Rate Sorted
A decorator at the back of a van writing on a clipboard, phone in the other hand.

For decorators quoting a job

Painting and decorating quote template

A worked job, priced line by line.

Two rooms, 4 days on site, and one total at the bottom.

Copy the wording, change the figures, and send it.

The day rate on it is the calculator’s own answer. Rates reviewed October 2026.

Fill it in for me

£1,240the sample job, quoted
4 dayson site, two rooms
£256a day, the rate behind it
What your customer receives
  • One page, in plain words, with the prep named before the price.
  • The rooms measured, so the days on site can be checked.
  • Labour and materials split out, and one total at the bottom.
  • A line saying what is not included. Disputes start there.
Fill it in for me

Every template shows a total. This one shows the arithmetic behind it.

The quote, filled in

A sample job at £256 a day, in two rooms of an ordinary house.

Quote 001
Your business name, phone, email and address sit at the top, and the customer’s underneath.
The rooms in the sample quote, with their sizes and the wall area to paint
RoomWallsand ceiling
Living room, 4.2 by 3.6 m52.56 m²
Hallway, stairs and landing, 5.5 by 2.1 m48.03 m²

The work is walls only, two coats, with filling, sanding and masking included.

The area is the room measured out, which is how the quote writer records it.

The price on the sample quote
Time on site4 days
Labour£1,024
Materials, supplied£216
Total£1,240

Not included. Moving heavy furniture, plaster repairs, woodwork.

VAT. A blank line, for you to fill in either way.

Payment. A blank line for your own terms, which we do not write.

Before you use it
  • Work agreed in a customer’s home carries a right to cancel.
  • This template does not carry that wording, and we are not the ones to write it.
  • Ask a solicitor, or Citizens Advice, before you hand it to anyone.
Fill this in with my figuresFree, no login, and the sums are done from your own day rate.
The £39 Decorator Rate Book prices every job, writes the quote and the invoice, and puts the tax by.See what is in it

Where the total comes from

Four lines. Every one of them is a sum you can repeat.

The working
The day rate is the calculator’s own answer, not a figure typed on to this page.
How the quote total is reached, line by line
LineAmount
Labour, 4 days at £256£1,024
Materials at cost, paint and sundries£180
Your markup on them, 20%£216
Quote the job at, labour plus materials£1,240

The rooms check the days. They never set the price on their own.

Quotable
A four day painting and decorating job quoted at a £256 day rate comes to £1,240: £1,024 of labour plus £216 of materials, being £180 at cost with a 20% supply markup (Rate Sorted, October 2026).
Make this quote as a PDFThe quote writer fills the document in and does the sums for you.

A quote is not an estimate

A quote
A fixed price for the work you have described.

Say exactly what is included, and exactly what is not.

Put an expiry date on it, so the customer knows how long the price stands.

An estimate
Your best guess, which can move as the job opens up.

Call it an estimate in writing, in as many words.

Say what would change it, and agree how you will tell them.

Send a quote for work you can see, and an estimate for work you cannot.

Check my day rate firstNeither document is worth much if the rate under it is too low.

Questions about quoting a decorating job

What should a painting and decorating quote include?

Your details, the customer’s, the rooms, the prep, the paint and the coats.

Then the price, what is not included, when you can start, and how long the price stands.

How do I quote a painting and decorating job?

Measure the rooms, then set the days the work will take.

Days times your day rate is the labour. Add materials, then list what is not included.

Should paint be included in the quote?

If you supply it, yes, with your own markup for fetching and carrying.

The example above charges £180 of materials at £216.

How much tax should I put aside from this job?

The profit in it is £1,060, the labour plus what you made on materials.

Put £196 aside, which is 18.5% of that at a £43,556 year.

Can I use it as an invoice?

Yes. Change the heading to Invoice, add your payment details and a due date.

The rooms, the days and the totals all stay exactly as they are.

Can I download it as a PDF or Word file?

The quote writer makes a PDF from your own figures. Your email address unlocks it.

There is no Word or Excel version.

Read next

The quote writerPut your rooms and your days in, and it writes this document as a PDF.The free invoice templateBill the job when it is done, and see how your price sits against your town.How much a decorator should chargeWhere the day rate on this quote comes from, and what it has to cover.Self employed hourly rateThe same sum by the hour, after tax and after what the van costs.How the figures are worked outThe formula, the sources and the tax year behind every number here.Painter and decorator hourly rateThe same rate divided into hours, and the divisor that decides it.What the customer seesThe homeowner's side of this quote, priced from the same model.
The day rate is the calculator’s required rate for a decorator, not a typed figure.The 20% supply markup is the workbook’s own seeded default.The rooms and the 4 days are a stated sample job, and yours will differ.Rates reviewed October 2026
Work out your day rateFree, no login, and nothing is stored unless you ask for the PDF.
See what is in itThe £39 Decorator Rate Book helps you price jobs, plan tax and track unpaid invoices.

Reviewed on .

These figures use the same sums as the free calculator. The two always agree.