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A filled-in job estimate to download as a Word, Excel or PDF file, or to change in your browser first. Start from this sample or from a blank estimate.
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Need an invoice instead? See the contractor invoice template.
Bright Home Services
172 Example St, Suite 2
Anytown, ST 00000
(555) 555-0172
office@brighthome.example
Prepared for
Elena Marchetti
266 Example St
Anytown, ST 00000
(555) 555-0185
elena.marchetti@mail.example
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labor: hang two interior doors (hours) | 4 | $70.00 | $280.00 |
| Interior door, prehung, 30 in | 2 | $145.00 | $290.00 |
| Door hardware set | 2 | $32.50 | $65.00 |
| Trim and paint touch-up | 1 | $85.00 | $85.00 |
| Haul away old doors | 1 | $40.00 | $40.00 |
Every name, address and number in this sample is made up.
A job estimate tells the customer, before any work starts, what you plan to do, what it takes in labor and materials, and what it will cost. A clear one lets the customer say yes or no without a second visit.
In the notes, write what the price leaves out and what could change it, in plain words.
Where job estimates go wrong: one line with one number. The customer cannot tell what is in it, and neither can you three weeks later. Name each piece of work and keep labor apart from materials.
Customers use the three words for the same paper. In the Word and Excel files you can change the title from Estimate to Quote or Bid, whichever word your customer used. Some people say quote for a fixed price and estimate for a best guess, so write on the paper whether the price is fixed or may change once the work is opened up.
Work added along the way is the most common reason for an argument at the end. When the customer asks for more, or you find something you could not see, write the added work down with its price and get a yes before you do it. On the invoice, give it its own lines under the original work.
Your business name and contact details, the customer and the address of the job, an estimate number and date, how long the price holds, each piece of work and each material on its own line, the total, and what the price leaves out.
Enough that the customer can see what they are saying yes to. One line for each piece of work and each main material is a good measure.
Either works. A flat price suits work you can see in full before you start. Hourly suits work where you cannot know what you will find.
Material prices move, so put a date on it. The estimate maker lets you set how long the price holds.
It is common when materials have to be bought first. Put the deposit on the estimate and say what it covers. Some states limit deposits on certain kinds of work, so check yours before you set one.
Stop, tell the customer what you found, and send a new estimate or add the work in writing with its price. Get a yes before you go on.
When the work is done, the same lines go on the invoice, changed to what was done. Keep the same wording so the customer can compare the two.
What an estimate has to show can differ by state, so check what applies where you work. This is general information, not tax or legal advice.
Closer to your work: handyman estimate template, plumbing estimate template, electrical estimate template.
Other general templates: repair estimate template.
General templates: Repair estimate template
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