Free Quote Template for Canadian Contractors (Estimates With HST)

Short answer: A quote template for a Canadian contractor should show your business and licence details, the client and job address, a scope of work with exclusions, and itemized materials and labour. Then come the subtotal, GST/HST (or GST plus PST or QST) if you’re registered, and the total, followed by the schedule, payment terms and deposit, how changes are priced, a “valid until” date and a line for the client to accept. In Ontario, if an estimate is part of a home renovation contract, the final price can’t be more than 10% over it unless the client agrees to new work or a new price.

The tax rates below are the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) 2026 rates, and the consumer rules come from Ontario’s own guidance; other provinces have their own. Copy the layout into a document, spreadsheet or quoting app, then see the two filled-in examples. When the job is done, how to invoice in Canada takes over, how to calculate GST/HST covers the tax arithmetic, and the invoice generator makes a one-off invoice.

What should a quote template include?

Everything the client needs to say yes, and everything you’d want written down if the job turns into a dispute.

Section	What goes in it
Your details	Business name and contact details; licence number if required; GST/HST number if registered
Quote details	Quote or estimate number, date issued, “valid until” date
Client	Name, job site address, phone and email
Scope of work	What you’ll do and what is not included
Materials	Each item with quantity, unit price and amount
Labour	Each task with hours and rate, or a fixed price per stage
Totals	Subtotal, sales tax by type (if registered) and the total
Schedule	Start date and estimated completion
Payment terms	Deposit, when the balance is due, how to pay
Changes	How extra or different work is priced and approved
Acceptance	Client’s name, signature and date

Ontario’s guide for home renovation and roofing businesses lists almost the same items for a renovation contract, adding warranties, who cleans up, and which sub-trades you’ll bring in and who pays them. Build those into the quote and the accepted quote is most of the way to a contract.

Copy this quote template

Paste this layout into whatever you write quotes in and replace the brackets. If you aren’t registered for GST/HST, delete the tax lines and show a single total.

ESTIMATE / QUOTE                       No.: Q-[number]
[Your business name]                   Date: [date]
[Phone] | [Email] | [Address]          Valid until: [date]
GST/HST no.: [123456789 RT0001, if registered]
[Licence no., if your trade or city requires one]

PREPARED FOR
[Client name], [job site address], [phone], [email]

SCOPE OF WORK
[What you will do, stage by stage, and the materials you'll use]
Includes: [...]
Excludes: [...]
Warranty: [what you guarantee, and for how long]

MATERIALS                    Qty    Unit price    Amount
[Item]                       [ ]    $[ ]          $[ ]

LABOUR                       Hours  Rate          Amount
[Task]                       [ ]    $[ ]/hr       $[ ]

Subtotal                                          $[ ]
[HST 13% / GST 5% / GST 5% + QST 9.975%]          $[ ]
TOTAL                                             $[ ]

SCHEDULE    Start: [date]    Estimated completion: [date]

PAYMENT     Deposit: $[ ] due [date]
            Balance: due [on completion / 15 days from invoice]
            Pay by: [e-transfer address, cheque, card]

CHANGES     Extra or different work will be priced in writing
            and signed by you before it starts.

ACCEPTANCE  I accept this estimate and its terms.
            Name: ________  Signature: ________  Date: ______

Example 1: an Ontario repaint by an HST-registered painter

An HST-registered painter in Hamilton quotes a homeowner to repaint a living room and hallway, with 13% HST on its own line.

Item	Qty	Rate	Amount
Interior eggshell paint, 3.78 L	4	$72.00	$288.00
Primer, 3.78 L	1	$48.00	$48.00
Patching compound, tape, plastic and sundries	1	$65.00	$65.00
Move furniture, patch, sand and mask	7 h	$65.00	$455.00
Prime patches, two coats on walls	16 h	$65.00	$1,040.00
Subtotal			$1,896.00
HST (13%)			$246.48
Total			$2,142.48

Scope: walls only, and excludes ceilings, trim, doors and drywall repairs larger than a nail hole. Valid until November 5, 2026. Deposit: $300 on the start date; balance due on completion.

If the estimate becomes part of the contract, Ontario’s 10% rule applies: without a signed change for extra or different work, the most this painter can charge is $2,356.73. A client who signs at home also gets a 10-day cooling-off period.

Example 2: an Alberta fence by a contractor not registered for GST

A Red Deer fence builder under the $30,000 small-supplier threshold, not registered voluntarily, quotes 20 metres of pressure-treated fence. There’s no GST line and no GST/HST number.

