How to write a freelance quote or estimate: a section-by-section checklist (with wording to copy)

A quote is where the price, the scope and the payment terms are first written down, so most later arguments about money trace back to it. Here's how to write and send a freelance quote or estimate: how it differs from a proposal and an invoice, what to check first, what to put on it, how to show the price, how long it should stand, what happens when the client says yes, and how it becomes an invoice, with emails and quote wording you can copy. It works in any country; where an official page sets a rule, we quote it and link it.

The sections, layout and wording are general practice, not a legal standard. The official rules quoted (HMRC, UK and Ontario legislation, New York City and Illinois) were checked against those pages on 2026-10-14 (New York City and Illinois on 2026-10-13). Not written by a lawyer.

The short answer

• Say which it is. A quote is usually a set price for the work described; an estimate is a best guess that can move. Put the word at the top and say how changes are handled.
• Describe the work, not just the price: deliverables, what's not included, revision rounds and what the price assumes.
• Show the price clearly: lines, any tax you're registered to charge, the total, one currency, any deposit and the payment terms.
• Give it a number and a valid-until date, so an old price can't be accepted months later and everyone can refer to the same version.
• Say how to accept and get the yes in writing. Then invoice the deposit, if any, and quote the quote number on the invoice.
• Check the local rules when they apply. For clients buying as individuals, consumer law can make what you wrote binding (UK) or cap how far a bill can go over an estimate (Ontario). Some places require a written contract for freelance work (New York City, Illinois).

1. Quote, estimate, proposal or invoice?

People use the words in different ways. A common reading (general practice; the word alone doesn't settle what's binding, see section six):

Two official lines help. GOV.UK on the other end of the process: "An invoice is not the same as a receipt, which is an acknowledgement of payment." (GOV.UK). And HMRC, in section 17.3 of its VAT guide: "Pro-forma invoices are often used to offer goods or services to potential customers. Such an offer may or may not be taken up, and the goods or services will not be supplied unless payment is received." "If you use pro-forma invoices in this way, they cannot be used as evidence to reclaim input tax, even if they show all the details required for a VAT invoice. You should make sure that they’re clearly marked ‘this is not a VAT invoice’." (HMRC: VAT Notice, pro-forma invoices). So if you're UK VAT-registered and send a pro forma as an offer, mark it that way.

2. Before you quote

General practice: a short conversation first makes the quote accurate and easier to say yes to.

• The outcome the client wants, in their words, and how they'll judge it's done.
• The deliverables and the deadline, and anything fixed (a launch date, a format, a platform).
• Who supplies what: content, images, logins, feedback, approvals, and by when.
• The budget, if they'll share it, so you can scope to it rather than guess.
• Who decides and who pays: the client's legal name, the person who approves, the billing contact and any purchase order process.
• Your own numbers: the hours you expect, your rate (our hourly rate calculator), any costs you'll pass on, and a margin for the unknowns.
• Whether a proposal is needed as well. For a larger or competitive job, a proposal explains the approach; for a clear, small job, a quote on its own is often enough.

3. What to put on a quote

We didn't find an official list of what a freelance quote must show in the places we checked. These are the parts a clear quote usually has (general practice):

Our free quote and estimate generator has a field for each of these and prints the valid-until date for you.

4. Showing the price: hourly, fixed or milestones

One line per thing the client is buying, described the way they think about it. Common shapes (general practice):

Then: subtotal, any tax on its own line with its name and rate (only a tax you're registered to charge; see our UK VAT invoice and Canada GST/HST invoice guides), the total, the currency, any deposit and the balance. Rounding the total to a clean number, or showing a range for an estimate, is fine as long as it's clear which it is.

5. Valid-until dates, revisions and assumptions

• Valid until. Put an actual date on the quote, not just "valid for a month". How long is up to you; our free generator offers 14 days or 30 days, or a date you choose (our choice, not a rule). Shorter if your costs or availability change quickly.
• After it lapses, say what happens: you'll confirm or re-quote the price on request.
• Revision rounds. Say how many rounds of changes are included and how extra rounds are charged. It's the most common gap between what was quoted and what's asked for (see scope creep and change requests).
• Assumptions. List what the price depends on (content by a date, access, number of pages, one point of contact). If an assumption turns out wrong, you have a clear reason to re-quote.
• Revised quotes get a new number or a revision mark (for example the same number with a letter), and the old one is marked as replaced, so nobody accepts the wrong version.

