Customers price your work against flat-pack
They have seen a wardrobe for £400 and cannot see why an alcove unit is £620. Itemised making, scribing and fitting makes the difference obvious without you having to defend it.
For carpenters
Joinery estimates that show the workshop time
Bespoke work is priced on hours nobody watches. Four days in the workshop is invisible to a customer who only sees you on site for two, and that gap is where the awkward conversations start. Dictate the survey and get an estimate that separates making from fitting.
Why estimating is the worst part of the week
Nothing in an old house is square
A wall bowed 15mm over 2.4 metres is a scribing job, not a fitting job, and it is the single most common reason a joinery day turns into two. If it is not on the estimate it is free.
Deposits are awkward to ask for verbally
You need money for materials before you cut a sheet, but asking on the phone sounds like you do not trust them. On a document, next to a materials line, it reads as completely normal.
A real example
Fitted alcove units and oak staircase refurbishment
On the left is what you would actually write down. On the right is what your customer receives.
Your notes
two alcoves either side of the chimney breast. base cupboards 900 high, shaker doors, floating shelves above, 4 a side, 40mm mdf with oak lipping. left hand wall is bowed, 15mm out over 2.4m, allow scribing. skirting is 5in ogee, cant match it off the shelf so run it myself. stairs - lift the carpet, oak cladding kit over the existing pine treads, new spindles and newel caps. 5 days in the shop, 3 on site. painting by others, tell them mdf needs a proper primer not trade white. deposit for materials up front
The estimate
| Item | Qty | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Site survey, templating and workshop drawings | 1 job | £180.00 |
| Alcove base unit, MDF carcass with Shaker doors, made to size | 2 each | £1,240.00 |
| Floating shelf, 40mm MDF with solid oak lipping | 8 each | £760.00 |
| Scribe and pack units to bowed wall | 1 job | £140.00 |
| Run and fit ogee skirting to match existing profile | 14 linear m | £336.00 |
| Oak stair cladding, treads and risers, supplied and fitted | 13 each | £884.00 |
| Replace spindles and newel caps, including handrail refix | 1 job | £480.00 |
| Workshop time, making and finishing | 5 day | £1,300.00 |
| Fitting labour on site | 3 day | £840.00 |
| Sheet materials, ironmongery and consumables | 1 job | £220.00 |
| Total before VAT | £6,380.00 | |
An illustration using typical UK rates, not a price list. TradeScribe prices from the rates in your own notes and your saved day rate.
What we know about carpentry and joinery estimates
These are the lines that come up again and again on a carpenter's estimate. Mention any of them in your notes, however briefly, and they come out properly worded.
- Fitted alcove units, made to measure
- Wardrobe carcass and doors, per linear metre
- Internal door hung with ironmongery
- Skirting and architrave, supplied and fitted
- Stud partition wall, per square metre
- Loft hatch with drop-down ladder
- Staircase cladding or refurbishment
- Decking frame and boards, per square metre
- Workshop time, per day
- Second fix joinery, per day on site
Carpentry and joinery estimating questions
How do I price bespoke joinery when nothing in the house is square?
Price the unit as a unit and the fitting as its own line, then add a scribing allowance where you have measured a genuine problem. Note the deviation on the estimate: 'left-hand alcove wall out of plumb by 15mm over 2.4m, scribing allowance included'. It shows the customer you measured properly and it justifies a number they would otherwise query.
Should my estimate separate workshop time from time on site?
Yes. Customers only count the days they can see you, so five days making and three days fitting looks like a three-day job if you present it as one figure. Splitting the two also protects you if they delay access, because the workshop element is already complete and already billable.
What deposit should I ask for on made-to-measure work?
Between a quarter and a half of the total, covering materials and sheet goods, is standard and nobody sensible objects to it. State on the estimate that the deposit covers materials for a bespoke item which cannot be resold, and that it becomes non-refundable once cutting starts. Being specific about why is what makes it easy to agree to.
Who pays if the customer supplies handles that turn up late or wrong?
Put an exclusion on the estimate covering client-supplied items: you will fit them, but delays, shortages and unsuitable fixings are chargeable at your day rate. Second fix joinery is where somebody else's Amazon order stops the whole job, and a single line means you are not absorbing a wasted day.
Should I quote for painting and finishing as well?
Only if you actually want the work, and if you do, be specific about the number of coats and whether MDF is primed. Otherwise exclude it clearly, and tell them in writing that bare MDF needs a proper primer rather than emulsion. Half the complaints about fitted joinery are really complaints about how somebody else painted it.
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