Quotation Generator

How to use Quotation Generator

1. Enter your details and the client’s.
2. Add a line item for each element of the work, with quantity and rate.
3. Set the validity period — 30 days unless your costs move faster.
4. List exclusions and payment terms in the notes, then print or save as PDF.
5. A quotation is a firm offer; an estimate is not. Label the document accurately.
6. Number quotations sequentially so you can reference one when it converts to an invoice.
7. Everything stays in your browser — client names and rates are not transmitted.

Quotation, estimate, proforma — they are not synonyms

A quotation is a firm offer at a stated price: accept it within the validity period and that is the price. An estimate is an approximation that can change, and saying “estimate” when you mean a fixed price invites a dispute later. A proforma invoice is a quotation formatted as an invoice, used when a buyer needs a document to raise a purchase order or arrange payment before the real invoice exists. Using the right word on the document is not pedantry — it determines what you have committed to.

The validity period protects you

Without one, a client can accept a quotation eighteen months later at a price that no longer covers your costs, and in several jurisdictions an offer with no stated expiry remains open for a reasonable time. Thirty days is the common default; use shorter where material costs move. It also creates a legitimate reason to follow up, which is more useful than it sounds when a quotation has gone quiet.

Say what is not included

Most disputes come from scope rather than price. State what the figure covers, and explicitly what it does not: revisions beyond a number, travel, materials at cost, third-party fees, taxes. Write the assumptions the price depends on — access, client sign-off times, content supplied by a date — because when those slip the quotation is the document you will point at. A page of clear exclusions prevents more arguments than any contract clause.

Payment terms belong on the quotation, not on the invoice

By the time you invoice, the work is done and your leverage is gone. Put the terms on the quotation where they form part of what the client accepts: the deposit, the milestone schedule, the payment window, and what happens if it is missed. For a new client, a deposit before starting is normal and asking for it at quotation stage is far easier than introducing it after.