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The most accurate way is to price every job from its real inputs — the exact moulding, glass, mount and backing for that frame, plus your own labour time for a frame that size — rather than a rule-of-thumb markup or a fixed price per mm.
Framaid's labour timings calculator is what makes this work: you calibrate once how long each stage actually takes you, and every quote then prices the job from your supplier costs and your real timings. Two frames that look similar but take different amounts of work come out at different, correct prices — so you stop losing money on the fiddly jobs.
Labour is the biggest hidden cost in framing and the one most framers undercharge for. The accurate method is to know how long each stage actually takes you — cutting, joining, mounting, fitting, finishing — for a given frame size, then multiply by your hourly rate plus overheads.
Framaid's labour timings calculator does this for you, and the benefits compound:
A spreadsheet can hold your prices, but it won't keep supplier price lists current, scale labour to frame size, manage quotes and clients, track stock, or produce a client-ready quote — and it breaks the moment someone fat-fingers a formula.
Framaid does the same costing a good spreadsheet does, then adds the things a spreadsheet can't: live supplier price lists, a labour timings calculator that sizes labour to the job, saved quotes and clients, stock, workflow and invoicing, all in one place and on any device.
Everything a framer needs to price and run jobs: a pricing calculator built on a labour timings calculator you calibrate to your own workshop, supplier price-list sync and import, saved quotes and client records, invoicing, stock tracking, a workflow board, and a cut list and sheet-material optimiser to cut waste.
It's one subscription with no add-ons — all of it is included for £15 a month.
Yes. Setup is a one-off: bring in your supplier prices (sync Lion/Centrado or import a list), calibrate your labour timings once, and enter your hourly rate and overheads — then every quote is accurate from then on.
There's nothing to install; Framaid runs in a web browser on any device, so you can start on the computer you already use.
Framaid was built by a working picture framer who got tired of guessing at prices — which is why the labour timings calculator sits at its heart.
It's made for framers, with UK suppliers like Lion and Centrado, pounds and UK VAT, and UK GDPR-compliant data handling built in. Framers outside the UK can use it too, with currency and tax settings you can change.
Framaid is a business management app built specifically for independent picture framers. It handles accurate job pricing, quote management, client records, stock tracking, workflow, and supplier price list imports — all in one place, on any device.
It was built by a framer who got tired of guessing at prices. The goal is to give small framing businesses the kind of organised, professional back-end that usually only bigger operations can afford.
Go to framaid.app/login and click "Sign up". Enter your email and password, agree to the terms, and create your account. You'll receive a confirmation email — click the link to verify your address, then log in.
At checkout, enter code FRAMER30 to get your first month free. A payment card is required to start.
Yes — use code FRAMER30 at checkout and your first month is free. A payment card is required at sign-up but you won't be charged until the free month ends. You can cancel any time before that if Framaid isn't right for you.
Framaid is web-based and works on any device with a modern browser — desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone. There's nothing to install. Your data syncs automatically so you can start a quote on the counter and check it on your phone.
The cheapest accurate way is to price each job from its real inputs — materials plus your own labour time for that frame size — rather than paying for heavy software or risking a spreadsheet that undercharges you.
Framaid does exactly that for £15 a month: it calculates every quote from your supplier costs and your calibrated labour timings, so you're pricing by real work, not guesswork, at a fraction of the cost of traditional framing systems.
You enter the artwork dimensions and select materials from your price lists (moulding, glazing, mount board, backing). The calculator works out the material cost based on actual usage — moulding by perimeter, glazing and mount board by area.
Labour is calculated using your own measured build times and hourly rate. Overheads are recovered based on your actual business costs. The result is a quote price that reflects your specific business — not an industry average.
Labour calibration means setting your own build times for each stage of framing — cutting, fitting, glazing, finishing — rather than using a generic estimate. Once set, every quote is built from your actual timings.
This matters because labour is usually the biggest cost in a framing job, and the place where most framers unknowingly undercharge. A job that takes you 45 minutes should be priced differently from one that takes 20 minutes, even if the materials are identical.
In Settings → Labour & Pricing → Build times, you set your labour timings for three frame sizes: small, medium, and large. For each size you enter how many minutes each stage takes — cutting, fitting, glazing, finishing, and so on.
When you enter artwork dimensions in the calculator, Framaid automatically interpolates between your three size benchmarks to work out an accurate labour time for that specific job. A 400×500mm piece might take 25 minutes while a 1000×1200mm piece takes 55 minutes — the calculator works this out from your own measured timings, not a guess.
