In Rentman, you can add additional costs to your projects - such as hotel stays, transportation, meals, and other project-related expenses. These are shown on quotations and invoices, just like equipment or crew. You can also use additional costs to generate purchase orders for external suppliers directly from the Additional costs tab.

What is an additional cost?

Additional costs help you manage and track project-related expenses that fall outside of equipment and crew - such as travel, accommodation, or other logistical costs. These can be included on quotations and invoices, making it easier to pass them on to your customer.

You can create a one-time additional cost for a specific project or set up a default additional cost to use for all future projects. Additional costs can also be organized into cost groups, which will appear on your financial documents.

In this article, we explain how you can use this feature.

Add an additional cost

Add an additional cost Edit an additional cost

Go to the table_chart Projects module, and open a project.
Go to the Additional costs tab in your project.
Select + Costs
Fill in the following information:
- Name of the cost (e.g., "1 night hotel stay")
- Purchase price per unit
- Discount
- Quantity
- Sale price
- Purchase price
- VAT class
- Ledger account
- Details
Save

Go to the table_chart Projects module, and open a project.
Go to the Additional costs tab in your project.
Select an additional cost.
Click on edit Edit on top of the column to edit the cost.
Make the changes.
Save

Set up your default additional costs

Setting default functions speeds up the planning process because you can reuse them for every project.

Add a default additional cost Edit default additional cost

Open a project and navigate to the Additional costs tab.
In the sidebar on the left, click on the + icon.
Fill in the following information:
- Name of the cost (e.g., "Hotel stay")
- Purchase price per unit
- Sale price
- Discount
- Quantity
- Purchase price
- VAT class
- Ledger account
- Details
Save

Go to the table_chart Projects module, and open a project.
Go to the Additional costs tab in your project.
Select a default additional cost.
Click on editon top of the column to edit the default cost.
Make the changes.
Save

This makes it easier to add recurring costs like accommodation, flights, parking, and per diems without having to enter the same details every time.

Grouping additional costs

To save time, improve oversight, and keep your financial documents clear and organized, you can group additional costs in a structured way. Here’s how it works:

Additional costs can be organized into cost groups, such as “Food”, “Hotels”, or “Transport”, to help keep things clear and structured.
Drag and drop individual costs into the appropriate cost group.
Each group shows a subtotal.
The display order in this tab shows the invoice order.
If no groups exist, a default group is automatically created when you add a new cost - just like with equipment. However, if groups already exist, you will be prompted to select which group the new cost should be placed in.

This helps structure your costs so that related items are kept together and presented clearly on quotations and invoices.

Lost or defective equipment

Equipment Tracking

When you book equipment back from a project in the warehouse Warehouse module, you can mark an item or serial number as either "Lost" or "Defect". These costs will then be added to the Additional costs tab of a project, to calculate and communicate the costs to your customer.

FAQs

How can I reorder additional costs?

The order in which additional costs appear in your list is the same order they will appear on the invoice. You can reorder costs by dragging and dropping them within the list. If you cannot drag them (e.g. due to grouping or restrictions), you will need to remove the items and add them again in the correct order.

Can I apply a discount to certain additional costs?

Yes. You can apply a discount to individual additional costs by entering a value in the “Discount” column. The total sales price is automatically calculated based on the quantity and the applied discount.

Can I group related additional costs together?

Yes. You can organize additional costs into groups (such as “Food” or “Hotels”) to make the list clearer. This is especially helpful for presenting quotations and invoices in a more structured way. Each group also shows a subtotal of the costs it contains.

What’s the easiest way to add commonly used additional costs?

Use the default cost list on the left side of the Additional Costs tab. This lets you quickly add frequently used items (e.g. accommodation, parking, meals) without re-entering the details each time. You can also group these into folders and search through them easily.

Why are all my existing additional costs in a group now?

With the latest improvement introduced in version 482, all additional costs must belong to a group. When your account is migrated to the newest version, your existing additional costs are automatically placed into a default group called 'Additional Costs'. This change ensures compatibility with the new structure. No other changes are made to your costs - only their grouping is updated.

Why do I need to update my copied default template after recent improvements to Additional Costs in Rentman?

We've improved how Additional Costs are displayed in both the software and document templates to enhance clarity and give you more control. If you're using a copied version of a default template, it won’t automatically include these updates. To ensure accurate pricing and avoid confusion, make sure to review and update your template.