Bills and Purchase Orders on Buildertrend’s mobile app give you the tools to manage job costs from anywhere with confidence. Create and track POs to outline work expectations and control spending, then log bills on the go by scanning receipts and submitting documentation right from the field. Whether you're managing vendors or tracking expenses, you’ll stay organized, accurate, and on budget without slowing down.
Navigating to Bills / POs
Start by choosing a job for your Jobs List.
Next, tap More, then choose Bills / POs from the Financial features list.
Note: If you do not select a specific job from the Jobs List before navigating to Bills / POs, you’ll see the Bills/POs from all your active jobs.
Purchase Orders
Adding a new Purchase Order
To add a new Purchase Order, tap the + icon from the Purchase Orders tab, enter the necessary details, and tap Save when you're finished.
Purchase Order fields
Purchase Order # – Buildertrend automatically generates a numerical ID, but you can enter a custom Purchase Order number to match your internal tracking system.
Title – Give the purchase order a clear, descriptive name to quickly identify its purpose.
Assignee – Select the internal team member or sub/vendor responsible for fulfilling the purchase order.
Materials Only – Toggle on if the purchase order is strictly for material purchases, excluding labor or services.
Scope of Work – Provide a detailed description of the tasks, materials, or services expected under the purchase order.
Link To – Toggle on to link the Purchase Order to a schedule item for dynamic scheduling.
Deadline & Time – Set a specific date and time in which the Purchase Order must be reviewed and approved.
Attachments – Take photos, scan documents, or upload supporting files related to the purchase order.
Variance – Toggle on to indicate this purchase order is a variance of a previous purchase order to track and account for any cost differences, helping maintain accurate budget visibility and control.
Variance Code – Select a predefined code to categorize the reason for the variance. This helps in reporting and analyzing budget deviations.
Related Bill / PO – Link this purchase order to the related bill or PO to streamline documentation, improve traceability, and maintain organized financial records.
Line Items – Add itemized costs associated with the Purchase Order by selecting Add Line Item.
💡Pro Tip
Utilize voice-to-text to quickly add your Scope of Work, rather than typing manually.
View/Edit existing Purchase Order
To view and modify an existing Purchase Order, tap on the Purchase Order, make your changes, then click Save when finished.
Related Items & Comments
In addition to creating and approving Purchase Orders, you can create Related Items like RFIs directly from the purchase order and leave comments to keep your team informed and aligned.
Releasing a Purchase Order
Once a Purchase Order has been created, you can release it to your assigned sub/vendor for review by tapping Save and Release from the Purchase Order.
The assigned sub/vendor will receive an email with the option to review and either Approve or Decline the proposed work.
If you granted your Sub/Vender with login access, they will have the option to review and either Approve or Decline the proposed work directly from their Sub/Vender Portal.
Internally Approving a Purchase Order
Buildertrend offers the flexibility to internally approve a Purchase Order on behalf of the sub/vendor. This is ideal for in-person approvals, verbal confirmations, or pen and paper sub/vendors.
From the released Purchase Order, tap the pencil icon next to the Approval request, click Manually Approve, then confirm you are approving on behalf of the sub/vendor.
When approving a Purchase Order on the mobile app, you can easily sign off using your finger, no additional tools needed!
Bills
Adding a new Bill from Scratch
To add a new Bill, tap the + icon from the Bills tab, select Add Bill, enter the necessary details, and tap Save when you're finished.
Bill fields
Bill # – Input your sub/vendor's bill number.
Title – Give the bill a clear, descriptive name to quickly identify its purpose.
Ready for Payment – A checkbox to indicate when the bill is finalized and ready to be paid.
Pay To – Select the subcontractor, vendor, or company the payment is being made to.
Name - If Misc was selected in the Pay To field, you can manually name who payment was made to (for example: Home Depot)
Description – Add details about the bill’s purpose, such as what was purchased or the service provided.
Date Billed – The date the bill was issued by the vendor or subcontractor.
Date Paid – The actual date the payment was made.
Link To – Toggle on to link the Bill to a schedule item for dynamic scheduling.
Deadline & Time – Set a specific date and time in which the Bill must be paid.
Variance – Toggle on to indicate this bill is a variance of a purchase order to track and account for any cost differences, helping maintain accurate budget visibility and control.
Variance Code – Select a predefined code to categorize the reason for the variance. This helps in reporting and analyzing budget deviations.
Related PO – Link this bill to the related PO to streamline documentation, improve traceability, and maintain organized financial records.
Line Items – Add itemized costs associated with the Bill by selecting Add Line Item.
Docs / Receipts – Take photos, scan documents, or upload supporting files related to the purchase order.
Adding a new Bill from a Purchase Order
Begin by selecting the purchase order and tap the Related Bills tab.
To add a new Bill, tap the + icon, select Adjust Total Percentage, and enter the percentage of the total Purchase Order you'd like to bill. Then, review/enter the necessary bill details and tap Save when you're finished.
Adding a new Bill from a Scan
You can quickly create a bill by scanning a paper receipt or invoice using your phone's camera. This feature streamlines documentation in the field by automatically converting scans into bill details, saving time and reducing data entry.
To add a new Bill from a scan, tap the + icon from the Bills tab and select Scan to New Bill. Use your phone's camera to scan and automatically attach the receipt to the bill.
Note: While this allows you a quick way to add receipts to a bill during it's initial creation, by utilizing the scan feature with the Cost Inbox you will be able to scan your receipt and have our OCR read the receipt and input the line items for you!
Check out this article for more information.
View/Edit existing Bill
To view and modify an existing Bill, tap on the Bill, make your changes, then click Save when finished.
Interested in Learning More? 📚
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If you have any questions or require additional support, feel free to chat with us, send an email: support@buildertrend.com, or give us a call at 1-888-415-7149. We’re always happy to help.