Free quote template
Blank, ready to fill in, built for UK sole traders. With the three lines most quote templates leave off — what isn't included, how long the price stands, and somewhere to sign.
No signup. No card. Nothing to install. Google Docs users: take the Word file, drop it in Drive, and it opens as a Doc.
Quote or estimate?
A quote is a fixed price. Accept it and that's the job. An estimate is a considered guess that can move.
This template says QUOTE at the top, so use it when you've seen the work and you're confident in the number. If you're not, change the word — and change it before you send it, not after the customer queries the bill.
[Your trading name]
[Address line 1]
[Town, postcode]
[Phone]
[Email]
[VAT number] (if registered)
Quote for
[Client name]
[Address line 1]
[Town, postcode]
[Site address, if different]
Quote number: [Q001]
Quote date: [DD/MM/YYYY]
Valid until: [DD/MM/YYYY]
Proposed start: [DD/MM/YYYY]
| Description of work | Qty | Unit price | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
Included in this price
[Labour, materials and anything else the number covers]
Not included
[Making good, waste removal, scaffolding, parking, anything found once work starts]
Deposit: [£0] payable before work starts. Balance due on completion.
Payment terms: due within [14] days of the invoice date. This quote is a fixed price, not an estimate, and stands until the date above.
Acceptance
By signing you accept the price, the scope and the terms above.
Signed
Print name
Date
The same fields in all four downloads.
What a quote has to say to hold up
A quote is an offer. Everything below is there because of what happens after somebody says yes to it.
- The word Quote, so nobody can call it an estimate later
- Your trading name and address, and theirs
- The site address, if the work isn't where they live
- What you're going to do, itemised — and what you aren't
- The price, and whether VAT is in it
- A valid until date
- The deposit, and when the balance is due
- Somewhere to sign
The exclusions list is the whole document
Nobody argues about the number you wrote down. They argue about the thing they assumed the number covered.
Waste removal, making good, scaffolding, parking, and whatever turns up once the floor is lifted. One line each, in a box headed Not included, and the conversation is over before it starts.
The cancellation right is set by the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. General guidance, not legal advice.
Last checked: 30 July 2026
If you quoted in their kitchen, they get 14 days to cancel
This is the one that catches people out, and it applies to almost every job a solo trade business does.
Agreeing a contract with a consumer somewhere that isn't your business premises — their kitchen, their driveway, their front step — makes it an off-premises contract. Under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 they then have 14 days to cancel, and you have to tell them so in writing.
Don't tell them, and the right doesn't go away — it extends by up to 12 months. That is a customer who can cancel most of a year later. The regulations largely don't apply to off-premises jobs at or under £42.
It cuts the other way too: if they ask you to start inside the 14 days and then cancel, you can only charge for what you've already done if you got that request in writing first. The quote is where both of those go.
Say whether VAT is in the price
Standard rate is 20%. A homeowner reads your number as the number they'll pay, so “plus VAT” in small print at the bottom is how a quote turns into a complaint.
Not registered? Don't mention VAT at all — delete the row. You have to register once taxable turnover passes £90,000 in any rolling twelve months.
Take the deposit at the quote, not after
A deposit is easiest to ask for while they're still choosing you. Raise it once they've accepted and it reads like a change of terms.
Put the amount and the timing on the quote, so accepting the price is also accepting the deposit.
CIS: split labour and materials on the quote too
If you're quoting a contractor rather than a homeowner, 20% comes off the labour if you're registered, 30% if you're not. Materials are excluded.
Split the lines at the quote stage and the invoice writes itself — and neither of you has to work out afterwards what the deduction should have been.
This is a general guide, not tax, legal or financial advice. Rates checked July 2026. Cancellation rights are set by the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, and VAT and CIS rates are set by government. A quote for a business customer is a different animal from a quote for a homeowner — if real money is riding on it, get it checked. Always confirm the current rates and rules with HMRC or your accountant before relying on a figure.
Quote templates by trade
Same template, with the thing that goes wrong when that trade prices a job.
- Electricians
- Say whether testing, certification and Part P notification are in the price. Chasing walls and making good is the classic exclusion.
- Plumbers
- Price the boiler and the fitting separately, and exclude anything behind a wall you haven't seen yet.
- Painters & decorators
- Number of coats, and whether prep, filling and lining paper are included. "Two coats" is a price; "painted" is an argument.
- Landscapers
- Access, spoil removal and skip hire. Getting a digger down a side return is either in the price or it isn't.
- Handymen
- Quote per task with a line each. One number for "the list" invites the customer to add to the list.
- Cleaners
- Hours, frequency, and who supplies materials. For an end-of-tenancy, say what "deep clean" covers.
- Carpenters
- Timber grade and finish. A quote for oak and a quote for pine are not the same quote.
- Tilers
- Price per square metre, state the wastage allowance, and exclude the tiles themselves if the customer is choosing them.
- Bathroom fitters
- Strip-out, first fix, second fix and making good as separate lines, so a change to one doesn't reopen the whole price.
Common questions
What's the difference between a quote and an estimate?
A quote is a fixed price. Once the customer accepts it, that's what the job costs, and you can only change it if they agree to a change. An estimate is a considered guess that can move. Use the word you mean — calling a document a quote and then billing more is where most disputes on small jobs start.
Is a quote legally binding?
Once the customer accepts it, yes — that's a contract, and you're both bound by it. Before acceptance it's an offer you can withdraw. This is why the template has a 'valid until' date and a signature line.
Can I change my price after the customer accepts?
Only if they agree. If you find something you couldn't have seen when you quoted — rot under a floor, no isolation valve — stop, tell them what it changes, and get the extra agreed in writing before you carry on. That is a variation, not a bigger invoice.
How long should a quote be valid for?
Thirty days is the usual, and it's mostly about materials. If you're quoting something where the price of copper or timber decides your margin, use fourteen days and say so.
Should I take a deposit?
For anything where you're buying materials up front, yes. Put the amount and the timing on the quote rather than raising it after they've said yes — the deposit is much easier to ask for while they're still choosing you.
Is this template free?
Yes. No signup, no card, no email required. Download the Word, Excel or PDF file and use it on real jobs.
The quote they accept should become the invoice
A template means typing the job out twice — once to win it, once to bill it. SoloDesks builds the quote on your phone before you leave the drive, and turns it into the invoice when the work's done without retyping a line.
Free plan covers 10 quotes and 10 invoices a month. No card.
Start freeNeed the invoice for when the job's done? The free invoice template is the same document with the payment details on it.
Not sure what to put in the price? How to write a quote that wins the job and how much deposit to take go further than a blank form can.
Want one written for your trade instead? Per-trade quote and invoice templates carry the line items a plumber, electrician or cleaner actually prices.