Estimate Every Type of Residential Roofing

With just a single set of roof measurements, you can bid multiple roof coverings, with multiple upgrade options for...

• Asphalt Shingle Roofing
• Concrete and Clay Tile Roofing
• Cedar Shingles and Shakes
• Metal Roofing
• Natural Slate Roofing
• Composite and Metal Tile Roofing

Step 1 - Enter the Roof Measurements

You can enter summarized or plane-by-plan dimensions from:

• Roof-top measurements
• Architectural Roof Plans
• Scaled Images (Google Maps, drone pictures, jobsite sketches)
• Summarized Roof Geometry (aerial image reports, Xactimate, onscreen plan measurements)

Step 2 - Review Your Takeoffs

Flip through the tabs of all the different roof coverings and unlimited upgrade options.

You can see everything in detail, including:

• Itemized takeoffs and pricing
• Sales tax, markup and sales commission
• Roof Complexity Waste Forecast™
• Roof Comparative Cost Index™

Step 3 - Compare All The Prices

This one-pager compares all the numbers for each type of roofing and upgrade options.

You can easily compare:

• Total Price
• Price Differences
• Cost per Square
• Useful Life of Roofing (how many years the roof should last)
• Cost Index (great for comparing the real value of upgrading to longer-lasting roofing)

Step 4 - Sell Bigger Jobs

And bigger jobs means higher profits and bigger sales commissions.

When you enter just one set of roof measurements into the software, you're actually estimating an almost unlimited number of roofing choices... all at the same time.

So, you'll never have to go back to the office to refigure things. It's all there for you on the "Roofing Price, Upsell and Cross-sell Report".

Become an Expert in a few hours

The tutorial videos and work-along lessons are all designed to turn anyone into a roof estimating expert.

You'll have full access to the free online training, so you can return to it whenever you need it.

This proven Microsoft Excel roofing takeoff and pricing software delivers consistently accurate and complete bids, budgets and estimates for every type of steep slope roofing.

Video Transcript

Hello fellow estimator, I’m John Salmons.

I’d like to start this video training series by giving you a glimpse of how you’ll be using this spreadsheet to estimate an almost unlimited number of steep slope and low slope roofing projects. Including -- asphalt shingles, concrete & clay tile, cedar shingles & shakes, metal roofing panels, natural slate, composite & metal tiles, and low slope roll roofing.

Over the videos that follow, we’ll dive-in much deeper, with step-by-step tutorials on exactly how to use this spreadsheet and also how to customize it to your specific roofing projects. But for this first video, I’ll spare the details and just show you how this Excel spreadsheet works.

Time: 00:41

To get started, we’ll select the Project Datasheet tab. This is going to be the starting point for all your roofing estimates. It’s where we enter all the project information, the roof measurements and project specific items to include in your takeoffs and estimates.

Whether your roof measurements are taken from -- architectural plans, drone pics, Google Maps, or by hopping up on the roof with your tape measure and pulling field dimensions… roof measuring is quick, simple and dead-on accurate, when using this spreadsheet. Even the most cut-up and complicated roofs can be easily and accurately measured just by breaking the roof into one or more of these basic shapes, then entering dimensions and roof slopes into the spreadsheet. I’ll be showing you, step-by-step, exactly how you’ll be able to do this in the upcoming Roofing Project Datasheet video.

Time: 01:23

But for this video, we’ll be working with aerial roof measurements provided on this EagleView Premium Report. And we’ll also add a few more project-specific takeoff items like -- permits, tear-off & disposal, roof vents, and a labor upcharge for steeper than normal working conditions.

As we go through this video, we’re going to see how this single set of roof measurements will automatically estimate an almost unlimited number of steep slope and low slope roofing projects.

Time: 01:48

We’ll start off by selecting the Asphalt Shingles tab and taking a look at three Owens-Corning shingle estimates, all generated from the roof measurements we just entered.

