Quotation format in Excel

A quotation format in Excel is a header block, a six-column table (Item, Description, Unit, Qty, Rate, Amount) where Amount is a formula, a subtotal, an editable tax cell and a grand total, with assumptions on a second sheet. This free file works for any trade or service. Below: what is inside, how the formulas work, and the download.

What does a quotation in Excel include?

A quotation in Excel must do the arithmetic for you and still print as one clean page the client can accept. The file makes both layout decisions so you do not have to. The parts, in file order:

• Header (rows 1 to 6): business name and contact line, quote number, client and site, project, date, valid until, payment terms.
• Table header (row 8): the six column names, repeated on every printed page.
• Lines (rows 9 to 23): ten sample lines and five blank ones, with the Amount formula in every row.
• Subtotal, tax and grand total (rows 25 to 27), all formulas, with the tax percentage in one highlighted cell.
• Terms and a second sheet of assumptions and exclusions.

Rate: the price for one unit of the line, materials and labour included unless the description says otherwise. Type the rate, never the amount.

How do the formulas work?

There are three formulas in the file, all plain enough to read in the cell.

• Amount: cell F9 holds =IF(OR(D9="",E9=""),"",D9*E9). The IF and OR parts say "if the quantity or the rate is empty, show nothing"; the last part multiplies quantity by rate. Every line to row 23 has the same formula with its own row number.
• Subtotal: cell F25 holds =SUM(F9:F23), which adds every Amount and treats blank lines as zero.
• Tax and grand total: the percentage sits in D26 as a plain number. F26 holds =F25*D26/100, and F27 holds =F25+F26.

To change the tax, type a new number in D26: 17 for sales tax on goods in Pakistan, 5 for VAT in the UAE, 0 for an exempt job. To change the currency, edit the column headings in E8 and F8 from PKR to AED; the formulas do not reference the currency. The rates in the sample are indicative. For how Excel compares with a quoting tool for sending, tracking and acceptance, read Excel quotation template vs a quote tool.

What does a sample quotation look like?

The sample below is a small office fit-out in Pakistan, ten lines in PKR mixing supply items, installation, labour days, transport and handover.

How do you fill in the template?

The file opens with the sample lines in place. Overwrite them with your job; the Amount column and the totals recalculate. Five steps:

1. Replace the header placeholders. Business details in rows 1 and 2, client and site in B4, project in B5, quote number in F2, then date, validity and payment terms.
2. Type one line per item or stage. Description, unit and quantity, then the rate. Supply items in numbers, labour in days, transport as a lot.
3. Leave the Amount column alone. It fills itself. If a value looks wrong, check the quantity and rate on that row rather than typing over the formula.
4. Set the tax cell and the currency headings. D26 for the percentage, E8 and F8 for the label.
5. Complete the second sheet and save under the quote number. Write the assumptions and exclusions, save as Q-0002.xlsx and export a PDF to send.

What should the assumptions say?

A general job has no trade convention for what is included, so the assumptions block is where this quotation earns its keep.

• Quantities as listed; the client confirms the layout or scope before the order is placed.
• Site access: lift or ground floor, normal working hours, a place to unpack and store.
• Specifications as stated in each line; substitutes only with the client's written approval.
• Excluded trades, permits, building management fees and after-hours access charges.

If typing lines is the slow part, the free BOQ generator drafts the itemised lines from a one-sentence description of the job, and the quotation vs estimate guide explains when to send which.