Free Quote Template (PDF, Word & Excel)

What a quote must contain

Four things separate a quote that protects you from a quotation of prices scribbled in an email:

One sentence on what happens next: when the client accepts, the quote's numbers reappear on the invoice unchanged — same lines, same prices — which is the whole point of quoting carefully in the first place; the mechanics are covered in Invoice vs quote. And if what you need is help with the wording and pricing decisions themselves, that's its own walkthrough: How to write a quote.

• The scope, line by line. Every distinct piece of work gets its own line with its own price — not "landscaping works, $4,800" but the demolition, the materials, the labor, each stated. Line-by-line scope is what makes the later conversation possible: when the client asks to drop a line, you drop a line and its price, instead of renegotiating a lump sum.
• The exclusions, named. The most expensive words in quoting are the ones you thought were obvious. If the quote covers the deck but not the permit, say "Excludes: permits and fees." If paint is by the client, say so. An exclusions block of three plain lines prevents more disputes than any clause a lawyer will sell you — because a named exclusion is a boundary, and an unnamed one is a gap.
• A valid-until date. Materials prices move; your calendar fills. "This quote is valid until September 12" means a client who surfaces in November gets a fresh quote, not an argument about honoring August prices.
• An acceptance line. A signature, a name, a date. The moment a quote is accepted it stops being marketing and starts being the agreement — the acceptance line is what marks that moment on paper.

Budgetary vs firm quotation

A budgetary quotation is a non-binding price indication used for planning; a firm quotation is a price you commit to honor if accepted within its validity window. Buyers ask for budgetary numbers early — to size a project, to get internal approval, to compare approaches — and the correct response is a round-number range clearly labeled: "Budgetary estimate for planning purposes — not an offer. Ballpark: $9,000–$12,000." The label is the load-bearing part. A budgetary number that isn't labeled becomes, in the client's memory, a firm one, and every dollar above it becomes an overrun you apparently caused. Use the same template for both; change the label, and for budgetary work replace the acceptance line with a note that a firm quotation follows a site visit or a detailed specification.

Sample quote — a builder's job

A firm quote for a residential deck replacement, in the job quote template's shape:

Quote Q-1041 · July 30 · Valid until: August 29 · Site: 44 Alder St

_Excludes: permits and fees; painting and staining; landscaping reinstatement._ _Accepted by: **\_\_\_\_ Date: \_\_\_\_**_

Two things to notice. The provisional sum is priced but flagged: line 5 only becomes real if demolition confirms the rot, and the quote says exactly when that gets decided — which is how you avoid both padding every quote for the worst case and eating the worst case when it happens. And there is no tax arithmetic here: quotes usually show prices before tax; the invoice carries the tax field, and on these templates that field is always yours to fill by hand.

Quotation template for builders and trades

Trades quoting has two habits worth stealing whatever your trade, and the job quote template builds both in:

Split materials from labor. One lump line hides where the money goes; a split quote shows the client that $2,840 is lumber they could price-check at any yard and $3,520 is 64 hours of skilled work at a stated rate. Clients push back far less on numbers they can verify half of — and when material prices jump between quote and job, a split quote lets you requote one section instead of defending the whole total. It also makes the valid-until date mean something specific: it is mostly the materials lines that expire.

Use provisional sums for the unknowable. Builders can't see inside a wall, under a deck, or behind a fascia board until the job opens it up. A provisional sum prices the likely surprise, names the trigger that confirms it, and keeps it out of the firm subtotal's certainty — "if the joists are rotten, the stair rebuild is $1,200, and we'll know on day one." Landscapers use it for what's under the soil; electricians for what's behind the drywall. The alternative is a change-order argument mid-job, with the client anchored to a number that never included the surprise.

Builders should also quote from the site, not the plan, whenever the two might differ — the site-address field on the job quote template is there because the quote is for that deck at that address, not for decks in general. Access, slope, what the last contractor left behind: none of it shows on a drawing, and all of it shows up in your hours. A quotation template for builders is only as firm as the site visit behind it, which is also the honest answer to give a client who wants a firm number from photographs — offer the budgetary version instead, labeled as such, and let the visit turn it firm.