What it's for
This construction estimate template takes a job from priced line items to a bid price. You or your estimator enter one line per cost item after the takeoff, and the workbook does the arithmetic.
Cost and price sit on separate sheets, Estimate and Bid, the way our guide on how to build a construction estimate keeps them apart. A one-page Bid summary goes to the client, and a Change orders log follows the job once it's signed. The file does no takeoff and doesn't compare your subs' bids.
What's inside
All five sheets are protected with no password, so a formula can't be typed over. The key reads "Pale yellow cells are yours to fill in" and "All other cells are locked".
Estimate. A project block, then 40 lines under DIVISION, DESCRIPTION, COST TYPE, QTY, UNIT, UNIT COST and EXTENDED (QTY × UNIT COST). Below them, SUBTOTALS BY COST TYPE adds the lines up by type and into the Direct cost, and SUBTOTALS BY DIVISION totals them for up to 12 division numbers you list, such as the example's 06 10 00.
Bid. The Job cost is the direct cost, general conditions included, plus sales tax on materials, permits, bonds and contingency. Overhead, a percent of the job cost, makes the Total cost, and the Bid price is "Total cost ÷ (1 − margin)".
Bid summary. The page your client sees, on your letterhead: YOUR LOGO, your company block, BID NO., DATE, VALID UNTIL, PREPARED FOR, PROJECT, the legend, 12 lines of SCOPE OF WORK and the Bid price, which it reads from the Bid sheet. Our credit sits at the foot.
Change orders. A 30-line log. Each change's STATUS is Pending, Approved or Rejected. Original contract sum starts at the bid price, and only approved changes are added to it in Contract price with approved change orders.
About this template. Three steps, a note on the example figures, the version (v2, 2026-09-24) and links.
How to fill it in
- On the Estimate, fill in the project block, then type over or clear the four example lines, each starting "Example:". Any left in is counted.
- QTY and UNIT COST take numbers only, 0 or more, so the unit goes under UNIT. Enter a lump sum as a quantity of 1.
- Give every line a COST TYPE. A line without one is left out of the direct cost, and Lines not counted above shows how much. It should read $0.00.
- Enter general conditions (supervision, temporary facilities, cleanup) as Division 01 lines, so they sit in the direct cost. Company overhead goes on the Bid sheet as a rate.
- Division numbers are optional. In the division block, type each exactly as on the lines.
- On the Bid sheet, type Sales tax rate on materials and Contingency (% of direct cost) as percents, with the percent sign, from 0% to 100%. Permits and fees and Bonds and insurance are dollar amounts, zero or more, and take numbers only. Blank means 0 throughout. The tax applies to the Materials subtotal only, and the file doesn't decide what your state taxes.
- Replace the example 12% in Overhead (% of job cost) and 15% in Target margin (% of the bid price) with your own. The margin must be less than 100%, so the bid price can be computed.
- On the Bid summary, type over the yellow letterhead. PREPARED FOR and PROJECT don't copy from the Estimate, so type them here. Change the bid price on the Bid sheet. Print the Bid summary, or save that sheet alone as a PDF, and send that. The workbook itself holds your costs, overhead and margin.
- Once the job is signed, go to Change orders: clear the example, marked Pending, and log each change with its STATUS. A change with no status counts in no total. If the signed contract sum differs from the bid, type it over Original contract sum.
The worked example
The file opens on the bid price calculator's worked example, which the About tab calls illustrative figures, not recommendations. With sales tax, permits, bonds and contingency blank, it matches the calculator to the cent:
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Materials | $14,200.00 |
| Labor | $15,800.00 |
| Subcontractors | $5,000.00 |
| Equipment | $1,500.00 |
| Direct cost | $36,500.00 |
| Job cost | $36,500.00 |
| Overhead, 12% of job cost | $4,380.00 |
| Total cost | $40,880.00 |
| Bid price, 15% margin | $48,094.12 |
| Profit | $7,214.12 |
| Markup on total cost for this margin | 17.65% |
| Price marked up by the margin % instead | $47,012.00 |
| Left on the table by marking up | $1,082.12 |
The bid price divides the total cost by (1 − 15%). Multiplying the total cost by (1 + 15%) instead gives $47,012.00: a 15% markup, not a 15% margin, and $1,082.12 under the bid price.
Frequently asked questions
Does the file do the math?
Yes. Every calculated figure is a live formula.
Does it work in Google Sheets or Numbers?
Both open .xlsx files. This one has no macros, and its formulas use only IF, AND, ROUND, SUM and SUMIF.
Can I add more lines?
Yes. Unprotect the sheet (there's no password), insert rows between two of the table's lines so the totals take them in, and copy the EXTENDED formula into each new row.
Can I put my logo on it?
Yes, on the Bid summary: insert it where the sheet says YOUR LOGO. That row is 36 pt (half an inch) tall, so a logo sized to it fits without dragging the row taller. To remove the YOUR LOGO text, choose Review > Unprotect Sheet (there is no password), then protect the sheet again.
Is the Bid summary a contract?
No. It states a price and a scope, with no terms or signature lines, and the file doesn't decide your contract terms.