The clause is in the estimate. The document is this one.
Almost every estimate carries a sentence saying the price may move if the scope moves. The default terms block on this site is 27 words in 3 sentences, and the last of them is exactly that clause. It is a promise to write something later — and the reason jobs end in argument is that the something later never gets written. A change order is that missing document: the same line-item format the estimate used, applied to the difference.
Keep it as a separate numbered document rather than editing the original. A re-issued estimate destroys the record of what was agreed the first time, and the record is the entire point: six weeks later, the question is never “what does the paperwork say now” but “what did we agree, and when did this get added”.
Price the change, then price the delay
Additions are the easy half: hours at your rate, materials at cost plus markup, any re-inspection the change triggers. Deletions are the half people get wrong. When something comes out of scope, enter it as a negative line — a credit with its own description — rather than editing the original numbers down. The client can see they were credited, you can see what was removed, and the arithmetic is auditable by both sides.
Then record the schedule. A change that adds three working days and no argument about money still causes an argument about the finish date if the days were never written down. The sample above puts them on a zero-priced line for that reason: it costs nothing, and it is evidence.
Signed before the work, not after
The signature block is on by default. A change order signed after the work is finished is a request for payment against work the client never formally authorized, and it is where retention gets held and relationships get spent. Signed first, it is simply the next page of the agreement.
The rest of the paper trail lives alongside it: the quote fixes the original price, the bid wins the job with its exclusions intact, how to write an estimate covers the terms and validity language the change order inherits, and estimate vs invoice explains which document finally asks for the money. For recurring dispatch paperwork, the sister site work-order-template.com covers the work order the crew actually carries.
Change order template FAQ
What is a change order?
A change order is a written amendment to work that was already agreed: it names what is being added or removed, prices it, records any effect on the schedule, and is signed by both sides before the work happens. Everything in the original agreement that is not mentioned stays exactly as it was.
What has to be on a change order?
Six things: a change order number, a reference to the original estimate or contract it amends, the added scope priced line by line, any credits for deleted work, the effect on the completion date, and a signature line. The template above carries all six, and the signature block is on by default because an unsigned change order is a conversation, not an authorization.
Can a change order be a credit rather than an extra?
Yes, and it should be when work comes out. Enter a negative rate and the line deducts from the total on its own row — the sample above includes one. A deleted item recorded as its own credit line is far easier to defend than a total that quietly got smaller.
Do I need a change order if the client agreed verbally?
Write it anyway, and get a signature before the crew starts. Verbal approvals are remembered differently once the final invoice is read, and the disputed part is usually not whether the work was wanted but what it cost and how many days it added. Both live on this document.
How do I number change orders?
Sequentially, per job, referencing the original: CO-001, CO-002, and so on against the estimate number they amend. The document number field at the top of the builder is free text, so use a scheme that lets you and the client find this exact version months later.
Is this change order template free?
Yes. Fill it in and download the PDF with no account, no trial, and no card. Free PDFs carry one small credit line at the foot; the optional Pro upgrade removes it.