Frequently asked questions

MakerQ is quoting and job-tracking software made for 3D print shops. It turns scattered quote requests into one organized, priced, ready-to-send pipeline: capture a request, estimate material and print time, calculate a price, send the quote, and track the job from new to finished on a simple board.

It runs as an app on your own computer, so your customer data stays with you and there is no cloud account required to get going.

Minutes. Download the app, open it, and add a request or let the pricing calculator estimate material, time, and cost for you. Adjust the numbers, then send the quote by email. There is nothing to configure before you can try it end to end with the built in sample flow.

No. The free plan needs no account, no card, and no cloud. Just download MakerQ and start pricing jobs. You only enter payment details later if you decide to upgrade to Starter or Pro.

Both Windows and macOS are available now. Head to the download page for the latest builds.

Yes. The interactive demo runs the real dashboard with sample data right in your browser. Click around, drag jobs across the board, and open a request. Nothing is saved, so refresh to reset.

A dedicated mobile app is in development and is not out yet.

You do not have to wait to use MakerQ from your phone, though. Because MakerQ serves its interface in the browser, Pro adds network sharing, so any phone or tablet on the same network can open it today, and you can reach it securely from anywhere using Tailscale. The next two questions cover both.

Yes, with Pro. While MakerQ is running on your computer, any phone, tablet, or second computer on the same Wi-Fi or local network can open the app in a browser and use the same board and requests. Network sharing needs no setup beyond being on Pro.

To use it away from that network, Pro also adds secure remote access over Tailscale, so your phone can reach MakerQ from anywhere. A native mobile app is on the way.

Yes, with Pro. MakerQ works with Tailscale, a free and secure networking app, so you can reach the exact instance running on your shop computer from anywhere, on your phone or a laptop, without exposing your network to the public internet.

Your data still lives only on your own computer. Tailscale just creates a private, encrypted connection between your own devices and the machine running MakerQ. The next question walks through the setup.

It is a one time setup that takes a few minutes:

1. Install the free Tailscale app on the computer running MakerQ and sign in to create your private network.
2. Install Tailscale on your phone, tablet, or laptop and sign in with the same account, so both devices join the same network.
3. In MakerQ, open Network settings. When Tailscale is on, MakerQ shows your Tailscale address there. Open that address in a browser on your other device, and you are connected, from anywhere.

Because the link is private and encrypted end to end, your customer data never touches a public server. Remote access over Tailscale is included with Pro.

There are three plans. Free is $0. Starter is $4 per month, or $48 per year billed annually. Pro is $8.99 per month, or $89.99 per year which is two months free. You can compare every feature on the pricing section.

The free plan covers organizing and pricing: up to 5 active projects, quote requests in the List and Kanban views with priorities and statuses, and the roll calculator with inventory tracking. No account and no cloud needed. Setting your own material and labour costs, and sending quotes to customers, start at Starter.

Starter is the core quote, price and get paid loop: unlimited projects, your own material and labour costs, sending quotes to customers, and payment or checkout links in those emails. Pro adds everything else: invoices, CSV import and export of customers, custom shop and social links in emails, settings and client-info backup, AI triage and quote assist, hosted customer status and approval pages, embeddable web and Shopify intake forms, hosted email with no SMTP setup, and network sharing to a second computer or your phone.

Lifetime is no longer sold. Anyone who already has a Lifetime license keeps every feature they already had, this only affects the plans offered going forward. The plans available now are Free, Starter, and Pro.

Starter and Pro are purchased inside the app. Open MakerQ, choose your plan, and your license and activation key are tied to the email on your account.

Yes. A Pro subscription can be cancelled whenever you like and it will not renew for the next period. You keep access through the end of the period you already paid for.

If MakerQ is not the right fit, you can request a refund within 14 days of purchase. See the refund policy for the details.

Payments are handled securely through Stripe at checkout, which accepts major credit and debit cards. We never see or store your full card details.

You set your inputs once, things like filament cost per spool, electricity, nozzle and sheet wear, labor rate, markup, and tax. From estimated grams and print hours the calculator works out your true cost and a suggested price, including quantity, shipping, and any rush or design fees. You can always adjust the final number before sending.

AI quote assist reads the request and any uploaded model and suggests a recommended material, a complexity rating, an estimated weight and print time, and a price range, along with risk flags such as overhangs or thin walls. It gives you a fast, informed starting point that you can fine tune. AI triage and quote assist are included with Pro.

Yes, from Starter up. On Starter you send quote emails through your own SMTP, so mail comes from your address. Pro adds hosted email so you can send without configuring SMTP yourself, plus custom shop and social links in those emails.

Yes, with Pro. You get an embeddable web intake form, including a Shopify friendly option, where customers can describe the job and upload their files. Requests land straight in your board. Pro also adds hosted customer status and approval pages so clients can follow along and approve a quote.

Payment and checkout links in quote emails start at Starter, so an approved quote can turn into a payment without leaving your workflow. Full invoices are a Pro feature.

On your own computer. MakerQ keeps your quotes, customers, and settings in a local database on the machine running the app. Your customer data never has to leave your desk.

Because everything is local by default, your data is only as exposed as the computer it lives on. There is no cloud account required, and the optional hosted features, such as the intake form and hosted email, only handle the pieces you choose to turn on.

No. Your data lives in your local database, so it stays put. If you move down a plan, the features above it are simply switched off, but your quotes, customers, and history remain.

Yes. Since the database is a file on your computer, you can back it up like any other file. Higher plans also include a backup option in the app settings.