Comparison
Vidaset vs an Excel quote template
Most production companies quote in a spreadsheet they built years ago. It works until a formula misses a new row, a fee is calculated from the wrong subtotal, or the PDF splits a line across two pages. Here is what changes when the production is costed in a tool made for it, and the quote comes out ready for the client.
| Excel or Google Sheets | Vidaset | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting a quote | Copy the last job's file and delete what doesn't fit | Pick from 286 production line items, or start from a preset you saved |
| Rates | Typed again, or looked up in an old file | Kept in a price list per currency and filled in for you |
| Fee, insurance, contingency | Formulas to check every time a row is added | Each one says what it is calculated from: production costs, the whole job, or everything above it |
| Discount | Applied by hand, easy to put on the wrong lines | You choose which categories it applies to |
| Options for the client | Separate tabs or separate files | Pricing variants and optional extras in one document |
| The PDF | Export, then fix page breaks by hand | Ten layouts in your brand colors, page breaks handled |
| Language and currency | A copy of the template for each | Seven languages and any of 158 currencies, set per quote |
| Where it lives | One file on one computer | Your account in any browser, on servers in the EU, and any quote can be saved as a file |
| Cost | Already paid for | Free plan with three quotes in total, then Pro |
When a spreadsheet is still the right tool
- You need purchase orders, payments and cost reports after the job is awarded. Vidaset compares actual costs with the quote line by line, but it does not run the money itself.
- An agency requires its own bid form, for example AICP. Use the form they ask for.
- You quote two or three jobs a year and your template already looks the way you want.
When Vidaset saves you time
- You send several quotes a month and rebuild each one from the last.
- Your fee and markups are calculated from a subtotal, and you have been bitten by a formula before.
- You want to offer the client two or three options instead of one number.
- The PDF is part of how you win the job, and it should look like it.
Moving your Excel quote into Vidaset
Copy the rows
Select the lines in Excel or Google Sheets, with name, quantity, days and rate in that order.
Paste into the estimate
Click a cell in the Vidaset estimate and paste. The block fills in to the right and down, one row per line.
Set fees and send
Add your production fee, pick a layout and your colors, and download the PDF.
Questions
Can I import my Excel file?
There is no file import. Copy the rows and paste them into the estimate: name, quantity, days and rate land in their columns. It is usually faster than mapping a file.
Do I lose my quotes if I stop paying?
No. They stay on your account and you can still open, edit and print them, with a small Vidaset mark in the footer. Only new quotes need Pro.
Is Vidaset budgeting software?
Partly. You cost the whole production in it, with crew, days, kit, post, fees, markups and discounts, and it turns that into the client quote. After the shoot it compares the quote with actual costs and shows the margin you kept. What it does not do is run purchase orders, payments and cost reports, the way Movie Magic Budgeting or Saturation do.
Where is my data stored?
On your account, in a database on servers in Frankfurt. Turn on encryption in your account settings and they are encrypted in your browser first, so nobody but you can read your quotes, not even us.
See your last quote in Vidaset
30 days of Pro for every new account. No card required.