6. Is a quote binding? What official pages say

It depends on the wording, what else you agreed and where you and the client are. We didn't find an official page in the UK, Canada or the US that defines "quote" against "estimate" for freelance work in general. These are the official rules we did find that touch quotes and estimates:

United Kingdom: clients buying as consumers

The Consumer Rights Act 2015 covers contracts between a business and a consumer: "“Consumer” means an individual acting for purposes that are wholly or mainly outside that individual's trade, business, craft or profession." (legislation.gov.uk: section 2). Section 50: "Every contract to supply a service is to be treated as including as a term of the contract anything that is said or written to the consumer, by or on behalf of the trader, about the trader or the service, if—" "it is taken into account by the consumer when deciding to enter into the contract, or" or when making a later decision about the service (section 50). That is subject to qualifications given at the same time and to "any change to it that has been expressly agreed between the consumer and the trader (before entering into the contract or later)." So for a consumer client, what your quote says about the work and the price can become part of the contract.

If nothing fixes the price, section 51 applies where "the contract does not expressly fix a price or other consideration, and does not say how it is to be fixed, and" no price is fixed elsewhere either: "In that case the contract is to be treated as including a term that the consumer must pay a reasonable price for the service, and no more." (section 51). These sections are about consumers; business clients aren't covered by them.

Ontario: estimates in consumer agreements

Section 10 of Ontario's Consumer Protection Act, 2002: "If a consumer agreement includes an estimate, the supplier shall not charge the consumer an amount that exceeds the estimate by more than 10 per cent." "If a supplier charges an amount that exceeds the estimate by more than 10 per cent, the consumer may require that the supplier provide the goods or services at the estimated price." "Nothing in this section prevents a consumer and a supplier from agreeing to amend the estimate or price in a consumer agreement, if the consumer requires additional or different goods or services." (Ontario e-Laws: Consumer Protection Act, 2002). It applies to consumer agreements, and the Act's definition is narrow: "“consumer” means an individual acting for personal, family or household purposes and does not include a person who is acting for business purposes;" A business client isn't a consumer under it.

The Act is current on e-Laws (currency date 2026-10-12), with this note at the top: "Note: This Act is repealed on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor. (See: 2023, c. 23, Sched. 1, s. 110)" We haven't read the Act that will replace it. We haven't checked other provinces' consumer rules either.

New York City and Illinois: written contracts for freelance work

Some places require the agreement for freelance work to be in writing, whoever the client is. A quote alone may not cover everything they list, so check it against these:

• New York City: contracts worth $800 or more (including all work for the same client adding up to that in any 120-day period) must be in writing and spell out the work you will perform, the pay for the work and the date you get paid. "You and the hiring party must keep a copy of the written contract." (NYC DCWP: Freelance workers).
• Illinois: work worth $500 or more in a 120-day period, for contracts taking effect after July 1, 2024. The written contract must include: name and contact information of both the hiring entity and freelance worker; itemization of products and services; rate and method of compensation; date of compensation due; dates of services to be provided (Illinois DOL). The Illinois DOL adds: "A contract does not necessarily have to follow a certain format in order to be valid, and can include a paper document, an email, text message, or some other communication that describes goods or services that the freelance worker promises to provide in exchange for payment from the contracting entity, that both parties (freelance worker and contracting entity) have agreed to." And: "The contracting entity must provide a written contract to the freelance worker upon the freelance worker's request." (Illinois DOL: FAQ).

Our proposal guide has these rules in full, with New York State's law and the UK and EU payment-term limits.

Elsewhere

We haven't checked other US states, other provinces or other countries for this page. Consumer rules on estimates tend to be about consumers and sometimes particular trades; for business clients, what you both agreed in writing usually matters most. If a lot rides on it, ask a lawyer where you work.