To set your timings accurately, time yourself on a few typical jobs of each size. It takes about 20 minutes to calibrate and makes every quote significantly more accurate.
Yes. In the calculator, there are checkboxes to add a second moulding (with its own perimeter and cost) and a second mount board. Both are included in the quote total and cut list.
Yes. In the Frame dimensions card, check "Custom borders" to set individual widths for each side. The mount board size and all calculations update automatically.
In the Extras & discount card, enter a discount amount as either a percentage or a fixed amount. It's deducted from the total before VAT is applied.
In the calculator, the Finishes card lets you add up to four finishing options to a job — things like dry mounting, lining, cleaning, stretching canvas, or any other service you charge for. Each finish has a name, a labour time, and optionally a material cost.
You set up your finishes in Settings → Labour & Pricing → Finishes. Once saved, they appear in the dropdown in the calculator and are included in the labour calculation and quote total automatically.
The client view toggle (in the Quote summary card) switches the display to show only the materials used and the total price — hiding your cost price, profit margin, and labour breakdown. Useful when a customer is watching over your shoulder.
No. You can sync prices directly from Lion and Centrado, and import any other supplier's price list, so you're not typing thousands of mouldings by hand.
Once your lists are in, quotes pull live costs automatically, and you can update or re-sync whenever your suppliers change prices.
Go to Settings → Price Lists. You can add items manually, import from a CSV or Excel file, or sync directly from Lion or Centrado if you use those suppliers.
The CSV importer includes a column mapper so it can handle any spreadsheet format — just match your columns to the right fields and import.
Yes. In Settings → Price Lists, there are "Sync Lion" and "Sync Centrado" buttons for mouldings, glazing, and mount board. Clicking them fetches the latest prices directly from the supplier and updates your list — existing items are updated, new items are added, and nothing is duplicated.
Each price list section has a "Remove duplicates" button. It deduplicates by product code first (so the same moulding from two syncs is merged), then by name and supplier for items without codes.
Yes — any supplier's price list can be imported via CSV or Excel using the column mapper. Download the file from your supplier, open the importer, match the columns and import. Works with Wessex, Larson-Juhl, and any other supplier that provides a spreadsheet.
Once you've built a job in the calculator, click "Save quote" in the Quote summary card. You'll be prompted for a job name and client details. Saved quotes appear in the Quotes tab.
In the Quotes tab, quotes are grouped by client name. If a client has more than one quote, you'll see a "Send all" button at the top of their group — this sends all their quotes together in a single email, with each frame listed separately and a combined total.
This is useful when a client has brought in several pieces at once. Save each frame as a separate quote with the same client name, then use "Send all" to send everything in one message.
Open the quote from the Quotes tab and click "Mark as accepted". This moves it to the workflow board, deducts the materials from your stock, and records it as a confirmed job.
Yes. From the quote view, click "Send to client". This opens a draft email with the job details and price. You can edit it before sending.
Go to the Clients tab and click "Import clients". You can import from a CSV file or a vCard (.vcf) file. The CSV importer includes a column mapper — just match your columns (name, email, phone etc.) to the right fields and import. Existing clients won't be duplicated.
You can also add clients individually directly from the Clients tab, or they're created automatically when you save a quote with client details filled in.
Click the "🧾 Invoice" button on any quote in the Quotes tab, or on any job in the Workflow board. This opens the invoice panel where you can set the invoice number, invoice date, and due date.
If a client has multiple frames, use the "Invoice all" button at the top of their client group in the Quotes tab — this generates a single invoice covering all their jobs, with each frame listed as a separate line item and a grand total at the bottom.
Click "Print / Save PDF" to generate a printable invoice you can email or hand to the client. You can also record payment status — mark it as Paid with the date and method (cash, card, bank transfer etc.) and the job automatically moves to Collected in your workflow.
Cut lists group all the cutting for each process across your active jobs — so all moulding cuts are listed together, all glass cuts together, all mount board cuts together, and so on. Rather than completing one job at a time, you can cut all your moulding for the day in one go, then move to glass, then mount board — making production significantly more efficient.
Each job sheet shows the material, the cut size, and which job it belongs to. Moulding cut sizes are calculated automatically by adding 2mm to the mount board size to account for the rebate tolerance. As you complete a cutting stage and mark it as done in the workflow, those jobs are automatically removed from the sheet — so it always reflects only what still needs to be cut.
You can also print a cut list for an individual job from the quote view.
Framaid tracks your physical stock levels for mouldings (in metres), mount board, glazing and backing (in sheets), and subframe and spacers (in metres). You can add stock manually from invoices or price lists, entering the quantity you have on hand.
