How to Write a Quote: A Freelancer's Guide (Free Template)

I still remember the panic the first time someone said "send me a quote." I could do the work — I just had no idea what a quote looked like or what to put on it. After sending dozens and getting burned a few times, I learned which things must be on it and which traps to avoid.

This is for the "can do the work, can't write the quote" freelancer — let's make quoting clear.

What a quote needs

Don't overthink it — a quote's core job is to let the client see at a glance what they get, how much, and how to pay. The basic fields:

• Header: your name/company and contact; the client's name; quote date and quote number.
• Line items: each service or product, quantity, unit price, amount. This is the core.
• Totals: pre-tax subtotal, tax, tax-inclusive total.
• Payment terms: deposit %, when the balance is due, payment details.
• Validity period: e.g. "valid for 14 days."
• Notes: revisions included, what's excluded, delivery time.

Don't draw it from scratch — download the ToolKing quotation template, open it in Excel or Google Sheets, and swap in your items.

Be clear about tax

This trips up beginners most. If you issue tax invoices, separate the numbers:

Pre-tax subtotal  ×  (1 + tax rate)  =  tax-inclusive total
Tax-inclusive total  −  pre-tax subtotal  =  tax amount

List pre-tax, tax, and tax-inclusive separately so there's no argument about who absorbs the tax at payment time. To avoid recalculating every time, use the invoice / tax calculator to convert between pre-tax and inclusive amounts.

If you don't charge tax, quote one total but note "tax not included" or "tax included" — say it up front.

Things I learned the hard way

1. Always set a validity period. I once left a quote open for nearly two months; the client came back at the old price, but my costs had risen — doing it would have meant a loss. Now I note "valid for 14 days" and re-price after.

2. Itemise — it helps you negotiate. Detailed line items aren't just professional; when a client haggles you can remove an item or reduce revision rounds instead of slashing the price. A single lump sum is the hardest to defend.

3. Spell out what's excluded. Quotes blow up over "revision rounds," "asset costs" and "rush fees." I write "includes 2 revisions, $X each beyond" and "excludes font/stock licensing" — awkward up front beats arguing later.

4. Number your quotes. Give each a number (e.g. Q20260614-01); when a client says "do the one you quoted," you know which, and invoicing reconciles easily.

Three steps to your first quote

1. Download the quotation template and open it in Excel or Google Sheets.
2. Fill in your and the client's details, the date and quote number, then replace the items, quantities and unit prices.
3. Use the invoice / tax calculator for pre-tax, tax and inclusive totals, fill in the totals, then add payment terms and a validity period.

The bottom line

A quote isn't just filling in numbers — it's the first thing in writing between you and a client: spell out items, tax-inclusive amounts, payment terms, validity, and what's excluded, and you head off most disputes. Start from a template for your first one, and after a few you'll have your own system.