A contractor proposal template that covers the four things a client actually decides on: what is included, what it costs, how long it takes, and what happens when something changes. Fill in the scope and line items, set your terms, and export a proposal that looks like it came from a business rather than a text message.
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Proposal GeneratorLive
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How to use it
Four steps to a result
Define the scope of work
Describe what you will do — and add an explicit exclusions list. Written exclusions are what stops a fixed-price job quietly turning into an open-ended one.
Itemise the costs
Break out materials, labour and any subcontracted work. Itemised quotes win against lump sums because the client can see what they are buying.
Set the timeline and milestones
Give start and completion dates and tie payment milestones to them. Deposit, progress payment, completion is the standard structure for good reason.
Add terms and send
Cover the change-order process, payment terms, warranty and validity period, then export and send it while the client is still thinking about the job.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Both parties' details, a specific scope of work, an explicit exclusions list, itemised costs, the total, a payment schedule, start and completion dates, the change-order process, warranty terms, and how long the quote stays valid. Missing exclusions and a missing change-order clause cause most disputes.
An estimate is an informed guess and can change. A quote is a fixed price you are committing to. A proposal is the full document — scope, price, timeline and terms — that contains one of the two. Say clearly which you are giving, because clients treat every number as a quote unless told otherwise.
Thirty days is standard, and material prices have made shorter windows increasingly common. Put the expiry date in writing. Without one, a client can accept a six-month-old price and expect you to honour it.
Define the process in the proposal itself: any change to scope requires a written change order with its own price and timeline impact, signed before work continues. Verbal agreements on site are the single most common source of unpaid work in contracting.
For most jobs a deposit before starting, one or more progress payments tied to milestones, and a final payment on completion. The deposit should at least cover your materials so you are never financing the client's project out of your own account.
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