7. Sending it and following up

• Send a PDF with a short email that sums up the price, the main inclusions and exclusions, the valid-until date and how to accept (copy below). Put the quote number in the subject.
• Send it to the person who decides, copying the person you spoke to if that's someone else.
• Log it: the date sent, the valid-until date and a date to follow up. Our project tracking guide has columns for a simple pipeline.
• Follow up once or twice (general practice): a few days after sending, and shortly before it lapses. Offer to adjust the scope rather than only the price.
• Keep a copy of every quote, including revised and declined ones, with the emails around it.

8. When the client says yes

• Get the yes in writing: a signed quote, or an email that names the quote number and version. Then confirm what was agreed in your own reply (copy below).
• Check it covers what the law asks for where you work (section six), or follow it with a short agreement. Our client onboarding checklist covers the agreement, access and kickoff.
• Invoice the deposit, if your quote asked for one. GOV.UK: "You can set your own payment terms, such as discounts for early payment and payment upfront." (GOV.UK: Payment obligations). Our deposits and retainers guide explains deposit invoices and refunds.
• Sales tax on deposits differs by country. In Canada the CRA says: "Do not collect the GST/HST when a customer gives you a deposit towards a taxable purchase. Collect the GST/HST on the deposit when you apply it to the purchase price." (CRA: GST/HST in special cases). For UK VAT, HMRC says: "The tax point will be either the date you issue a VAT invoice for the advance payment, or the date you receive the advance payment, whichever happens first." (HMRC: VAT on deposits).
• Changes after acceptance are a new, short quote or change request, agreed before you do the work (see change requests).

9. Turning the quote into an invoice

• An accepted quote isn't an invoice. When a payment is due, issue an invoice with its own number from your invoice sequence, its own date and a due date. Our invoice guide walks through it.
• Refer back to the quote on each line or in the notes ("as agreed in quote [number]"), so the client's accounts team can match it.
• Same prices, same tax treatment as the accepted quote, plus any agreed changes as their own lines; credit any deposit already paid.
• UK VAT and pro formas: HMRC says: "If after you’ve issued such an invoice, you actually supply the goods or services to your customer, or receive payment, then you must issue a proper VAT invoice." (HMRC).
• Payment terms: use the ones you quoted. If none were agreed, defaults may apply; in the UK: "Unless you agree a payment date, the customer must pay you within 30 days of getting your invoice or the goods or service." (GOV.UK). Our payment terms guide covers the options.

10. Wording to copy

Plain text with [placeholders]. Change anything in square brackets, and delete what doesn't apply. It's example wording, not legal wording.

The quote email

Subject: Quote [quote number] — [project name]

Hi [name],

Thanks for the chat about [project]. As promised, here's my quote: [quote number], attached as a PDF.

In short: [one-line summary of the work] for [total and currency], [fixed price / estimated, see the notes]. It includes [the main deliverables] and [number of revision rounds]. It doesn't include [the main exclusion].

If you'd like to go ahead, just reply to say so [or sign and return the last page]. I'll then send [the deposit invoice / a short agreement] and we can start on [start date].

The price is valid until [valid-until date]. Happy to talk through any of it or adjust the scope to fit your budget.

Thanks,
[your name]
[your business name and contact details]

Lines for the quote itself

This quote is valid until [valid-until date]. After that, please ask me to confirm the price.
This is a fixed price for the work described above. Anything outside it is quoted separately before I start it.
[Or, for an estimate:] This is an estimate, not a fixed price. If it looks like going over by more than [amount or share], I'll check with you before doing the extra work.
Included: [deliverables], [number of revision rounds]. Not included: [exclusions].
Assumes: [content supplied by (date) / access to (systems) / start on (date)].
Deposit: [deposit amount] on acceptance; balance [when the balance is due]. Payment terms: [your terms].
To accept: reply in writing to say you accept quote [quote number], or sign below. Name, signature and date: [lines].

A follow-up

Subject: Re: Quote [quote number] — [project name]

Hi [name],

Just checking the quote I sent on [date sent] reached you, and whether you have any questions about it.

If the scope or the budget needs a tweak, I'm happy to send a revised version. The current price is valid until [valid-until date].

Thanks,
[your name]

When the client accepts

Subject: Thanks — quote [quote number] accepted

Hi [name],

Thanks for accepting quote [quote number] for [project]. To confirm what we've agreed: [one-line scope], [total and currency], [deposit and payment terms], starting [start date].

