How to Write a Project Quote: Pricing, Margin and a Sample

To write a project quote, start from a cost estimate, add the margin you need to reach a fixed price, and put that price in a document that states the scope, deliverables, exclusions, timeline, payment terms and how long the offer stands. The price comes from arithmetic. The document protects it.

Below you will find how to write a project quote step by step: the difference between a quote and an estimate, markup and margin computed side by side, a checklist of what to include, and a sample quote layout you can copy.

Quote vs Estimate

The two words get mixed up, and clients notice the difference when the invoice arrives.

	Estimate	Quote
What it is	Your best forecast of cost or price	A fixed price for a defined scope
Can the price change?	Yes, if the work turns out bigger	Only if the scope changes
Usually shows	A range or approximate total	Line items, total, terms and a valid-until date
Best for	Early conversations, open-ended work	Work you can define before starting

Usage varies by industry, so do not rely on the word alone. Say plainly in the document whether the price is fixed.

Start From a Cost Estimate

A quote is only as good as the cost underneath it. That cost should include your own time priced at a cost rate, materials, fixed costs and a contingency. We will use the estimate built in our guide on how to estimate project costs: Jordan, a freelance videographer, is pricing a two-minute brand video for a local bakery.

Cost type	Amount
Labor (62 hours, including a paid assistant)	$3,185
Materials	$313
Fixed costs (travel, rental, studio, misc)	$353
Contingency (10%)	$385
Total cost	$4,236

None of that is profit. It is what the job costs if everything goes to plan, plus a buffer for the risks Jordan listed.

How to Price a Project: Markup vs Margin

Both add profit to cost, but they measure it from different ends:

• Markup is profit as a share of cost. Price = cost × (1 + markup).
• Margin is profit as a share of price. Price = cost ÷ (1 − margin).

Here are the same percentages applied both ways to Jordan’s $4,236:

Rate	Price with markup	Margin you actually get	Price with margin	Markup that equals
20%	$5,083	16.7%	$5,295	25.0%
25%	$5,295	20.0%	$5,648	33.3%
30%	$5,507	23.1%	$6,051	42.9%
40%	$5,930	28.6%	$7,060	66.7%
50%	$6,354	33.3%	$8,472	100.0%

The trap is on the 30% row. If Jordan wants 30% of the price to be profit but adds a 30% markup, the quote comes out more than $540 short, and the real margin is only 23.1%. The gap grows as the rate rises.

To convert between the two:

• Markup = margin ÷ (1 − margin). A 30% margin is a 42.9% markup.
• Margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup). A 30% markup is a 23.1% margin.

In a spreadsheet, with cost in B1 and target margin in B2, the formulas are identical in Google Sheets and Excel:

• Price, rounded up to the next $100: =ROUNDUP(B1/(1-B2), -2)
• Price from a markup instead: =B1*(1+B2)
• Margin actually earned, with the final price in B3: =(B3-B1)/B3

Choosing the Final Price

Jordan targets a 30% margin. $4,236 ÷ 0.7 = $6,051, rounded up to $6,100. That price carries a profit of $1,864, a 30.6% margin (a 44.0% markup).

Before sending, run three checks:

1. Effective hourly rate. Jordan works 53 of the 62 hours. At the $55 cost rate those hours come to $2,915; add the $1,864 profit and Jordan earns $4,779, about $90 an hour. If that feels too low for the work, the quote is too low.
2. Good and bad outcomes. If no risk happens, the $385 contingency stays unspent and profit rises to $2,249 (36.9%). If all three listed risks happen, they cost $734, which is $349 more than the contingency, and profit falls to $1,515 (24.8%). Still positive, so the price holds.
3. The client’s side. Compare the price with what the result is worth to the client and what they have told you about their budget. If it is far apart, change the scope, not the margin.

How to Write a Project Quote: What It Must Include

• Your business details and the client’s name and contact.
• Quote number and date, so both sides can refer to it.
• Valid-until date, after which you can re-price.
• Project summary in one or two sentences.
• Scope and deliverables, each specific enough to check: “three vertical cut-downs with captions,” not “social content.”
• Exclusions: what the price does not cover.
• Assumptions the price depends on, such as when the client supplies material or how fast they give feedback.
• Timeline with milestones. Our guide on how to create a project timeline shows how to set them.
• Price as line items and a total, plus sales tax only if it applies to your service where you work (a qualified accountant can confirm).
• Payment terms: deposit, milestone payments, due dates.
• Revisions and changes: how many rounds are included and the rate for anything extra.
• Acceptance: a signature line or a clear “reply to accept” instruction.

The scope and exclusions come straight from your task list, which is why a work breakdown structure pays off twice: once for the estimate and again for the quote.

Sample Project Quote Layout

• Quote: 2026-014, two-minute brand video
• Date: October 5, 2026
• Valid until: November 4, 2026
• From: Jordan, videographer. To: the bakery’s owner

Summary. A two-minute brand video showing the bakery’s morning bake, for the website and social media.

Item	What is included	Price
Pre-production	Script, shot list and a location visit	$1,085
Filming day	One day on location, two-person crew, lighting and props	$1,930
Edit and sound	Editing, color, sound mix, voiceover recording, two licensed music tracks	$1,955
Social cut-downs	Three short vertical versions with captions	$520
Revisions and delivery	Two rounds of revisions, final files for web and social	$610
Total		$6,100

Timeline. Filming within 10 working days of the deposit. First cut 7 working days after filming. Final files 5 working days after the last round of feedback.

Assumptions. Filming takes place before opening hours. The owner records the voiceover. Feedback on each round arrives within 3 working days.

Not included. Paid ad management, extra filming days, actors, translations.

Payment. 50% deposit ($3,050) to book the filming date. The balance ($3,050) is due within 14 days of delivery.

Changes. Extra revisions or new deliverables at $90 an hour, agreed in writing before work starts.

Acceptance. Sign and return, or reply “accepted” by email.

The line prices spread the $6,100 across deliverables in proportion to their cost, so each line carries roughly the same margin. If the client drops the cut-downs, the quote falls by $520 and the margin barely moves.

Freelance Project Quote Tips

• Keep the internal estimate. The client sees deliverables. You keep hours, rates and contingency. Our project budget template holds labor, materials and fixed costs per task, so the numbers behind the quote become the budget you track once the project starts.
• Offer an optional line for something the client can remove without breaking the project. It gives them a way to lower the price without asking you to cut your margin.
• Follow up once a few days before the valid-until date.
• Compare budget vs actual when the job ends, using the methods in our guide to tracking project progress. Every closed project makes the next quote more accurate.

Before you send your next quote, put the markup and margin columns side by side for your own cost figure. If your usual “30%” has been a markup all along, you now know exactly how much each job has been leaving behind.