How to quote electrical work (UK): a step-by-step method that protects your price

TL;DR: Survey the job, list every material, estimate your labour hours honestly, then add certification, notification, waste and a margin. Write it down as a quote (a fixed price), not a vague estimate. Say what's included, what isn't, when the price can change, and how long it's valid. If you agree jobs in customers' homes, read the Trading Standards guidance on cancellation rights first.

A bad quote costs you twice. Once when you lose the job for being too high. Again when you win it for being too low.

• A quote is a fixed price for the work you've described.
• An estimate is your best guess, and the final bill can move.

Customers read the two very differently, and a vague number is a recipe for an argument. For most domestic jobs, give a quote. Citizens Advice tells customers to ask for one, so expect them to.

Don't quote a rewire from a phone call. Go and look, or get photos and a video walk-round for small jobs.

On a survey, check:

1. The existing installation. Age of the board, earthing and bonding, signs of DIY work.
2. Access. Floor types, loft space, solid walls, furniture to move, parking.
3. Cable routes. Where you'll run cable and how much making good it'll leave.
4. What the customer actually wants. Count the points room by room, with them, and write it down.
5. Anything that'll change the job. If you spot something that needs fixing first, say so now, not halfway through.

Take photos. They save arguments later.

Go room by room. List every item: cable by type and length, back boxes, accessories, the board and devices, clips, conduit, trunking, sundries.

Then:

• Price it from your wholesaler today, not from memory.
• Add a sensible allowance for waste and offcuts.
• Decide your markup on materials and apply it the same way every time.

Missed sundries are where a lot of small profit leaks out. A pricing workbook helps here because it stops you forgetting the small stuff.

Break the job into tasks: first fix, second fix, board change, testing, making good. Estimate hours for each.

Then add the time people forget:

• travel and parking
• the wholesaler run
• moving furniture and lifting floors
• testing and paperwork
• tidying up

Multiply your hours by your hourly or day rate. If you haven't worked out your rate from your real costs yet, start with our guide on how much an electrician should charge per hour.

Many electricians price small jobs and extensions "per point". A point is one socket, switch or light. You set a price per point that covers the cable run, accessory and labour, then multiply.

It's fast, and customers understand it. Watch out for:

• Long or awkward runs. A point at the far end of the house takes longer than one next to the board.
• Making good. Chasing solid walls is slower than running in a stud wall.
• Points that aren't simple. Outside lights, EV chargers and shower circuits shouldn't be priced as a standard point.

Use per point for simple work. Build up larger jobs line by line.

• Testing and certificates. Your time to test and do the paperwork.
• Notification. Check GOV.UK's building regulations approval pages, or your competent person scheme, for which jobs you need to notify. Cover the time and any fee in your price.
• Waste. Old boards, cable and packaging.
• Contingency. For things you couldn't see on the survey. Better: say in the quote what happens if you find something, rather than hiding money in the price.

Citizens Advice tells customers a quote should include:

• a fixed total price, not a daily rate
• a breakdown of the work and the materials
• separate costs for each material and part of the work
• how long the price is valid for
• whether the price includes VAT
• when the price can go up, for example only if they agree to extra work

Give them all of that and you look like the professional choice. Add:

• what's not included (making good, decorating, moving furniture)
• your payment terms and any deposit
• what you'll do if you find a hidden problem: stop, explain, and agree the extra cost in writing before you carry on

VAT: if you're VAT registered, say whether the price includes VAT. Check GOV.UK's VAT registration page to see when registering applies to you.

Cancellation rights catch out a lot of trades, and they depend on where and how the job is agreed. Before you take sign-ups in customers' homes:

1. Read the official guidance. Business Companion, the Trading Standards guidance site, has a quick guide to off-premises sales. It covers cancellation periods, what information to give, urgent repairs and starting work early.
2. Keep a cancellation form and notice ready to hand over with your quote, so you're not drafting one on the doorstep.
3. Get it in writing if a customer asks you to start straight away, and keep that message with the job.
4. Note where each job was agreed (in their home, by phone, by email). The guidance treats these differently.

• Ring or text two or three days after sending the quote. Many jobs are lost to silence, not price.
• When you finish a job, compare your hours and materials against the quote. That's how your next quote gets better.

The Electrician Pricing Calculator — Premium (£14.99) is an Excel workbook with twelve editable electrical service lines, a quote builder, job log, expenses tracker and monthly dashboard. You put in your own labour, materials and margin. It's a pricing tool, not a certificate or proof of competence.

For the paperwork, the Electrician Business Documents — Premium (£19.99) includes a Quote & Estimate Form, a Site Survey & Safety Observation Record, and a Service Agreement & Terms template.

Survey the job, list materials, estimate labour task by task, add testing, certification, notification and waste, then write a fixed-price quote with what's included, what isn't, and how long it's valid.

You set one price for each socket, switch or light point that covers cable, accessory and labour, then multiply by the number of points. It suits simple work. Price awkward runs and specialist circuits separately.

Don't spring it on the customer. Say in the quote when the price can change (for example, extra work they ask for). If you find something extra, stop, explain and agree the cost in writing before you carry on. Citizens Advice's guidance for customers on quotes shows what they'll expect.

A fixed total, a breakdown of work and materials, how long the price lasts, whether VAT is included, when the price can change, and what's excluded. If you agree jobs in customers' homes, check Business Companion's guidance on what cancellation information to include.

For most domestic work, a quote. It's a fixed price, customers trust it, and it avoids arguments about the final bill.

All accessed 1 October 2026.

• Citizens Advice, "Before you get work done on your home" (quote vs estimate; what a quote should include)
• Business Companion (Trading Standards), "Consumer contracts: off-premises sales" (cancellation rights for contracts agreed in the customer's home)
• GOV.UK, "Building regulations approval: when you need approval"
• GOV.UK, "Register for VAT: when to register"

This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Check the Business Companion guidance or get advice for your situation.