Built for people who quote for a living.
Itemise the scope, state what is not included, set the deposit and the valid-until date, then export a print-ready PDF, priced in the units your trade actually bills in.
Eight elements that turn a price into an agreement your client can accept with confidence.
Your studio details and the client's, so there is no doubt who is offering what to whom.
A unique reference and the date it was issued, which is what you both refer to later.
Quotes expire. Stating the window protects your pricing when material or labour costs move.
Each deliverable with quantity, rate and amount, so the price is traceable rather than a single lump sum.
The single most useful line on a quote. Naming exclusions up front prevents scope creep later.
Subtotal, tax and total, plus the deposit needed to start and when the balance falls due.
How long the work takes, when it can start, and exactly what happens when the client accepts.
A signature line turns an estimate into an agreed record you can invoice against.
People use the three words interchangeably and they are not the same document. The difference decides whether you can change the price later, so it is worth getting right before you send anything.
A fixed price for a clearly defined scope of work, valid for a stated period. Once a client accepts it, you are generally held to that price even if the work turns out to be harder than you thought.
Send one when you have seen the job and know what it involves. This is what the generator above produces.
An informed range rather than a promise, given before the scope is settled. It manages expectations and can move as the job reveals itself.
Send one when you have not seen the site, or when the work depends on what you find. Say plainly on the document that it is an estimate, not a quote.
A longer document that argues for the approach as well as the price: what you will do, why, in what order, and what it costs. The price is often a quote embedded inside it.
Send one when you are competing on approach rather than on price alone.
Whichever you send, the two things that protect you are the same: a written scope of work with exclusions, and terms and conditions covering validity, deposit and what happens if the job changes.
This is the tool itself, sped up. The same top bar, the same five steps and the same progress line you get above, with the quote on the right updating as each field is filled in.
Click any step above to replay that part. Every field is explained in the questions further down this page.
The features that decide whether a quote tool saves you time, all built in and free.
A quote is the first step. These free tools cover everything that follows, all client-side and none of them storing your data.
The twelve quoting questions we are asked most, each answered in two sentences.
A quote is a fixed price for clearly defined work, given in writing before the job starts. It sets out what will be done, what it costs, and how long the price stands, so both sides agree the terms before any work or money changes hands.
A quote is a fixed price you commit to for the scope described. An estimate is your best informed guess and can move as the work becomes clearer. Quote when the scope is known and measurable, estimate when it genuinely is not, and say which one you are giving.
A quote is sent before the work and asks the client to agree a price. An invoice is sent after the work, or after a deposit is due, and asks to be paid. Most quotes become invoices once accepted, keeping the same wording and line items.
Your business name and contact details, the client's details, a unique quote number and date, a line by line breakdown of the work with quantities and rates, the total, any tax, what is not included, how long the price is valid, the deposit required, and what happens when the client accepts.
Measure or scope the work first, break it into lines a client can follow, price each line in the unit your trade uses, then add exclusions, a validity date and deposit terms. Send it within a day or two of the request, while the client is still deciding.
Fifteen to thirty days is the usual window. It is long enough for a client to decide and short enough to protect you when material or labour costs move. Print the expiry date on the quote rather than leaving it open ended.
Once a client accepts a quote in writing it generally forms a contract for that scope at that price, which is exactly why the scope, exclusions and validity date matter. Rules vary by country, so treat this as general guidance rather than legal advice.
Yes, until the client accepts it. Reissue the document with a new quote number and date so both sides know which version is current, and say briefly what changed. After acceptance, price changes normally need a written variation.
Show tax as its own line if you are registered to charge it, so the client can see the price before and after tax. Business clients usually want to see the net figure, consumers want the total they will actually pay.
Twenty five to fifty percent is common for trade and project work, with the balance due on completion. Take enough to cover the materials you must buy up front and to confirm the client is serious, and state the figure clearly on the quote.
Send a PDF by email so it opens the same way on every device and cannot be altered by accident. Put the price and the validity date in the email itself, since many clients read the message and never open the attachment.
Wait two or three days, then send a short message offering to walk through anything unclear rather than asking for a decision. A second nudge near the expiry date works well, because the date gives you a natural reason to write.
The list of what is not included. Naming exclusions up front is the single most effective way to prevent scope creep, because it moves the awkward conversation to before the work rather than after it.
