Know the number before you give the client a number

The client asks what the job will cost. You've got a feel for it, a figure in your head based on similar jobs you've done before. You give them that figure because they're waiting for an answer and you don't want to look like you don't know your own trade.

Then you actually measure the job properly, weeks later, and the real number is a good way off what you told them. Now you're either explaining an increase to a client who's already anchored on the first figure, or you're eating the difference to keep them happy.

A gut feel isn't a cost, it's a guess with confidence

Every contractor has a rough sense of what a job like this "usually" costs. That sense is built from past jobs, and past jobs are never identical to the one in front of you. Different quantities, different site conditions, different specification, different rates depending on when and where you're pricing. A gut feel can be close. It can also be a long way out, and you won't know which until the job's actually measured.

Measure it before you commit to a figure

The way to avoid handing a client a number you'll regret is to know the real cost before you say anything, not after. That means getting the job measured, properly, off the actual drawings, before you commit to a price you'll be held to.

We measure every job to NRM2 and price it against current UK rates, so what you're working from is a real bill of quantities, not an impression. You can see exactly what's in the number, trade by trade, before it ever reaches the client.

Say the number once, and mean it

A price you have to revise later costs you the client's confidence, even if the final figure turns out to be right. Get the real number first, then say it once.

Send your drawings and we'll measure the job before you commit to a price. See a sample estimate to see exactly what you'd get back.

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