How to quote electrical work: costs, price and a clear template

Start with one common job

Pick a job you quote regularly. Use a recent, approved quote as the starting point. Remove the customer details and write down which parts change every time: property, quantity, access, labour, materials and any limitations.

A template should save typing. It cannot decide whether the installation is suitable or what the job needs. Keep the technical scope and price approval with the person responsible for the work.

Cost the whole job before choosing the price

List the work, access, materials and time required. Include testing, certificates, travel, collection and returning to finish. A day on site is not the only time the job uses.

Use the labour cost or recovery allowance appropriate to your business. A wage alone does not cover every employment cost. For your own time, use a deliberate planning allowance and keep its tax treatment separate.

Keep the VAT basis consistent. Recoverable VAT is different from VAT the business actually bears. Check the costing with your accountant if needed, and do not add the same overhead twice.

• People and time for the approved scope.
• Current supplier costs, delivery and consumables.
• Testing, documentation and other job costs.
• Overhead recovery not already included in the labour allowance.
• Unknowns to investigate before promising a fixed price.

A worked example: margin is different from markup

These invented figures explain the calculation, not an industry rate. Suppose labour costs or planning allowances are £600, materials £300 and other allocated costs £100. Total costing: £1,000.

For a chosen 25% margin on the selling price, divide £1,000 by 0.75: £1,333.33 before the relevant VAT treatment. The £333.33 balance is 25% of the selling price. Adding 25% to cost instead gives £1,250, leaving £250: a 20% margin.

This balance is not automatically accounting profit. It depends on the costs included, and money received is separate. Check the price against what your business needs to earn and what the job involves.

£1,000 ÷ (1 − 0.25) = £1,333.33 selling price. A 25% markup gives £1,250 instead, leaving a 20% margin.

Put the important details in one place

Make it easy for the customer to compare the quote with the work they asked for. A vague description such as “electrical works” leaves too much to remember later.

• Customer, property and quote reference.
• What you will supply and install, including quantities where relevant.
• What is excluded, such as making good, decoration or work by others.
• Access requirements and any information still needed.
• The full price the customer will pay, with VAT treatment clear where applicable.
• Payment stages, quote validity and how the customer accepts.

Show optional work separately

An extra should solve a real need. Explain what it adds, the additional price and whether it changes the time required. Keep it separate from the main job so the customer can choose.

For an online consumer sale, optional charges need the customer’s express agreement. Do not preselect an extra or slip it into the total. Record the choice before ordering or doing the work.

Main scope: [approved work], total £[amount]. Optional extra: [additional work], adds £[amount]. Please confirm whether you want the main scope only or the main scope plus this extra.

Sources: Government guidance: consent for online optional charges

Check the template against a real job

Read the quote as if you had never visited the property. Could another person tell what was promised? Compare it with the job notes, supplier prices and time allowed. Check any reused dates and conditions.

Use one current version. Save the sent version with the job, then record later changes separately. A customer should not have to guess which attachment is the final agreement.

Give the desk a clear handover

You provide the scope, rates, quantities and approval rules. The desk prepares the document, flags missing details and sends the approved version. Once the information and approval are ready, the aim is to get it out the same day.

Try this today: choose one common job, create the blank template and use it for your next quote. After the job, compare estimated and actual costs. Improve the template from what happened rather than copying a price from another business.