• An economy 3-tab shingle, that uses job-cut 3-tabs for hip & ridge caps and starter strip
• An upgraded architectural shingle, with specialty starter strip, and hip & ridge caps
• A premium Impact Resistant roofing shingle

In the Roofing Project Takeoff and Pricing video, you’ll see exactly how-to replace these roofing products with the ones you use regularly, add your own unit pricing to the estimates, and even add an unlimited number of other roofing products to this list of estimates.

But for now, let’s focus on these three estimates, starting with the economy 3-tab roofing. As we go through this first estimate I’ll explain all the different sections and groups that make up one estimate.

Time: 02:35

Here’s the main concept. Each estimate is formatted so that it fits on a single sheet of paper when printed. Here’s the entire estimate for 3-tab roofing, contained within this thick border.

This group shows your order quantities, material list and their specific usage. This is what you’ll send to your suppliers for quotes and orders. It’s also great to use for jobsite Work Orders, since it identifies exactly what you’ve estimated for the job and precisely where it goes on the roof. This alone will eliminate all the guesswork by your installers on the roof.

I’ll also show you how to turn your estimates into a PDF, so you can email it to your suppliers and installers. Look for this in the Bag-of-Tricks video.

Time: 03:13

Starting at the top left corner, this estimate is for an Owens-Corning Supreme 3-Tab shingle, which can last up to 20 years. In a few minutes, I’ll show you how this life expectancy comes into play in your pricing.

The next group shows your shingles, underlayment, ice & water shield, and low slope roll roofing takeoffs.

Below that, is your valley flashing, drip edge, and headwall & sidewall flashing metals.

Next, we have General Conditions & Additional Items like -- permits, delivery & loading, tear-off & disposal, steep & high labor upcharges, attic vents, pipe flashing, and so on.

I’ll be showing you how to tailor this group to include just about anything else you want in your estimates. This is also in the Bag-of-Tricks video.

Time: 03:55

Next is your Ice & Water Shield Installation Guide. If you include Ice & Water Shield in your estimates, it will show your installers exactly where and how it needs to go on the roof.

And finally, your contact, project and delivery information.

Let’s skip over the price columns for just a second. We’ll come right back to this.

Time: 4:13

This section on the right is kind of the brains of the operation. It pulls in all your measurements from the Roofing Project Datasheet and converts them into specific roofing materials. It’s also where we set up our waste factors and unit pricing.

For this video, I’ve plugged in a few unit prices as a sample for this type of roofing project. Just a quick note -- please don’t use any of the prices used in these videos, or in the spreadsheet. Instead replace them with your own.

And if you’re unsure what you need to be charging, I’ll be telling you about one of my favorite resources that I use for up-to-date material, labor and turnkey pricing used in new construction, home improvement, insurance and repair work. We’ll take a much deeper dive into unit pricing in the Roofing Project Takeoff and Pricing videos.

Time: 04:54

This group near the bottom analyzes the simplicity or complexity of any roof. It then calculates the appropriate waste factor to use for the field roofing material. It predicts the amount of scraps that usually end up in the dumpster from cuts along hips, valleys, rakes and flashing. It also accounts for the overlapping shingles along closed-cut valleys, and even assumes waste from accidental slip-offs and jobsite damage.

This Trade Marked “Roof Complexity Waste Forecast™” is far more accurate than using typical waste factors -- like 10% on every gable roof and 15% on every hip roof.

Time: 05:26

And the very bottom group is where you specify the locations and width for the Ice & Water Shield in your estimates.

Time: 05:31

Now let’s finally take a look at the pricing in the center columns. This estimate prices out at $34,702. Which works out to be $445 per square, including -- markup, ice & water shield, drip edge and flashing metals, permits, tear-off and disposal, labor upcharges for steep working conditions, and a few roof vents.

This next number - $1,735, I call the Roof Comparative Cost Index™. The sole purpose of this number is to show your clients the roofing product line that’ll give them the most bang-for-their-buck. In a little bit, we’ll see how this shingle estimate compares with the others when we get to the Roofing Price, Upsell and Cross-sell Report.

Next, we see the extended costs that makes up this estimate.

And at the bottom, is where you include: sales tax, mark-up percentages and any other percentage to your estimates. In this estimate, I’ve plugged in a 20% mark-up and 5% for anything else like sales commissions or overhead.

