Use this guide when a customer asks how much a job will cost and you have enough information to price it. Have your site notes or brief, measurements, material costs, your day rate and your standard terms ready.
Step by step
Confirm the scope
Write down exactly what the customer wants, based on your visit or their brief. Ask questions about anything unclear, such as finishes, access, waste removal or who supplies materials. A clear scope is the foundation of a fair price.
Work out your costs
List materials with quantities and current prices, labour time, equipment hire, travel and disposal costs. Add a sensible allowance for your overheads and profit. Check whether VAT applies to you and show it separately if you are VAT registered.
Decide quote or estimate
If the job is well defined, give a fixed quote. If there are unknowns, give an estimate or a quote with clearly stated assumptions and provisional sums. State plainly which one you are giving.
Write the quote document
Include your business name and contact details, the customer's name and address, a reference number and the date. Set out the work in clear line items with prices, the total, what is excluded and how long the quote is valid. Add expected start and finish dates if you can commit to them.
Set out payment terms
State any deposit, stage payments and when the final balance is due. Explain how changes and extra work will be priced and agreed in writing. If you are working in the customer's home, check whether cancellation rights apply and include the required information.
Send it and follow up
Send the quote by email as a PDF and ask the customer to confirm acceptance in writing. Follow up politely after a few days if you have not heard back. Keep a copy with the job file.
Ready-to-use checklist
- Scope agreed with customer
- Materials and labour costed
- VAT position checked
- Quote or estimate stated clearly
- Exclusions listed
- Validity period included
- Payment terms set out
- Written acceptance requested
Practical tips
- Use a template so every quote looks consistent and nothing gets missed.
- Include a short line about how variations will be agreed before extra work starts.
- Keep a record of quotes sent and won so you can see which jobs are worth pricing.
Common problems
The customer says my quote is too high.
Explain what is included and why, and offer options such as a reduced scope or different materials rather than simply cutting your price. Make sure the revised quote reflects the changes clearly.
Once work started I found problems that were not visible before.
Stop and tell the customer straight away, explaining what you found and the options. Give a written price for the extra work and get agreement before continuing. This is why stating assumptions in the original quote matters.
A customer accepted the quote months later and my costs have risen.
If your quote stated a validity period that has passed, you can issue an updated quote. Explain politely that prices have changed since the original date. Always include a validity period in future.