Free quote template for tradies (Excel and printable)

A quote is the first piece of your paperwork a client reads closely, and once they accept it, it is the deal you are working to. This template covers everything a written quote should have, so you can fill it in and send it the same day you walk the job. If you want the method for working out the price first, start with how to quote a job as a tradie.

What's in the template

• Quote tab: your details, the client, quote number and date, a valid-until date that fills itself in 30 days later, the scope, the itemised price, GST, the total, a payment schedule, terms and an acceptance block
• Pricing worksheet: materials with a waste allowance, labour at your true hourly cost, subbies, hire and disposal, overhead, contingency and your margin, worked out by dividing, not adding
• Example quote and Example pricing: a merbau deck priced the same way as in how to quote a carpentry job, so you can see every cell in use
• How to use: the steps, the business.gov.au checklist and a note on residential contracts

What a quote should include, and where it goes

business.gov.au lists what a written quote should include. Here is that list, and where each item sits in the template.

Filling it in, section by section

Scope of work

Write the scope in the client's words, not trade shorthand. Then fill in the two boxes most quotes skip. Not included is where you list what a client might assume is in: stairs, painting, council fees, making good after another trade. Assumptions is where you write what the price relies on: clear access, normal ground, the client supplying the tiles by a date. Both turn a later surprise into a priced variation instead of an argument.

Price lines

Split the price into lines the client can follow: by stage, by room, or by part of the job. Use quantity and unit price where it helps the client compare (metres of fence, number of points) and a single 'lot' where it does not. You do not have to show your margin or your hourly cost; the pricing worksheet keeps those for you.

GST

Set 'Registered for GST?' to Yes and the template adds 10% and shows it on its own line; set it to No and the GST line drops to nil. To check a figure by hand, use the GST quote calculator.

Payment schedule

Enter a deposit and the milestones as percentages and the template works out each amount from the total, and tells you if the stages do not add up to 100%. Deposit caps for home building work differ by state, and some are lower than you might expect. Progress claims and payment stages lists them, and when the stages fall due, the free progress claim template picks up where the quote leaves off.

Terms and acceptance

Say how many days the client has to pay each invoice and how to pay, and that changes to the scope are priced in writing before the work is done. The acceptance block gives the client a place to sign and date. business.gov.au says that if a customer accepts your quote, it becomes a legally binding contract, so read quote vs estimate if you are not sure which one you are giving.

An example quote

The Example quote tab is a merbau deck about 4.2 by 3.6 metres, priced at $14,000 ex GST on the Example pricing tab. On the quote the client sees four lines, not the cost build-up behind them.

Before you send it

1. Check the totals against your pricing worksheet, so the price you send is the price you worked out.
2. Check your ABN, licence number and the client's details.
3. Set the valid-until date. Thirty days is the template default; shorten it if your supplier prices move fast.
4. Save it as a PDF and name it with the client and quote number.
5. Send it the same day or the next, with a short note on when you could start.

Quotes without the spreadsheet

TrackYaTradie builds quotes from your own price list and job templates, sends them as a link the client can accept online, and then tracks hours and costs against the quoted price as the job runs. The template is yours to keep either way.