Time: 06:27

Now let’s scroll down to the second shingle estimate. This TrueDefination Duration shingle estimate prices out at $43,082, which is $545 per square, with Roof Comparative Cost Index™ of $1,436. And here you see the takeoff quantities and a complete list of materials that’s included in this estimate.

Time: 06:48

And finally let’s scroll down to the third shingle estimate, which is the WeatherGuard Impact-Resistant product line with a total price of $46,068.

Time: 06:57

Let’s compare all three estimates side-by-side on the Roofing Price, Upsell & Cross-Sell Report. Here we see the three asphalt shingle estimates with prices ranging from $34,702 to $46,068.

We also see all the other prices for this very same roofing project for -- concrete & clay tile, cedar shingles & shakes, metal roofing panels, natural slate, and composite & metal tiles.

The purpose of this report is to give you every number you need for selling the job by quality, by value or by price. The report is organized in columns -- starting with the total estimated price, the price difference between estimates, the overall price per square, the years of useful life of the roofing, and the Roof Comparative Cost Index™.

We’ll dive deeper into this, in the Roofing Price, Upsell and Cross-sell Report video.

Time: 07:50

Now let’s click on the Concrete & Clay Tiles tab. Here we can estimate - 1-piece tile roofing, boosted tile roofing and 2-piece mission (or barrel tile) roofing.

This spreadsheet will also estimate -- accessory tiles for ridges & rakes, batten strips, hurricane clips, flashing tapes & metals, eave closures, edge metals and more.

Time: 08:12

The next tab estimates wood shingles and shakes. And estimating this type of roofing is a little different because the coverage per square is driven by the exposure rather than the roof surface area.

In this estimate, we’ve specified that the field shingles will be laid with a 4 ½” exposure. And at this spacing, one packaged square covers only 81.5 square feet of roof surface area.

I’ll show you a great resource I use that lists all the different shingle and shake coverage areas by size and exposure. Look for this in the Roofing Project Takeoff and Pricing video.

Time: 08:42

Next comes your estimates for metal panel roofing, like corrugated sheets or standing seam roofs. Here you can estimate either the total number of sheets to order, or the total linear feet you’ll need for the roof.

Just knowing the total linear feet of roofing panels is a great number to have for budgeting, or for knowing exactly how much metal to bring to the job for on-site roll-forming. You can also estimate hip & ridge metals, rake covers and eave closures.

Time: 09:08

Moving on to slate roofing -- this is another material that’s estimated a little differently. Slate’s coverage per square is driven by the size of the slate and the length of the headlap.

Here’s where you enter the slate’s size and headlap dimensions. With that, the spreadsheet calculates the exposure, the number of slates per square, and your order quantity.

If you’re new to slate roof estimating -- one word of caution. Choosing an improper headlap can really mess things up, resulting in huge takeoff errors and roof leaks. In the Roofing Project Takeoff and Pricing video, I’ll show you the guide that I use for determining sufficient headlap every time.

Time: 09:45

And the final tab estimates composite and metal roofing tiles. And some of these products have the look of their natural counterparts, at a fraction of the overall weight and costs. Definitely worth looking in to if your clients are looking for a slate or tile roof, but their roof framing just can’t support the extra weight.

In reality, this tab is designed to estimate more than just composite and metal tile roofing. I believe it can be tuned to estimate just about any type of roofing available, just by entering the coverage area per package.

Time: 10:14

So, the ultimate goal of the Simple Takeoff, Pricing & Sales Spreadsheet is -- for you to enter roof measurements once in the Roofing Project Datasheet, do a quick check of the estimates, then come to this Roofing Price, Upsell & Cross-Sell Report for all the info to use in your bids and sales pitches.

And, you’ll be able to do just that after watching the remaining videos, and tailoring this Spreadsheet with your company’s roofing products and pricing. And of course, I’ll be showing you how to do this over the next few videos.

I hope you enjoyed this Spreadsheet Overview video. And I look forward to seeing you in the next video where we start to dive in deep.