Use the unit your trade actually charges in: roofers per square, painters per square foot or per room, electricians per point plus a call-out, caterers per guest, translators per word, IT support per seat. Clients recognise their own industry's units and trust the number more.
Most trades quote free for straightforward jobs and charge for detailed surveys, design work or long site visits. If you charge, say so before you attend and offer to credit the fee against the job if the client goes ahead.
Keep one clear page, itemise the work, use consistent type, put your logo in the header, and state the validity and deposit plainly. A tidy document reads as a tidy tradesperson, and clients regularly pay more for the quote they trust.
Yes. This quote generator is free, needs no signup, and runs entirely in your browser, so your client details never leave your device. You can export the finished quote as a PDF, image, JSON or CSV file.
Confirm the acceptance in writing, invoice the deposit, then book the work in. Keep the accepted quote with the invoice, since together they evidence what was agreed if a question comes up later.
Identify both parties, describe the scope of work in lines a client can check, price each line, total it with tax, then add validity, deposit and payment terms. State the exclusions as plainly as the inclusions: most disputes come from work someone assumed was included.
A quote is a fixed price for a defined scope and is generally binding once accepted. An estimate is an informed range given before the scope is settled and can change. Label the document for what it is, because the word you use decides whether you can revise the price.
Once a client accepts it within its validity period, a quote usually forms a contract at that price, which is why a valid-until date and a written scope matter. Rules vary by country, so treat this as the general position rather than legal advice.
What you will do, what you will not, what the client supplies, and what happens if something unexpected turns up. A short list of exclusions is worth more than a long list of inclusions.
Validity period, deposit, payment terms and late fee, who covers materials price rises, and how variations are agreed and charged. Keep it to a paragraph a client will actually read.
Bill the same lines at the same prices, reference the quote number, and deduct any deposit already paid. Keeping the wording identical is what stops the awkward conversation about why the invoice is larger than the quote.
Thirty days suits most work. Shorter if your material costs move quickly, longer for planned projects. Putting a date on it is also a gentle reason for a client to decide.
An estimate is your informed expectation of what a job will cost, given before the scope is fully settled. Unlike a quote it can be revised as the work becomes clearer, provided the document says so and you confirm changes before carrying them out.
List the work in lines a client can check, price each line, and total it. Then add the part that makes it an estimate rather than a quote: the assumptions the figure rests on, a tolerance such as ten percent, what is excluded, and what triggers a revised figure.
Yes, where the extra falls outside the stated assumptions and you agreed it before doing the work. Many places require notice to a consumer before exceeding an estimate, so confirm any variation in writing at the time rather than on the final bill.
It has to be your genuine expectation, and the document should carry a tolerance. Ten percent suits work with predictable conditions; widen it for renovations, repairs or anything you cannot fully see before starting.
Generally less binding than a quote, but that depends on the wording and on local consumer law. Label it clearly as an estimate, state the tolerance, and agree variations in writing before the work happens.
Yes. Change the document title to Estimate, add your tolerance and assumptions to the terms, and the rest of the tool works the same way. Both export the same print-ready PDF, free and with nothing stored.
It can, and for work with real material costs it should. State the deposit as a figure alongside the percentage, and say what it releases: ordering materials, booking the dates, or starting on site.
Same tool, different promise. This is a free estimate generator as much as a quote generator: change one word and the document means something else in law.
An estimate that protects you states its assumptions. Access, condition, working hours, who supplies materials, and a tolerance: ten percent is common where conditions are predictable, wider for anything behind a wall. Then say what triggers a revised figure and that it will be confirmed in writing before the extra work happens. That single sentence converts most end-of-job arguments into a variation the client already agreed to.
Consumer rules in many places require notice before you exceed an estimate, so agreeing the change beforehand is not just good manners: it is often what makes the extra chargeable at all. When the scope firms up, reissue as a quote with the same lines, and the client can see exactly what moved and why.
The Quote Generator is a free, browser-based tool for creating professional price quotes and estimates before work begins, the document you send when a client wants to know what a project will cost, not the one you send after the work is done. A quote sets expectations and gets approved before you start; an invoice bills for work already delivered.
Like the rest of the invoicetools.com suite, it runs entirely in your browser: no signup, no data sent to a server, and nothing saved once you close the tab.
Five steps from business details to export.
A well-structured quote sets the terms of the relationship before it starts.