The painting quote, by the square metre and with nothing forgotten
A painting quote is worked out by the square metre, but it is never the paint that takes the time: it is the preparation. And that is exactly what gets left off the figure.
- Worked out by m²
- Preparation priced
- Swiss QR-bill
| Living room, wall paint, two coats | 30 m² | 1'140.00 |
|---|---|---|
| Living room, ceiling, two coats | 22 m² | 902.00 |
| Filling and sanding before painting | 6 h | 570.00 |
| Floor protection and skirting removal | 3 h | 285.00 |
| Total before VAT | 2'897.00 CHF | |
The square metre, room by room
Describe the surfaces, “living room 30 m², two coats, ceiling included”, and the line items work themselves out with their quantities. Each room keeps its own line: the client sees what they pay for the hallway and what they pay for the bedroom.
The preparation that finally gets charged
Filling, sanding, floor protection, taking off skirting boards: these are the hours that decide whether a quote is profitable or a loss. One line per step, and they stop disappearing into the lump sum.
Photos before the work starts
The state of a wall before you touched it always gets argued about at the end. A photo taken at quoting time, placed next to the line it belongs to, settles the question before it is raised.
Several rooms, one document
A whole flat fits on one readable quote rather than five separate ones. The client accepts the lot, and you invoice in stages if the job stretches out.
Can I break it down room by room?
Yes, and it is advisable: a single total for a whole flat is the surest way to have your price negotiated down.
How should I price the preparation?
On separate lines, by the hour. That is what makes it visible to the client and recoverable for you, buried in a lump sum, it is simply given away.
And for a job spread over several weeks?
A deposit on order, an interim payment at a visible stage, the balance at the end. You never front more than a month of cash.
Yours is not the only trade
Every page starts from a real sample quote and the constraints of that trade, not from a copied brochure.