All free resources
Free template — PDF + editable doc
Scope of work request template
The document you send contractors before they bid, so the bids that come back are actually comparable.
When to use it
Bids are hard to compare because contractors are answering different questions. Send them the same question and most of the problem disappears before it starts.
Use it two to three weeks before you want numbers back. It also flushes out the contractors who will not engage with a written scope, which is information worth having early.
What’s inside
- A trade-by-trade scope sheet covering the fourteen categories most residential renovations touch
- A materials column marking who supplies what
- An explicit "please price these separately" block for permits, dumpsters, and supervision
- A short instruction page for contractors, so the format does not read as a test
- A selections worksheet for anything you have already chosen
Pairs with What a complete contractor bid includes, trade by trade.
When the bids come back, they still won’t match.
A shared scope narrows the gap. It doesn’t close it — contractors still price in their own order and leave their own things out.