Free service proposal template
Free service proposal template
Lead with the scope, price it in phases, and give the client one thing to say yes to. A proposal sells the plan; an estimate only prices it.
Your company
Proposal
Bill to
Client name
| Description | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|
Notes
Terms
What's included
- Your business details in the header
- Client and project address
- Proposal number and the date the price expires
- Scope of work written out, not just priced
- Work broken into phases with a price against each one
- Subtotal, discount, tax, and the total investment
- Acceptance terms and a signature line
Fields in this proposal
- Business name, email, phone, and address
- Client name and project address
- Proposal number, proposal date, valid-until date
- Phases or options: description, quantity, price
- Discount and tax rate
- Scope of work, exclusions, and change-order rule
- Deposit, payment schedule, and signature line
How to use it
- Open with the outcome, not the price One sentence on what the client gets when the job is done. They decide whether to keep reading in about six seconds.
- Write the scope of work first Say what you will do, in order, in plain words. A proposal that only shows numbers is an estimate, and it competes on price alone.
- Price it in phases, not parts Site prep, install, finish. Phases read like a plan; labor-and-materials lines read like a receipt and invite line-by-line haggling.
- Offer two or three options if you can Good, better, best changes the question from "should I hire them" to "which one". Add each option as its own line and let the client pick.
- Write the exclusions down Hidden damage, permits you cannot pull, restoration, disposal of things you did not install. This paragraph is what stops an argument in week three.
- Set the change-order rule Say that anything outside the scope is quoted and approved in writing before work continues. Say it before you need it.
- Put an expiry date on it Thirty days. Material prices move, and an expiry gives you a clean reason to requote instead of eating the difference.
- Make accepting it one step A signature line and a deposit amount. If the client has to ask you what happens next, the proposal is not finished.
Formats
- PDF, ready to email or print
- Print to any size from the browser
- Reusable in the Workly app, where an accepted proposal becomes the job and then the invoice
Questions about the proposal template
What is the difference between a proposal and an estimate?
An estimate answers "how much". A proposal answers "why us, what exactly, and in what order", then prices it. Use an estimate for a repair the client already understands, and a proposal for a project they are still deciding to do at all.
Is a proposal the same as a bid?
A bid is a proposal submitted against a specification someone else wrote, usually with a fixed price and a deadline. Same document, less freedom: follow their format and their scope exactly, because bids get rejected on paperwork before anyone reads the number.
Should I show a single price or itemize it?
Itemize by phase. One lump sum gives the client nothing to compare except your total; twenty parts lines invite them to price your materials online. Three to five phases is the range that reads as a plan.
Should I include options in one proposal?
Yes, two or three. Options move the conversation from whether to hire you to which version to buy, and the middle one usually wins. Put each option on its own line so the client can see what the extra money buys.
Is a signed proposal a contract?
A signed proposal can form a binding agreement, but it is not a substitute for a service agreement on larger work: it says little about liability, insurance, warranty, or what happens if either side walks away. This template is not legal advice — for anything sizeable, get the agreement reviewed where you work.
Is this proposal template free?
Yes — fill it in, download the PDF, send it. No account and no email required. Saving proposals against a client, reusing your standard scope, and turning an accepted proposal into an invoice is what the Workly app adds.