# Add a client

> Create a client record with their name, contact details and company, ready to link to projects, invoices and the client portal.

Source: https://docs.moodiri.com/directory/add-a-client

## Why use it

Typing a client's details into every project and invoice leads to three spellings of the same email.
A client record holds them once, so every project, invoice and portal invite uses the same, current details.

## When to use it

- **A new client signs.** Add them before you create their first project.
- **A second decision-maker.** Add a partner or spouse as their own client, then add them to the project as a co-owner.

To add someone straight onto a project, choose **Manage clients** on the project instead. See
[Add a client to a project](https://docs.moodiri.com/projects/add-a-client-to-a-project).

## Before you start

- Only the owner and admins can add clients.
- Open **Directory** from the sidebar. It opens on **Clients**.

## Steps

![Directory Clients table with a Search clients box and an add button at the top right, above rows of clients with amount due, email, phone and company.](https://docs.moodiri.com/shots/directory--add-a-client-1600.webp)
Same screen with numbered callouts: https://docs.moodiri.com/shots/directory--add-a-client-annotated.webp
1. In **Directory**, on **Clients**, choose **Add client**.
2. Enter the client's **First name** and **Last name**, for example *Jordan Ellis*. Both are required.
3. Choose **Next**, then add an **Email**. You need one to email invoices or invite the client to the portal.
4. Add a **Phone** number if you have one. It is optional.
5. Choose **Next**, then enter a **Company** if the client is a business, or choose **No company**.
6. Choose **Review**, check the details, then choose **Add client**. Choose **Edit** on a row to change it.

## What happens next

- You see that the client has been added, with a choice to **Add another person** or **Done**.
- The client appears in the [Clients](https://docs.moodiri.com/directory/clients) list and can be picked when you
  [create a project](https://docs.moodiri.com/projects/create-a-project).
- Nothing is sent to the client yet. When they are on a project, [send a portal invite](https://docs.moodiri.com/directory/send-a-client-portal-invite).

## Limits

- **First name** and **Last name** are required. An email, if you add one, must be a valid address.
- The **Send portal invite after adding** switch on the review step does not send an invite. Send it
  from the client's page after linking them to a project.

## Questions

### I closed the steps halfway. Did I lose what I typed?

Usually not. The steps keep a draft in this browser and offer to restore it the next time you choose **Add client**.

### Does turning on Send portal invite after adding email my client?

Not yet. Clients are invited to a specific project, so send the invite from the client's page once they are linked to one.