Ratebook Manager
The Ratebook Manager controls which ratebooks are attached to a budget — the union, guild and regional rate tables you can then link to individual lines. As the dialog itself puts it: "Use the Ratebook Manager to add, view or remove ratebooks associated with the budget."
Opening it
- The Ratebooks button on the Budget Toolbar, or
- Tools → Ratebook Manager (⌘3 on Mac, Ctrl+3 on Windows).
You need a plan that includes viewing and purchasing ratebooks (otherwise the button is dimmed with an upgrade tooltip), and Guests will see "You do not have access to Ratebook Manager."
The Associated Ratebooks table
The manager lists every ratebook attached to this budget with:
| Column | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Use | Tick/untick to include or exclude the ratebook without detaching it. |
| Name / Description / Area | What the ratebook covers. |
| Valid Until | The end of the ratebook's validity period. |
| ⋮ | View Ratebook (opens it in its own tab) · Remove from Budget. |
Remove from Budget only detaches the ratebook from this budget — it stays in your library.
Attaching a ratebook
Click Import from Library (requires Edit Mode). The Import from My Library dialog shows your My Ratebooks list with a search box ("Search your Library") and Region / Country / Affiliation / Project Type filters. Tick the Add checkbox on each ratebook you want and click ADD →.
Notes:
- Only ratebooks you're entitled to appear; expired ratebooks and ones already attached are filtered out.
- Attaching also brings the ratebook's affiliations into the budget for use on lines.
- The Ratebook Store card at the bottom ("Access professionally maintained ratebooks covering all major unions, guilds, and production regions…") takes you to the store with Browse Store. In Studio workspaces — where the whole catalog is already bundled — this card doesn't appear.
Linking a rate to a line
Once a ratebook is attached, you apply its rates from the line-item (Details) level:
- In a Cast/Crew detail header, click the Ratebook field (it reads "Select a Ratebook" until linked). The same field exists per row in the Rate Entry window.
- The "Apply a Rate to:" browser opens: pick the Ratebook → Local/Guild → Position, flip the Local / Studio ↔ Distant toggle if needed, and optionally scale with the Percent dropdown (103% down to 60%).
- The rate table shows Base Rate, Hourly, Daily and Weekly (with minimum calls), overtime columns and more. Click Use on the row you want, then close. VIEW IN RATEBOOK opens the full ratebook if you need context; the footer reminds you "This ratebook data is valid from
{date}–{date}."
Applying snapshots the rate onto the line — rate, unit (Hr/Day/Wk), position, department, affiliation, guarantee, currency and hire type are copied in and the line recalculates. Because it's a snapshot, your budget numbers never change behind your back when a ratebook is updated.
When ratebooks update
Updates surface in Library → Ratebooks: recently updated ratebooks carry an "Updated" badge with Release Notes, and cards show "Valid until" with nearing-expiration and expired styling. To bring a line up to a new rate, re-link it through the rate picker. Expired ratebooks can't be newly attached; ones already on the budget stay attached (check their Valid Until column).
Ratebook Manager vs Rate Entry
- Ratebook Manager — manages which ratebooks the budget can use.
- Rate Entry (⌘2, Tools → Rate Entry) — a separate window with a bulk grid of the budget's positions where you link rates line after line (each row's ratebook cell opens the same rate picker) and apply changes to checked items.
Workspaces and plans
- Studio workspaces: every member has the full catalog bundled; the store is hidden.
- Institutional workspaces & personal accounts: attach the ratebooks you own; buy more in the Ratebook Store (purchases follow you, and work in both contexts).
- Linking rates to lines requires the plan feature that integrates ratebooks into budgets; without it the link fields are disabled with the standard upgrade tooltip.