Introduction
The quoter is a tool built into MOGU that lets you calculate the costs, profit margin and sale price of your trips directly from the platform, with no need for external spreadsheets like Excel or Google Sheets.
🔍 The quoter is in the Quoter tab inside every trip.
With the quoter, you can:
Define all the costs of a trip (accommodation, transport, guides, activities, etc.).
Configure the number of paying travelers and complimentary seats.
Calculate your profit margin.
Get the price per traveler automatically.
Link the calculated price directly to the trip's Booking block so travelers book at the right price.
Apply discounts to the final price.
Key concepts
Fixed costs
Fixed costs are those that don't depend on the number of travelers. They apply to the whole group regardless of how many people travel. For example: bus rental, guide's fee, permits or licenses, support vehicle.
If a bus costs €500 for the group, that cost stays the same whether 5 or 20 people travel.
Variable costs (per traveler)
Variable costs are those that are calculated per paying traveler. The unit cost you enter is automatically multiplied by the number of paying travelers. For example: hotel room per night, meals, activity tickets, travel insurance.
If a hotel room costs €80 per traveler and you have 10 paying travelers, the subtotal for that cost will be €800.
Complimentary seats
Complimentary seats are travelers who don't pay, like guides, photographers or agency escorts. Even though they don't pay, they still generate variable costs (they need a room, meals, etc.). Those extra costs are spread across the paying travelers. In other words, the paying travelers absorb the cost of the complimentary seats.
Example: if you have 10 paying travelers and 2 complimentary seats, and the variable cost per traveler is €100, the total cost of the complimentary seats will be €200, which is split between the 10 paying travelers.
Commissionable vs. non-commissionable
Each cost row can be marked as commissionable or non-commissionable:
Commissionable (default): the profit margin is applied to this cost. This is the usual setup for services like hotels, activities or transport.
Non-commissionable: the cost is added to the final price with no margin. It's used for expenses that are simply passed on to the customer with no profit, like taxes, government permits or third-party costs that don't allow commission.
Profit margin
Margin is expressed as a percentage and is applied using the **margin on sale** formula:
Sale price = Cost / (1 − margin %)
This means that if the net cost is €100 and the margin is 20%, the sale price will be:
100 / (1 − 0.20) = 100 / 0.80 = €125
The resulting margin (€25) is exactly 20% of the sale price (€125).
💁 Margin is only applied to costs marked as commissionable. Non-commissionable costs are added to the final price as is, with no margin.
Discount
The quoter lets you apply an optional discount to the group's total price. You can configure it in two ways:
Percentage: a percentage is applied to the group's total price.
Fixed amount: a fixed cash discount.
The discount is applied to the group total before dividing by the number of travelers, so it affects the final price per traveler.
Price per traveler
The price per traveler is the quoter's final result. It's calculated by dividing the group's total price (after applying margin and discount) by the number of paying travelers.
Price per traveler = Group total price / Paying travelers
How the quoter works, step by step
Let's go through the process with a concrete example: a trip to Bali with 15 paying travelers and 1 complimentary seat (the agency's guide).
1. Configure the travelers
At the top of the quoter, set:
Number of travelers: how many travelers are going to pay.
Complimentary seats: how many travelers won't pay (guides, escorts, etc.).
In our example: 15 paying travelers and 1 complimentary seat.
2. Add fixed costs
Add one row for each cost that's independent of the number of travelers. For each row, fill in:
Concept: description of the cost (e.g. "Bus", "Local guide").
Quantity: number of units.
Unit cost: price per unit.
The row's total is calculated automatically (quantity × unit cost).
ℹ️ Each row is commissionable (margin is applied to it) by default. If you need a cost to be added to the final price without margin, uncheck the "commissionable" box on that row.
In our example:
Fixed costs subtotal: €3,100 (€2,800 commissionable + €300 non-commissionable)
3. Add variable costs
Add one row for each cost that **depends on the number of travelers**. The format is the same as fixed costs, but the total will be automatically multiplied by the number of paying travelers.
