> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.repdata.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Billing and Margins

> Understand sell price, buy price, cost summaries, reconciliation billing, and project margin tracking.

Research Desk tracks costs at the source level and rolls them up to project billing through reconciliation. This guide explains the pricing fields you control and the reports that support invoicing.

## Key pricing fields

| Field                       | Where set                | Purpose                                                    |
| --------------------------- | ------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Sell Price (Client CPI)** | Survey creation          | What you charge your end client per complete               |
| **Buy Price (BCPI)**        | Source configuration     | What Research Desk charges you per complete from suppliers |
| **Floor price**             | Calculated automatically | Minimum buy price from IR, LOI, and country at setup       |

### Margin tracking

Enter **Sell Price** on each survey to populate margin calculations at the project level. If margin tracking does not apply to your workflow, enter `0`.

```
Margin ≈ Sell Price − Buy Price (per complete)
```

Margin appears in project-level reporting when sell price is configured.

## How billing works

1. Respondents complete surveys and are recorded as **Completes**
2. **Completes are billable by default** — see [Reconciliation](/research-desk/guides/07-reconciliation)
3. During the reconciliation window, you reject invalid completes
4. Rejected completes are **not invoiced** and suppliers are **not paid**
5. Unprocessed completes are **auto-accepted** after the deadline

<Warning>
  If you do not reject invalid completes before the reconciliation deadline, they become billable automatically.
</Warning>

## CPI and rate card

Research Desk sets a **floor price** from your estimated IR, LOI, and country. Your actual buy price (BCPI) on each source may be higher:

* Niche targeting typically needs CPI **50–100% above** floor price
* [L2 voter matching](/research-desk/guides/20-voter-matched-sample) adds +$2.50 CPI (+$2.50 more for data append)
* Pricing can be adjusted during fieldwork and applies immediately to live sources

Use the **red alert icon** and [Performance Indicators](/research-desk/guides/13-performance-indicators) wrench tool to adjust BCPI when specs drift.

## Cost Summary export

The **Cost Summary** report provides a financial breakdown by source number, including reconciliation outcomes.

**Where to find it:** Open the project **…** menu → **Export Cost Summary**

| Column area           | What it shows                                  |
| --------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| Source number         | Each Buy Sample or Manual source               |
| Reconciliation status | Accepted, rejected, unprocessed, auto-accepted |
| Financial impact      | Cost per status category                       |

Use this report for client invoicing and internal margin analysis.

## Reconciliation and supplier costs

| Export                         | Use case                                           |
| ------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------- |
| **Project Cost Summary**       | Overall billing breakdown by reconciliation status |
| **IDs by Supplier**            | Confirm costs with external manual suppliers       |
| **IDs by Status**              | Audit which completes were accepted or rejected    |
| **Reconciliation History Log** | Who processed which IDs and when                   |

Details: [Reconciliation](/research-desk/guides/07-reconciliation) · [Exporting and Reporting](/research-desk/guides/12-exporting-and-reporting)

## Billing timeline

| Event                 | Timing                                         |
| --------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| Complete recorded     | Real time during fieldwork                     |
| Reconciliation window | Through end of month following complete month  |
| Auto-accept           | First day of month after reconciliation window |
| Invoice               | Per your Rep Data account terms                |

Example: A complete on December 15 can be disputed until January 31. Auto-accept runs February 1 if not processed.

## Reducing unexpected costs

| Practice                                                            | Why                                                 |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| Soft launch at \~10%                                                | Catch redirect and quality issues before full spend |
| Reconcile promptly                                                  | Reject invalid completes before auto-accept         |
| Export Cost Summary at closeout                                     | Verify totals before client billing                 |
| Request [data cleaning](/research-desk/support/data-cleaning) early | Up to 3 complimentary requests per project          |

## Related guides

* [Reconciliation](/research-desk/guides/07-reconciliation)
* [Best Practices](/research-desk/guides/08-best-practices)
* [Exporting and Reporting](/research-desk/guides/12-exporting-and-reporting)
* [FAQ — Reconciliation and billing](/research-desk/support/faq#reconciliation-and-billing)