Estimate vs Quote: What’s the Difference?
An estimate is a best guess. A quote is a price. Here is what that difference means for your building project, and how to turn one into the other.
The short answer
An estimate is a guide. A quote is a price.
An estimate is a contractor's informed guess at what a job is likely to cost, and the final bill can be higher or lower. A quote is a price for a defined piece of work: if the work is what the quote describes, that is what you pay. The words are often used loosely, so the safest approach is to ask which one you have and get the answer in writing.
Both have their place. An estimate is often the honest answer early on, or where part of the job can't be seen until work starts. A quote is what you want before you commit, because it lets you plan, compare and hold both sides to the same figure.
This guide explains the difference, what the law says in outline, the other terms you will come across, and how to turn an estimate into a firm quote. It is part of our guide to building quotes and payments.
Side by side
How estimates and quotes compare
An estimate
- An informed guess at the likely cost
- Often given early, sometimes before a full inspection
- The final bill can go up or down
- Useful for budgeting and deciding whether to proceed
- Hard to compare fairly with a firm price
- Sensible where parts of the job can't yet be seen
A quote
- A price for the work described
- Usually given after a site visit
- Should only change if the work changes
- Useful for committing to the job
- Can be compared like for like with other quotes
- May still contain clearly marked uncertain items
Why it matters
The difference shows up at the end of the job
The difference between an estimate and a quote rarely matters on the day it is given. It matters at the end, when the final bill arrives. If you were working from a quote and the job was what the quote described, the bill should match. If you were working from an estimate, the bill may be different, and you may have had little warning.
Most disagreements about price come from the two sides having a different idea of which one they agreed. The homeowner heard a firm figure. The contractor thought they had given a rough idea. Neither was being dishonest; the words just weren't pinned down.
So when you receive a price, ask directly: is this a fixed price for the work described, or an estimate? If the answer is a bit of both, which is common and often sensible, ask which parts are fixed and which could change, and ask for that to be written into the document.
It is also worth knowing how long the price stands. Quotes usually state a validity period, after which the contractor may revise the figure. See how long a building quote is valid.
The legal position, in outline
What the law says about prices for building work
For consumers in the UK, the main rules come from the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Three points are useful to know.
Where no price was agreed in advance, you are only required to pay a reasonable price for the service. That applies to work carried out on an open-ended basis, for example where no figure was ever settled.
What the trader tells you can count. Information a trader gives you about the service, in writing or in conversation, can become part of the contract if you take it into account when deciding to go ahead. A price given as a firm figure may therefore matter even if the document was loosely labelled.
The work itself must be carried out with reasonable care and skill. That is a separate question from price, but it is part of the same agreement.
What this means in practice is that the label at the top of the document is only part of the picture. The wording, what was said, and what both sides understood all matter. That is why the most useful thing you can do is make the agreement clear at the start. Our answer on whether an estimate is legally binding goes into the question most people are asking. Citizens Advice publishes clear guidance on your rights when paying for a service.
This is general information, not legal advice. If you are in a dispute about a price, Citizens Advice is a good first port of call.
Other terms
Six phrases you'll come across, and what they usually mean
Builders don't all use these terms the same way, so treat these as the usual meanings and ask if you are unsure.
Ballpark figure
A rough idea, often given on the phone or at a first look. Useful for deciding whether to go further. Not something to budget to the pound.
Estimate
A more considered guess, usually after seeing the job, that can still move. Ask what could make it change and by roughly how much.
Quote or quotation
A price for the work described. Check whether any parts are marked as uncertain, and how long the price is valid.
Fixed price
A quote where the contractor has confirmed the price won't change unless the work does. Changes you ask for are still extras.
Day rate
A price per day for labour, often plus materials. The total depends on how long the job takes, so it behaves like an estimate.
Provisional sum
An allowance inside a quote for something that can't be priced yet. The real cost replaces it later. See provisional sums, explained.