When a quote is accepted, the materials used in that job are automatically deducted from your stock. Over time you get an accurate picture of what you have, what's running low, and what needs ordering — without having to count anything manually.
Go to the Stock tab. You can add stock entries manually — entering the product, quantity, and supplier — or import from a CSV or price list file. When a delivery arrives, update the quantity to reflect what you've received.
Yes. You can set a minimum stock level for each item. When stock drops below that threshold, it's flagged in the Stock tab so you know what needs reordering before you run out mid-job.
When a quote is accepted, the job appears on the workflow board. Jobs move through stages from intake to collection — typically something like: Quoted → Accepted → In progress → Ready → Collected. You can customise the stage names to match how your workshop actually runs.
The board gives you a live view of every active job in the shop: what's waiting, what's being worked on, and what's ready for collection. No more sticky notes or trying to remember where everything is up to.
Yes. Go to Settings → Workflow to add, rename or reorder stages. Set them up to reflect your own process — whether that's a simple three-step flow or something more detailed with separate stages for mounting, cutting, fitting and finishing.
Yes — that's exactly what Framaid is designed for. A job starts as a quote in the calculator, gets saved and sent to the client, is marked as accepted when confirmed, moves through your workflow stages as it's made, and is marked as collected when the customer picks it up. Every stage is tracked and the full job history is saved.
The sheet material optimiser works out the most efficient way to cut multiple jobs from a standard sheet of mount board, glazing or backing board. Select the jobs you want to cut, enter your sheet size, and it calculates how many sheets you need and how to lay the cuts to minimise waste.
This is particularly useful when you have a batch of jobs to cut at the same time — it can make a significant difference to how far your materials go, especially with expensive conservation mount board or specialist glazing.
Go to Settings → Labour & Pricing. Enter your hourly labour rate, and add your regular business costs (rent, insurance, utilities etc.) to the overhead calculator. Framaid works out your per-hour overhead contribution and builds it into every quote automatically.
Yes. Go to Settings → Labour & Pricing → Shop settings and select your country. The currency symbol and tax label (VAT, GST, Sales Tax etc.) update automatically. 15 countries are supported.
Go to Settings → Account → Backup & restore. Click "Download backup" to save a JSON file of all your data — price lists, quotes, clients, settings. To restore, use the same screen to upload a previous backup file.
Go to framaid.app/account and click "Manage billing / Cancel". This opens the Stripe billing portal where you can cancel. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing period — you keep access until then.
If you have any trouble, email [email protected] and we'll sort it within one working day.
For a small shop, the best value is software that prices jobs accurately and handles the admin without a big monthly bill or a complicated setup.
Framaid is £15 a month with no contract, runs in a browser on any device, and includes pricing, quotes, clients, invoicing, stock and workflow in one subscription — so a one-person business gets the tools bigger operations rely on without the cost or the desktop PC. The first month is free with code FRAMER30.
At £15 a month, Framaid pays for itself if it stops you under-pricing a single job — which undercharged labour on one frame can easily exceed. The labour timings calculator is the core of that value: it makes sure every quote covers your actual time, which is exactly where small framers lose money.
It gives you the accurate pricing and organised admin that bigger operations rely on, without the cost or complexity, and the first month is free with code FRAMER30 so you can test it against your own jobs before paying anything.
£15/month, or £156/year (equivalent to £13/month). Use code FRAMER30 at checkout for your first month free.
No. Framaid is month-to-month with no minimum term. Cancel any time and you'll keep access until the end of the period you've paid for.
All major credit and debit cards, processed securely by Stripe. We never store your card details.
Yes. Framaid supports 15 countries with the correct currency and tax settings for each. The app is primarily designed for UK framers but works well for US, European and Australian users too. Prices are billed in GBP.
All your data — quotes, clients, price lists, settings — is stored securely in Supabase, a cloud database platform hosted in the EU. Data is encrypted in transit (HTTPS) and at rest. We use industry-standard access controls so only you can see your data.
Your payment details are handled entirely by Stripe and never stored on our servers. We do not sell your data or use it for advertising. Full details are in our Privacy Policy.
Yes. Go to Settings → Account → Backup & restore and click "Download backup". This saves a complete JSON file of all your data — price lists, quotes, clients, settings — to your device. You can restore from this file at any time using the same screen.
We recommend taking a backup periodically, especially before making major changes to your price lists.
If you cancel your subscription, your data is retained for 30 days in case you change your mind. After that it is permanently deleted. We recommend downloading a backup before cancelling if you want to keep your records.