In our example:
Variable cost per traveler: €675
Variable costs subtotal: 675 × 15 travelers = €10,125
Cost of the complimentary seat: 675 × 1 = €675 (split between the 15 paying travelers.
4. Set the margin
Pick the margin percentage you want to apply to the commissionable costs.
In our example: 15% margin.
5. Review the summary
The summary shows:
Item | Description |
Fixed costs subtotal | Sum of every fixed cost row |
Variable costs subtotal | Variable costs × paying travelers |
Cost of complimentary seats | Variable costs of the non-paying travelers |
Net total | Sum of every cost (what the trip costs you) |
Margin | Percentage and amount of profit |
Group total | Total sale price for the entire group |
Price per traveler | What each paying traveler pays |
In our example:
6. Apply a discount (optional)
If you need to offer a discount, turn it on and choose between percentage or fixed amount. The price per traveler recalculates automatically.
In our example: 10% discount.
7. Link to the Booking block (optional)
If you want the calculated price to sync with the trip's Booking block (so travelers can book online), click Link to Booking. When you link:
The price per traveler is automatically synced with the Booking block's base price.
Every time you save changes in the quoter, the Booking block updates automatically.
To unlink, click Unlink at any time.
The quoter with category pricing
If your Booking block is set to Category pricing (for example, different room types or seasons), you can link the quoter to define different costs and prices for each combination.
How it works
When you link the quoter to a Booking block with category pricing, a combination selector appears at the top of the quoter. This dropdown shows all the possible combinations based on the categories configured in the block (for example: "High season - 3 stars", "Low season - 5 stars").
ℹ️ Each combination has its own independent quoter with its own fixed cost rows, variable cost rows and price per traveler. When you switch combination in the selector, the cost tables update with that combination's data.
Step by step
1️⃣ Configure the categories in the Booking block from the proposal builder. For example, create a "Season" category with values "High", "Mid" and "Low", and another "Hotel category" with values "3 stars", "4 stars" and "5 stars".
2️⃣ Link the quoter to the Booking block by clicking Link to Booking.
3️⃣ Pick a combination from the dropdown (e.g. "High season - 5 stars").
4️⃣ Define the fixed and variable costs for that combination, and repeat for each combination until they're all complete.
Important notes:
The selector shows the price per traveler next to each combination if it's already priced, or "Pending" if costs haven't been defined yet. A notice also appears indicating how many combinations are still pending.
Fixed costs (bus, guide, etc.) can be the same or different across combinations. When a traveler books, they pay the price of the combination they pick.
FAQ
Can I use the Quoter without linking it to the Booking block?
Yes. The quoter works as a standalone cost and price calculator. Linking it to the Booking block is completely optional.
What happens if I change the price in the quoter after linking?
The Booking block updates automatically every time you save changes in the quoter.
Can I unlink the quoter at any time?
Yes. When you unlink, the Booking block keeps the last synced price but stops updating automatically. You'll be able to edit the price directly in the Builder again.
What's the difference between margin on sale and margin on cost?
MOGU uses margin on sale, the standard in the travel industry. A 20% margin on sale means the profit is 20% of the final sale price. With margin on cost, the 20% is calculated on the cost.
Example with a €100 cost:
Margin on sale (20%): sale price = €125 (margin = €25 = 20% of 125)
Margin on cost (20%): sale price = €120 (margin = €20 = 20% of 100)
With category pricing, what does "Pending" mean in the combination selector?
"Pending" indicates that the active combination has unsaved changes in the quoter. Once you save, the selector will show the updated price per traveler. Every combination has a price assigned at the moment the quoter is linked.
With category pricing, can I add or remove categories after linking the quoter?**
Yes, but you have to unlink the quoter from the Booking block first. Once unlinked, you can edit the categories from the Booking block in the proposal builder. When you're done with the changes, link the quoter again so the new combinations are generated.
With category pricing, are the fixed costs the same for every combination?
Not necessarily. Each combination has its own fixed and variable cost tables, so you can define completely different costs in each one.