Item	Qty	Rate	Amount
Pressure-treated posts	8	$34.00	$272.00
Rails, boards and hardware for 20 m	1	$1,180.00	$1,180.00
Concrete mix, 30 kg bags	16	$9.50	$152.00
Remove and haul away old fence	6 h	$60.00	$360.00
Build new fence	16 h	$60.00	$960.00
Disposal fee	1	$85.00	$85.00
Total			$3,009.00

Payment: in full on completion, no deposit, and that’s deliberate. In Alberta, a business that signs a home improvement contract away from its own premises and takes money before the work is done needs a prepaid contracting licence, whatever the amount. This builder quotes at the client’s kitchen table without that licence, so asks for nothing up front. The other Alberta rules are in Alberta contractor licence requirements.

How do I show GST/HST on a quote?

If you’re registered, add the rate for the province where the work is done and show it on its own line. If you’re not registered, leave tax off entirely.

Where the work is	What a registered contractor adds
Alberta, the territories	5% GST
Ontario	13% HST
Nova Scotia	14% HST
New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island	15% HST
British Columbia	5% GST; no PST on real property work, as BC sales tax for contractors explains
Quebec	5% GST plus 9.975% QST on the price before GST (Quebec sales tax for contractors)

The GST and HST rates come from the CRA’s GST/HST rates page. Tax on a quote is for the client’s information; it isn’t payable because you sent the quote. Under the CRA’s time-of-liability rules, GST/HST is payable on the earlier of the day the client pays and the day payment becomes due, which is generally your invoice date. A true deposit isn’t treated as payment for the supply until you apply it against the price, and its tax becomes payable then.

Is an estimate binding, and can the final price be higher?

A quote the client accepts is a contract. In Ontario, when an estimate is included in a consumer renovation contract, contractors can’t charge more than 10% above it unless the client asks for additional or different goods or services and a change to the contract has been signed. If the project changes in a major way, give the client a revised written estimate and both sign the new price. Homeowners hear the same from the other side: if they’re charged more than 10% over a written estimate without agreeing to it, they can demand the price be adjusted.

Ontario’s guide adds three more rules that shape your template:

• Written contracts: any contract worth more than $50 must be in writing.
• Cooling-off period: a client who signs at their home has 10 days to cancel for any reason, without a cancellation fee.
• Refunds: after a cancellation, you refund everything, deposit included, within 15 days.

Other provinces have their own consumer protection rules, so check yours.

How long should a quote be valid, and how should it handle deposits?

As long as you can hold your prices. Thirty days suits most jobs, and 14 is safer when material prices are moving. Write the actual date (“Valid until November 5, 2026”) rather than “30 days.” If the client comes back later, re-check your costs and issue a new quote.

For deposits, state the amount, when it’s due and what it covers, and check your province’s rules before asking a homeowner for money up front; Alberta’s prepaid contracting licence and Ontario’s 15-day refund rule show how much they differ.

…and where does Keel fit?

Keel: Invoice Maker & Receipts, by Ilura Technology OÜ, is an iPhone app for people who work for themselves. You write the estimate on your phone, and when the client accepts it, Keel turns it into the invoice in one tap, with nothing to retype. Each job keeps its estimate, receipts, expenses and invoice together, and “who owes you” shows what’s unpaid, with reminder drafts you review and send yourself.

Keel is a record keeper: it doesn’t decide which tax rate applies to you, file GST/HST returns or connect to the CRA. Records stay on your iPhone, with no account, no bank connection and no cloud sync, and the App Store privacy label reads “Data Not Collected.” It’s free with no invoice limit, and free invoices carry a small “Made with Keel” footer. Keel Lifetime is a one-time purchase ($249.99 USD; the App Store shows your local price) that adds custom branding, a signature, premium templates and accountant-ready exports. Keel: Invoice Maker & Receipts on the App Store.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a free quote template for contractors in Canada? Yes: the layout on this page is free to copy into Word, Google Docs, Excel or a quoting app. It covers your details, scope and exclusions, itemized materials and labour, GST/HST, schedule, payment terms, changes, the “valid until” date and the client’s acceptance. Delete the tax lines if you aren’t registered.

Do I charge HST on a quote? Show it if you’re registered, so the client sees the full price, but the tax isn’t payable just because you sent a quote. GST/HST generally becomes payable when the client pays or payment becomes due, usually your invoice date. If you aren’t registered, don’t add it at all.

What’s the difference between a quote and an estimate? In everyday use, a quote is a fixed price for a defined scope and an estimate is your best judgement of the cost. Once accepted, both can become part of a binding contract, and in Ontario an estimate in a renovation contract also limits how far the final price can rise.

Can a contractor charge more than the estimate in Ontario? Not by more than 10%, if the estimate is part of the contract, unless the client asked for additional or different work and signed a change to the contract. A client charged more than 10% over a written estimate without agreeing can demand the price be adjusted.

Should my GST/HST number be on a quote? It isn’t required on a quote, but it’s worth including if you’re registered, so business clients can check your registration before accepting a price with tax. It is required on your invoice for any sale of $100 or more if the client is to claim input tax credits.

---

This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Consult a qualified accountant or lawyer in your province.