SmartMoving allows you to track commissions based on either the total invoice subtotal or specific tariff-based fees. Each salesperson’s commission structure can be customized as needed. You can then pull commission reports to provide to your payroll provider or accountant.
How to Set Sales Commissions
Navigate to Settings → Company Settings → User Management.
Select the user whose commission you want to adjust.
Open the Commission tab.
Choose a Commission Type:
Commission Types
1. Invoice Subtotal Commission
This calculates commission as a percentage of the job subtotal (before tax/tip, and either before or after discounts depending on your accounting settings).
You can set rates for:
Local Move
Intrastate Move
Interstate Move
Job Done By Agent – when the salesperson also performs the estimate
Visual Estimate – paid to both estimator and salesperson when a separate estimator completes the survey
To pay commission on surveys, go to Settings → Accounting & Profitability → Common and enable Pay commission on surveys.
2. Custom Commissions
Custom Commissions allow you to track commission based on specific tariff-based charge categories rather than the invoice subtotal.
The Custom Commission categories directly reflect how your tariff is structured. Below is a full breakdown of each category and how it applies.
Moving Labor
Commission applies to hourly or flat-rate moving labor charges such as movers, drivers, loaders.
These amounts come from the tariff’s Moving Labor configuration.
Packing Labor
Commission applies to labor charges for packing and unpacking tasks.
Mapped to Packing Labor rates in the tariff.
Transportation
Commission applies to transportation-related fees including linehaul, mileage, or local transportation charges depending on tariff setup.
Materials
Commission applies to packing materials including boxes, tape, pads, crates, etc.
Material pricing is set in the tariff catalog.
Services
Commission applies to additional service charges defined in your tariff such as:
Appliance servicing
Piano handling
Crating
Long carry
Stair or elevator fees
Other service-based line items
Valuation
Commission applies to valuation or protection plan charges (e.g., Released Value, Full Value Protection).
Fuel Surcharge Fees
Commission applies to the fuel surcharge fee as calculated by your tariff rules.
Prepaid Storage
Commission applies to prepaid storage billed upfront.
Warehouse Handling
Commission applies to warehouse handling or warehouse labor fees.
Trip and Travel
Commission applies to all Trip Fee and Travel-Time-related charges, including:
Base Trip Fee
Travel Time Fee
Additional trip/travel hours
Any tariff-defined trip/travel surcharges
⭐ Important Clarification About Additional Trip Hours
SmartMoving does not automatically calculate the difference between included trip time and actual time worked.
Commission applies only when additional trip/travel hours are manually added as separate line items (e.g., “Trip Fee – Additional Hour(s)”).
If no additional travel-hour charge is added, no commission is tracked.
Bulky Item
Commission applies to bulky or heavy item surcharges defined in the tariff (e.g., safes, pianos, oversized items).
Shuttle Fee
Commission applies to shuttle charges when a smaller vehicle is required due to access limitations.
Storage in Transit (SIT)
Commission applies to SIT fees before items move into long-term storage.
Insurance
Commission applies to optional third-party insurance or additional protection coverage that is not categorized under Valuation.
Understanding Tariff Additional Services vs. Custom Commission Tracking
Let’s clarify how Additional Services interact with Commissions.
Tariff → Additional Services
This section of your tariff allows you to create custom billable services such as:
Heavy Item
Long Carry
Hoisting
Extra Labor (per hour or flat fee)
Specialty handling tasks
Each additional service can optionally be configured to:
Pay to salespeople
Pay to crew
These control crew or salesperson compensation, but they do not affect Custom Commission categories.
Custom Commissions
These are the commission categories under User Management → Commissions and determine which charges contribute to commission tracking for salespeople.
Key Distinction
Additional Services generate billable fees for the customer.
If commission is enabled within the Additional Service itself (Pay to salespeople or Pay to crew), commission will apply only to that specific Additional Service fee.
Custom Commissions determine whether the salesperson earns commission on tariff-based charge categories (e.g., Moving Labor, Materials, Trip & Travel).
These are separate systems, and enabling commission in one does not automatically apply commission in the other.
Additional Services create billable fees for the customer.
Custom Commissions determine whether the salesperson earns commission on those fees.
They are separate systems and do not automatically mirror each other.
For example:
A Heavy Item fee may exist in Additional Services, but commission only applies if the Services, Bulky Item, or another appropriate commission category is enabled.
Common Misunderstandings
❌ “Trip and Travel commissions automatically calculate extra travel time.”
Incorrect. Only manually added additional travel/trip line items generate commission.
❌ “If a fee exists in the tariff, commission automatically applies.”
Incorrect. Commission applies only when the equivalent Custom Commission category is enabled AND the fee appears on the invoice.
❌ “Additional Services → Pay to Salespeople is the same as Custom Commissions.”
Incorrect. These are different systems with different purposes.
Summary Table
Function | Tariff Settings | Custom Commission Settings |
Controls fee availability | ✔ | — |
Controls fee calculation | ✔ | — |
Determines commission eligibility | — | ✔ |
Tracks commission on subtotal | — | ✔ |
Tracks commission on specific charges | — | ✔ |