allows and asks you to free up space or upgrade. Plan details live in Your Cord subscription.
Common problems
I don’t see “New quote”. Your role doesn’t have the Quotes permission. Ask whoever manages the team.
I can’t create more quotes. You reached your plan’s active-quote cap. Close the ones that won’t move forward (reject them or delete drafts) or change plans.
The client says they can’t approve. Check the status: if it’s Expired, Rejected, or already Approved, the link no longer accepts a signature.
Frequently asked questions
Does Cord work for businesses outside Mexico? Yes. A quote can use any currency Cord offers (MXN, USD, CAD, BRL, EUR, GBP, COP, ARS, CLP, and PEN, plus JPY, CNY, CHF, and AUD for international trade). Online payment is available with Cord Payments in Mexico, the United States, Canada, Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, and with Mercado Pago in Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, and Peru. Without a connected rail you can quote, invoice, and record payments you receive outside Cord.
Does CFDI 4.0 stamping work in any country? No: stamping with the SAT is exclusive to Mexico. In Spain, Cord issues the invoice with a Verifactu record (in beta) from Starter, with the company certificate uploaded; without it, it issues a pro forma. In the other markets it issues a standard invoice; in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Peru, the invoice authorized by the tax authority when issuing is active on your account. See Approval and invoicing.
Do I need technical knowledge? No. Create your account, upload your catalog, and send your first quote. The API is optional.