Next steps: [the deposit invoice is attached / I'll send a short agreement to sign], and [what you need from them, e.g. content or access by (date)].

Thanks,
[your name]

11. The checklist

• Understood the outcome, deliverables, deadline, who supplies what, who decides and who pays.
• "Quote" or "Estimate" at the top, a quote number and the date.
• Your details and the client's legal name and contact.
• Scope: what's included, what's not, revision rounds and assumptions.
• Price: clear lines, any tax you're registered for, total, currency; for an estimate, how overruns are handled.
• Deposit, payment terms and how to pay.
• Timeline and a valid-until date.
• How to accept, and a check against any written-contract or consumer rules where you work.
• Sent as a PDF with a short email, logged, and a follow-up date noted.
• On yes: written acceptance kept, deposit invoiced, quote number on every invoice.

Free tools and kits

• Free quote and estimate generator: fill in a form and print the quote or save it as a PDF, with a valid-until date, a deposit, optional tax lines and an acceptance block (runs in your browser; nothing is saved).
• Freelance hourly rate calculator: the rate behind the price.
• Free timesheet: hours against an estimate as you go.
• Free invoice generator: the same form for the deposit and final invoices.
• Our paid Quote & Proposal Kit by Small Rows (US$12, one-time) is a spreadsheet for this whole step: a saved price list, a quote builder with optional extras and discounts, a printable quote and proposal with a signature block, and a log of every quote you send that flags expired quotes and follow-ups. It doesn't send quotes or collect e-signatures.
• Once the quote is accepted, our paid Freelance Billing Kit by Small Rows (US$12, one-time) logs the hours, builds the invoice and shows what's paid or overdue.
• All three kits together, with the Client & Project Tracker: the All-Kits Bundle by Small Rows (US$24, one-time).

Where the sources differ

We read the pages under Sources on 2026-10-14 (New York City and Illinois on 2026-10-13). A few details to watch:

• Consumers vs businesses. The UK and Ontario rules quoted are consumer rules; they don't cover a business client. The New York City and Illinois rules are about freelance workers and apply to business clients too.
• Binding words vs an over-run limit. The UK Act makes what you say or write part of a consumer contract; Ontario's rule limits how far a consumer bill can go over an estimate. They're different tests.
• What's in writing. New York City lists three things the contract must spell out and Illinois five; Illinois says an agreed email or text can count.
• Pro formas. HMRC's note is about UK VAT; we didn't find a CRA or IRS page on pro forma invoices.
• Laws in transition. Ontario's Act notes it will be repealed on a day not yet named; legislation.gov.uk showed the UK sections up to date to 15 October 2026, with some changes elsewhere in the Act not yet in force.

When to get advice

• a large or long project rests on the quote, or the client wants you to sign their contract instead;
• you work for consumers (individuals) and aren't sure what consumer law requires where you are;
• the final bill is heading well over an estimate and the client hasn't agreed the extra;
• the client disputes what was included, or won't pay (see chasing an unpaid invoice);
• you're unsure which sales tax applies to a client in another country.

Related free resources

• How to write a freelance proposal: the approach, scope and terms around the price, and the written-contract rules in full.
• How to write a freelance invoice: the next step once the work is agreed.
• Freelance deposits and retainers explained: invoicing the deposit your quote asked for.
• Invoice payment terms explained: the terms to put on the quote.
• Scope creep and change requests: re-quoting extra work after acceptance.
• Freelance client onboarding checklist: what to do after the yes.
• Getting paid on time as a freelancer in Canada: terms, deposits and reminders.
• All free tools.

Sources

Official pages read on 2026-10-14 (New York City and Illinois pages on 2026-10-13). Check the live page before you rely on it.

• United Kingdom: HMRC: VAT guide (VAT Notice), pro-forma invoices (page date 2026-06-25) · legislation.gov.uk: Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 2 · section 50 · section 51 · GOV.UK: Invoicing and taking payment from customers · GOV.UK: Payment obligations · HMRC: VAT on instalments, deposits and credit sales
• Canada: Ontario e-Laws: Consumer Protection Act, 2002 · CRA: GST/HST in special cases (deposits)
• United States: NYC DCWP: Freelance workers · Illinois DOL: Freelance Worker Protection Act · Illinois DOL: FAQ

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