Service Types and Billing Rules

  • Last Created On Jun 09, 2026
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Overview

A Service Type defines a category of service work your team performs — such as Installation, Inspection, or Corrective Maintenance. It acts as a reusable template that standardizes how a service job is described, priced, estimated, and staffed.

Create a Service Type

Step 1. Go to Field Service → Settings → Service Type → click Add Service Type


Step 2. The Add Service Type dialog appears. Fill in the form:

  • Name: The name of this service type (e.g., "Installation", "Inspection", "Corrective Maintenance")
  • Code: A short internal reference code (e.g., SV001). Does not need to follow a specific format
  • Billing Rule: How labor cost is calculated for this service. Select: Fixed Price, Hourly, or Free
  • Fixed Price: The flat charge for this service. Only appears when Billing Rule = Fixed Price
  • Default Estimated Duration (hours): The typical number of hours this service takes, entered as a decimal (e.g., 1.5 for 1 hour 30 minutes). Used as a suggested value when creating Work Order Templates
  • Required Skills: One or more skills that a technician must have to perform this service. Multi-select dropdown. Used as a suggested value when creating Work Order Templates. Skills must be created first in Field Service → Settings → Technician Skill before they can be selected here

Step 3. Click Save.


Billing Rule – Detailed Guide

The Billing Rule determines how labor cost (Labor Cost) is calculated for service appointments of this type. It is one of the most important settings on a Service Type.

Fixed Price

The customer is charged a single flat amount for the service, regardless of how many hours the technician actually spends on the job.

When to use: Services with a predictable, standardized scope of work where pricing does not vary with time.

Example: An "Air Conditioning Annual Maintenance" service is charged at a flat $120.00 per visit. Whether the technician completes the job in 1 hour or takes 2.5 hours due to additional cleaning required, the customer is always billed $120.00.

When Fixed Price is selected as the Billing Rule, the Fixed Price field appears in the form to enter the amount.


Hourly

Labor cost is calculated based on the actual hours worked by the technician, recorded in Timesheets. The hourly rate used for this calculation is defined in the Service Territory settings — not on the Service Type itself.

When to use: Services where duration varies significantly between jobs, and customers are billed based on time actually spent.

Example: An "Electrical Fault Diagnosis & Repair" service is billed hourly at $35/hour (as configured in the Territory). If a technician spends 2 hours tracing a wiring fault and repairing it, the labor cost is $70. If a different job of the same type is resolved in 30 minutes, the labor cost is $17.50.

Note: The actual hourly rate is configured in Field Service → Settings → Service Territory. Make sure the Territory has an hourly rate defined before using this Billing Rule.


Free

No labor cost is charged for this service type. The job is performed at no charge to the customer.

When to use: Warranty services, introductory visits, internal work, or any scenario where the customer should not be billed for technician time.

Example: A "Post-Repair Follow-up Visit" is offered free of charge to verify that a previously repaired system is functioning correctly. The technician's time is not billed to the customer.


Where Service Types Are Used

Service Types are referenced in several places across the Field Service module:

Checklist Template

When creating a Checklist Template (Field Service → Settings → Checklist Template), you select a Service Type to associate the checklist with a specific type of work.

Work Order Template

When creating a Work Order Template (Field Service → Settings → Work Order Template), you select a Service Type. The system then:

  • Suggests the Default Estimated Duration from the Service Type as the estimated time for the work
  • Suggests the Required Skills from the Service Type as the skills needed for the job

Work Order

When a Work Order is created (either directly or from a template), the Service Type determines:

  • The Required Skills suggested for technician assignment

Service Territory (for Hourly billing)

If the Billing Rule is Hourly, the actual rate charged per hour is pulled from the Service Territory record linked to the Service Appointment — not from the Service Type itself.

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