In fairness to estimates
When an estimate is the honest answer
It is tempting to insist on a fixed price for everything. On some jobs that isn't realistic, and a contractor who gives a firm price for something they genuinely can't see may simply be adding a large margin to cover the risk.
Roofing is a good example. From the ground or a ladder, a contractor can see the tiles, the flashing and the gutters. They often can't see the condition of the battens, the timbers or the felt underneath until the old covering is off. A quote for re-roofing may therefore be firm for the visible work and uncertain for what lies beneath.
The same applies to opening up walls for an extension, or cutting into a roof for a rooflight. Something may be exactly as expected. Or there may be a hidden pipe, a rotten joist or an unexpected detail in how the house was built.
The fair way to handle this is not to pretend the uncertainty away. It is to price the known work firmly and show the unknown parts separately, with a rate or an allowance and an agreement about how you will be told before extra money is spent. That gives you a firm figure for most of the job and a clear picture of what could change.
If you are working from an estimate, a few habits make it much easier to live with. Ask the contractor what would push the figure up and what would bring it down, and roughly by how much in each case. Keep some room in your own budget for the uncertain parts, rather than planning to the exact figure. And agree that you will be told as soon as the contractor knows the cost is moving, not when the final bill arrives.
It also helps to ask for a rate for the likely extras. On a roof, for example, a contractor can often give a price per rafter or per square metre of replacement boarding. You still won't know the final total until the roof is open, but you will know how it will be worked out, and you can compare that rate between contractors.
From guide price to firm price
Turning an estimate into a quote
Ask for a site visit
A firm price almost always needs someone to see the job. Estimates given from photos or a phone call are useful, but they are a starting point.
Agree the scope in detail
The more precisely the work is described, the more firmly it can be priced. Our guide to what a building quote should include lists what to cover.
Separate the known from the unknown
Ask for the parts that can be priced to be priced firmly, and the uncertain parts to be shown as provisional sums or rates.
Agree how changes will be handled
Ask for any extra cost to be explained and agreed with you in writing before the work is done. See variations and extra costs.
Get it in writing
A written quote with a validity period, a clear statement that it is a fixed price for the work described, and the uncertain items marked.
Start calmly, with the paperwork. Compare the bill with what you were given: was it a quote or an estimate, and did the work change? Ask the contractor to explain the difference in writing. If extras were carried out without being agreed, say so. Our answers on whether a builder can change the price after quoting and what happens if the price goes up go through the usual situations.
Our approach
A Mortaro quotation is a written price
Mortaro Group coordinates domestic building projects, and every project starts with a site visit by the appointed main contractor. They price the work at trade rates, and we prepare it into a clear written quotation that names them and sets out the work, the price and the payment terms.
It is free, carries no obligation and is valid for 30 days. If any part of the price depends on something that can't be seen until work starts, ask us and we will get the detail from your contractor before you decide. How quotations work sets out each step, and our guide to comparing building quotes will help if you are weighing ours against others.
Straight answers
Questions about estimates and quotes
Is an estimate legally binding?
Not as a fixed price in the way a quote is, but it isn't meaningless either. What was said and written, and what you relied on, can matter. This is general information, not legal advice.
Can a quote change?
A quote should only change if the work changes, for example if you ask for something extra or an uncertain item marked in the quote turns out to cost more. Any change should be agreed in writing before the work is done.
How far can an estimate be exceeded?
There is no fixed figure. The fair approach is for the contractor to tell you as soon as they know the cost will be higher, and to agree it with you before carrying on.
Which should I ask for?
Ask for a quote before you commit to the work. An estimate is useful earlier on, for budgeting and deciding whether to go ahead.
Is a fixed price always better than an estimate?
Not always. Where part of the job genuinely can't be seen, a contractor giving a fixed price has to cover that risk somehow, often by pricing it in. A firm price for the visible work, with the uncertain parts shown separately and a rate for any extras, is often fairer to both sides and easier to compare.
Start here
Tell us about the work you have in mind
We will confirm we cover your postcode, arrange a site visit with a contractor from our network and send you a written quotation. No charge, no obligation.