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

> ## Agent Instructions
> These docs contain multiple Speckle product experiences. For Speckle 2026.9, prefer /next/ pages for the topics and changes they cover. The navigation label Current does not override this version-specific precedence.
> Coverage under /next/ is incremental. Use Current documentation for unchanged topics and when a /next/ page says coverage is unavailable or explicitly refers you to Current. Do not infer a feature was removed from a missing page.
> Read the page-specific documentation status, applicability, affected guidance and replacement links in agent-only content. Impacted, changed and superseded apply only to the stated scope; they do not mean the entire feature is deprecated. Historical connector guides apply only to the legacy connector described.
> Match guidance to the customer's deployment version, model data format and connector. Respect plan, permission and compatibility restrictions. If an unknown version or data format changes the answer, ask a focused clarification; do not infer deployment version from the date alone.

# Take off quantities and cost with Speckle Intelligence

> Ask Chat for a quantity takeoff and a priced estimate straight from the model, using your own rate card, instead of building a takeoff dashboard by hand.

Documentation set: Speckle 2026.9. Status: current. Authority: canonical for this version and the coverage on this page.

Applies to version 2026.9, from 2026-09; this is not a rollout date for every deployment.

Authoritative Speckle 2026.9 documentation for the topic covered here. For Speckle 2026.9, prefer this page over conflicting earlier guidance. Follow linked Current documentation for unchanged topics and where this page says coverage is not yet available. Respect data-format, deployment, plan, permission, and compatibility limitations stated in the page.

<Note>
  This is 2026.9 documentation. Coverage here is incremental: a page exists only where 2026.9
  differs or is newly documented. For any other topic, switch to **Current** (2026.8 and earlier) in
  the version selector.
</Note>

A quantity takeoff and a priced estimate are usually two separate jobs: count elements in a
dashboard or export, then take that export somewhere else to apply rates. This page asks for both
in one conversation — a takeoff by category, priced against your own rate card, with anything it
can't price flagged instead of guessed.

<Note>
  Speckle Intelligence Chat is available when your workspace plan includes it. On a self-hosted
  server, it is available only on Speckle Enterprise Server. For deployment setup, see [Enterprise
  license — Intelligence](/developers/server/deployment/enterprise-license#optional-intelligence).
</Note>

<Info>
  This is the Chat-driven route. For a dashboard you can pin, share, and keep open on a screen
  instead of asking for it each time, build a [quantity takeoff
  dashboard](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#run-a-quantity-takeoff) instead — the two
  approaches read the same published data.
</Info>

## What this workflow does

* **Take off** — count and total elements by category, level, or any other property, without
  building the breakdown in a dashboard first.
* **Price** — apply your own unit rates and cost codes instead of a generic estimate.
* **Flag gaps** — call out anything with no matching rate, rather than inventing a number.
* **Reuse** — pin the rate card once so every future takeoff on any project uses this year's
  prices.

## Walkthrough

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pin your rate card as Knowledge">
    In workspace **Settings → Skills**, create a skill and pin your rate card (a spreadsheet, or a
    live warehouse table if finance keeps it there) as
    [Knowledge](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills#what-you-can-attach). Write the unit rates and
    cost codes into the skill's instructions in your own language — elemental, package, or
    whatever your commercial team already calls them. See [Reuse organisation playbooks with
    Intelligence skills](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask for the takeoff">
    In Chat, arm the skill with `/skill-name` and ask in plain language:

    > Give me a material takeoff, priced against our rate card.

    Intelligence reads quantities from the published model — the same [connected, queryable
    data](/next/analytics/intelligence#how-it-works) it uses for any other question — and matches
    each line against the pinned rate card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Read the breakdown">
    The reply groups quantities the way your skill's instructions say to — by category, level, or
    package — with each line priced. Anything without a matching rate is called out separately
    instead of estimated, so a missing row is visible rather than silently averaged away.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask a what-if question">
    Keep going in the same conversation:

    > What's the impact on cost if steel goes up by 15%?

    Intelligence recalculates from the same quantities and the same pinned rates, so the answer
    reflects your actual take-off, not a generic assumption.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Share it beyond the chat

Save the conversation as a [Report](/next/analytics/reports) if you want a shareable artefact —
the takeoff and its pricing stay live against the bound version rather than frozen at the moment
you asked. For a takeoff someone will keep open and re-filter by level or category on a screen,
use the dashboard route in [Run a quantity takeoff](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#run-a-quantity-takeoff)
instead; **Element table** there also exports straight to CSV.

## FAQ

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Does it use my company's units and rounding?">
    Only if you say so. Put your unit and rounding conventions in the skill's instructions —
    Intelligence does not know your commercial team's conventions unless you tell it once, in the
    skill.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens if an element has no matching rate?">
    It gets flagged as unmatched rather than priced by guesswork. Write that behaviour into the
    skill explicitly (see the [cost, carbon, and quantities skill
    catalogue](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills#cost-carbon-and-quantities)) if you want the flag
    to use a specific phrase your commercial team recognises.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Does this need a version in the new 2026.9 data format?">
    Yes. Like every other Intelligence query, a takeoff needs a version in the new data format.
    Versions still in the old format cannot be queried. See [Speckle's data model is
    changing](/workspaces/data-model-migration).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I get the same breakdown without a rate card?">
    Yes — just ask for the takeoff without pricing, for example "give me a material takeoff" or
    "give me a report of quantities by category and level." Pricing only kicks in once you've pinned
    a rate card in a skill.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## See also

* [Ask questions about your models with Speckle Intelligence](/next/analytics/intelligence)
* [Reuse organisation playbooks with Intelligence skills](/next/analytics/intelligence-skills)
* [Create and share Intelligence Reports](/next/analytics/reports)
* [Run a quantity takeoff](/analytics/dashboards/common-workflows#run-a-quantity-takeoff) — the
  dashboard-based route