Why is my quote total one cent off from the same sum in Excel?
Because the quotation generator rounds each line total to the smallest currency unit first and then adds the rounded lines, while your spreadsheet usually adds the full values and rounds once at the end. Both are valid arithmetic, but the tool's way guarantees that the lines the client sees add up, on their own calculator, to the total that is printed.
An example that shows the gap
Two identical lines, each 3 pieces at 3.335 SAR, with no discount and no tax:
Each line exactly: 3 × 3.335 = 10.005.
The tool rounds each line to 10.01, then adds: 10.01 + 10.01 = 20.02.
A sheet that adds before rounding: 10.005 + 10.005 = 20.01.
Now picture the client opening a quote with two lines of 10.01 and a total of 20.01. They add the lines on a calculator, get 20.02, and ask you about the missing cent. That is what the tool avoids: the printed figures in the table and summary always add up to the printed total.
A second cause: how numbers are stored
Spreadsheet programs store decimal fractions in an approximate binary form, so a value such as 10.005 can be held internally as a hair less than that and round down instead of up. The tool does not have this problem: it reads numbers exactly to six decimal places, calculates in whole numbers of halalas, and always rounds a half up.
How to make your sheet match the quote
- Add a line-total column whose formula rounds quantity × price to two places, for example with ROUND.
- Sum that rounded column, not the raw products.
- If there is a percentage discount, round the discount amount to two places before subtracting it.
- Work out tax on the amount after discount, round it to two places, then add it.
That is the order the Quotation generator follows: rounded lines, then the subtotal, then the discount, then tax on what remains. In three-decimal currencies such as the Kuwaiti dinar the rounding is to the fils rather than the halala.
Which figure do I go with if they differ?
- Go with the figure printed on the quote, because that is what the client saw and accepted.
- If you carry the figures into an accounting system, check that it also rounds per line; otherwise enter the total exactly as the quote shows it.
- When a price includes tax and you need to split it out, do that before entering it, using the VAT calculator, rather than leaving the rounding for later.
Common questions
Can the gap be more than one cent?
With many lines that each end in half a cent, the gap can build up to several cents. Each line contributes at most half a cent.
Do the screen and the file show the same figure?
Yes. The on-screen summary and the PDF are built from the same calculation, so they never differ by even a cent.
Can I switch off per-line rounding?
No. It is the tool's fixed method, and it is what keeps the printed lines adding up to the total.