---
title: "How To Add A \"Plug\" To A Bid Form Response"
description: "How To Add A \"Plug\" To A Bid Form Response"
---

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# How To Add A "Plug" To A Bid Form Response

A bidder's answer to a bid form question often carries a cost that is not in their base bid — they excluded permits, or they quoted a rate but not the quantity. A "plug" lets you put a number against that answer yourself, and Zebel folds it into the cost code's bid total so the levelled comparison reflects what the job will really cost.

To add a plug to a bid form response follow these steps.

Navigate to the desired estimate, select the "Bid Packages" tab, and choose the bid package from the dropdown near the upper left.

Scroll to the bid form questions beneath the cost items.

Find the field you want to adjust. Where a field is tied to a cost code, each bidder's column shows two things: their answer, and a money field beside it.

![](https://lp.zebel.io/hs-fs/hubfs/plug-01-items-png.png?width=1600&height=1000&name=plug-01-items-png.png)

Here "XYZ Specialty Builders" has a $50.00 plug against "Did you include mobilization for the landscaping crew?" while the other two bidders have none.

Press the money field beside the bidder's answer and type the amount.

The value saves on its own as you type — there is no save button — and is added to that cost code's total for the bidder.

NOTE, the money field only appears on bid responses tied to a cost code. A question that is not linked to one has nowhere to add the money, so it shows the answer alone. In the screenshot, the "Bid Specific Items" rows lower down have answers but no money field for exactly that reason.

NOTE, a question whose answer is already a monetary amount has no plug either. The amount the bidder gave you is the number, so there is nothing to add beside it.

NOTE, a plug is your figure, not the bidder's. It does not change their submitted price — it changes what Zebel levels them at, so two bidders can be compared on the same scope.

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