Custom fields and PO numbers on quotes and invoices
Quotes and invoices can carry your own custom fields (a job reference, a contract number, a service tier) and, when enabled, a customer PO Number. Both are set up on the Custom Fields tab of the Quotes and Invoicing settings pages — quote fields under Settings → Quotes, invoice fields under Settings → Invoicing. The Purchase Order toggle appears on both tabs (it is one setting covering both documents).
Where to find it: Settings → Quotes → Custom Fields (quote fields) and Settings → Invoicing → Custom Fields (invoice fields); on the quote or invoice form, the fields appear below the date and payment details
Purchase Order numbers
Turn on the Purchase Order toggle (and click Save) to capture a customer PO number on every quote and invoice:
A PO Number field appears on the quote form. Invoices show a Purchase order dropdown instead (None, a saved purchase order, or Custom — which reveals its own PO number field to type into).
The PO prints near the top of the customer-facing document (PDF, signing page, and payment page).
When you create an invoice from a signed quote, the quote's PO carries over automatically.
To prefill the PO for a customer with a standing (blanket) PO, set a Default PO Number on the customer's billing settings — or on a property's billing settings to override it for that property. New quotes and invoices for them start with that PO filled in; you can still change it per document.
Turning the toggle off hides the PO field and stops printing it; already-saved PO numbers are kept and come back if you re-enable it.
For customers who send repeat work against the same PO, you can save that PO on the customer (or one of its properties) and pick it on an invoice instead of retyping it — Essential then tracks what has been billed against it, with an optional spend limit and expiration date. See Put a customer purchase order on an invoice.
Job numbers on invoices
In Settings → Invoicing → Custom Fields, turn on Job Number and click Save. The field name starts as Job #; edit Field name to use your business's preferred label.
On an invoice, the field fills from its linked jobs using your business's job number format. Multiple jobs appear as a comma-separated list. You can type a different value, or clear it to leave the number off that invoice. Click Use linked job numbers to restore automatic filling, then save the invoice.
Default invoice templates print the label and number near PO Number. Turning the setting off hides the field and its printed value while preserving saved overrides. A customized template can include it using Job number (when enabled) in the template editor's variable inserter.
Custom fields on quotes and invoices
Add fields from each page's Custom Fields tab with Add custom field — quote fields on the Quotes page, invoice fields on the Invoicing page. Short text, Long text, Yes/No, Date, and Choice types are available, plus the usual Required and Unique rules.
Values are entered on the quote or invoice form and save with the document. Technicians can also view and fill them while creating or editing a quote or invoice from a visit in the mobile app. Mobile drafts retain the values while offline, and required fields must be completed before the document can be sent or finalized.
Date fields use the same picker and entry format as the quote and invoice date. Saved values display as Aug 2, 2026 on customer documents. The selected day stays the same across time zones. Optional dates can be cleared.
Fields are internal by default. Turn on Show on customer document to print the field (name and value) on the customer-facing PDF and preview.
If you customized your document template's code, add the Custom fields block to it once (from the variable inserter in the template editor) so the fields have a place to print. Built-in templates already include it.
To carry a value from a quote to the invoice made from it, create an invoice field with the same name and type as the quote field — the value copies over automatically when you start the invoice from a signed quote.
Quote and invoice fields live only here. Your customer, property, asset, and job fields are managed separately under Settings → Custom Fields (in the Data & Integrations group) — see Create and manage custom fields.
Spot patterns with the custom fields report
The custom fields report breaks down how values are distributed across your quotes and invoices — for example, how many quotes chose each service tier — and lets you click through to the matching documents.
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