Quote template for freelancers: what to include and how to follow up
A client has asked you for a price for a job. You ask ChatGPT for a quote and get one that would fit any business.
Short answer
A quote for a client says what you will deliver, what it costs and until when the price holds. Give a price per part and show VAT separately if you are VAT-registered. Plan a short follow-up when you send it.
The worked example below reads as a template. Keepstone gives your AI your rates, terms and voice up front.
What belongs in a quote?
Everything your client needs to decide. Sage lists these parts (Sage, How to write a business quote):
- Your business name and contact details
- Your client's details
- A unique quote number
- A specific description of the work
- The net price, the VAT and the gross price
- A validity period
- Payment terms
- Terms and conditions
Sage adds that you only charge VAT if you are VAT-registered. The standard rate is 20% (GOV.UK, VAT rates).
Is a quote legally binding, and how long is it valid?
It can be. Sage says a quote can become legally binding once your client accepts it, and that an email reply can count as acceptance.
Sage also says no law sets how long a quote must stay valid. Always put a date on it. This guide is not legal advice. When in doubt, ask a solicitor.
How do you write a quote for a job?
- Write down the request in your client's own words.
- Describe the work as a result. "A website where patients book online" says more than "web design services".
- Split the price into parts, then give the total.
- Add payment, validity and how to accept.
When and how do you follow up on a quote?
Within two days of sending, again after a week and once more 24 to 48 hours before the quote expires. That is the advice of Jobber, which sells software to service businesses (Jobber, Quote follow-up email templates). It is not official guidance.
Refer to the call and the validity date.
Quote template: the same quote and follow-up without and with context
Ben Hargreaves is a freelance web designer in Bristol (made-up example). He is VAT-registered. A physiotherapy clinic with six staff wants a new website. After the first call, the owner asks for a quote.
All four texts were written for this guide as an illustration. They are not saved AI answers. Amounts, numbers and dates are made up.
Quote without context. Ben asks his AI for a website quote. Without context it could look like this:
Dear Sir or Madam,
Thank you for your enquiry. I would be delighted to build you a professional website at a competitive price. The final cost depends on your requirements. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Kind regards, Ben
Quote with context. Same request, but the AI knows Ben's packages, rates, terms and voice. Ben only adds the call. Read the labels as the parts of your own template:
Subject: Quote 2026-014: new website for [clinic name]
Hi [name],
Thanks for the call on [date]. Here is the quote.
Quote no.: 2026-014
Date: [date]
For: [clinic name], [address]
From: Ben Hargreaves, [address, VAT no.]
What you get: a five-page website where patients can book online, with your own photos and text, live by mid-January 2027.
Price:
Design and build, five pages: £2,400
Online booking set-up: £600
Total excl. VAT: £3,000
VAT at 20%: £600
Total: £3,600
Payment: half when you accept, half at launch.
Terms: [link to your terms and conditions]
Valid until: 20 November 2026.
To accept: reply "Accepted" to this email. I will then book your build slot.
Ben Hargreaves, websites for local clinics, [address, phone, email]
Follow-up without context. Then Ben asks for a follow-up:
Hi,
Just checking you received my quote. Let me know if you have any questions.
Best, Ben
Follow-up with context. The AI knows the quote and the call:
Subject: Clinic website quote: build slot before the end of November
Hi [name],
I sent the clinic website quote after our call on [date]. To have the site live by mid-January, I need to start the build by 30 November. The quote runs until 20 November, so I would be glad to hear from you by then. Would a ten-minute call this week help you decide?
Ben Hargreaves
What's different:
- The quote has a number, a date, a validity date and a way to accept.
- The price is a set of parts, with VAT on its own lines.
- The follow-up refers to the call and the date.
- The tone is Ben's.
How does an AI that knows your business help with quotes?
It writes the quote and the follow-up from your own packages, rates, terms and voice. You only add the client and the conversation.
Keepstone builds a second brain for your own AI: a short instruction and five files about your business, your clients, your rates, your way of working and your writing style.
Clients appear in the second brain as role and sector by default. More on client data and AI in the guide Is ChatGPT private?
The second brain works in ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot. See an example second brain
One-off, no subscription, excl. VAT. Money back as long as your interview hasn't started.
Does Keepstone set your price or send your quote?
No. Keepstone sets no prices. Keepstone sends nothing.
What you offer, at what price and whether it goes out is up to you.
Checklist: your quote on one page
- Describe the work as a result, with a price per part.
- Add payment, a validity date and how to accept.
- Read the quote, then diary the follow-up.
Your next quote starts with what your AI already knows.
Keepstone makes sure your AI knows your packages, rates, terms and voice. You fill in a form, upload texts and do an interview. Keepstone aims to deliver within one working day after your interview.
Start for € 295One-off, no subscription, excl. VAT. Money back as long as your interview hasn't started.
Before the quote comes the first contact. Read cold emailing as a freelancer in the UK.