Client brief and scope checklist
Write down what the client wants, what is and is not included, and what is still undecided, before you quote. Nothing is sent and nothing is signed.
Only the brief name is needed. Fill in what you know and leave the rest.
Where things stand
Enter a brief name to print, copy or export.
Saving needs a free account.
Estimate for planning only. This is not tax, legal, accounting or financial advice. Results depend on the figures you enter. Check all numbers, rates and rules with the official source or a qualified professional before relying on them.
Copying, printing or exporting does not send anything to anyone.
A brief is your own record. It is not signed or agreed by anyone.
In the print window, choose "Save as PDF" as the printer.
Saving keeps your brief: the name, client, contact, goal, dates, budget, the four lists, your answers, and the checklist states and notes. Counts and the readiness line are worked out again when you open it.
The printed brief always shows Not included right after Deliverables, and lists open topics under Still to decide.
Quotes, invoices, notices and other documents you create are your documents. Check that they suit your situation and legal requirements. Creating or exporting a document does not mean it has been sent, signed, accepted or paid.
What this tool does
It helps you write down what a client wants, what is and is not included, and what is still undecided. A checklist of ten prompts shows what you have settled and what is still open. It only keeps your notes: nothing is sent and nobody is asked to sign.
Why write the brief first
A job scoped on a phone call or in a first meeting is easy to remember differently later. Writing it down, with what is left out beside what is included, shows you what is still undecided before you put a price on it.
What to settle before you quote
The checklist asks, for ten subjects, whether you have talked about it: who approves the work; the main contact; the wanted start date; the wanted delivery date; the budget mentioned; what is included; what is not included; what the client needs to provide; how changes after the start will be handled; and how and when payment will be discussed. They are prompts for your own notes.
Topics that fill themselves in
Six topics follow your entries: the start date, the delivery date, the budget, the main contact, the deliverables and the not-included list. Each shows Settled while its field has something in it, and goes back to Still open if you empty the field. You can still set any of them to Not relevant. The other four are yours to set by hand.
The readiness line
Example: ten topics, with 6 settled, 1 not relevant and 3 still open, and 2 open questions. The page says "3 topics and 2 questions still open." Ready to quote appears only when no topic and no question is still open. It is your own checklist, not a check that the job is fully described.
Dates
Example: a start date of 2026-10-05 and a delivery date of 2026-11-30 give 56 days from start to delivery. The same day for both gives 0 days. A delivery date before the start date shows a notice and is kept as typed. Dates have no time of day.
Turning the brief into a quote
Create a quote from this brief copies the client, the goal, each deliverable as a line, the exclusions and the assumptions into a new quote, once. Prices stay empty and the budget is not copied. The quote is then separate from the brief. If the goal or other text is longer than the quote has room for, you choose what to keep.
Printing or keeping a PDF
Print or save as PDF opens your browser's print window. Choose "Save as PDF" as the printer to keep a file. The page is headed Client brief, Not included follows Deliverables, and open topics are listed under Still to decide.
Common mistakes
- Leaving what is not included unwritten.
- Having no delivery date, so the question stays open.
- Mixing up something the client hopes for with something you have said you will do.
Using your CSV
Export CSV downloads a file you can open in a spreadsheet. It has one row for each brief detail, deliverable, not-included item, assumption, question and checklist topic, with a Section column, then the short disclaimer. Text cells begin with an apostrophe when they start with a character a spreadsheet could read as a formula. Dates are year-month-day and numbers use a dot.
A note for Canadian businesses
A brief is your own record and is not a contract. For contract terms, speak to a qualified professional.
Questions
Is this a contract?
No. It is your own record of what you discussed.
Does the client sign it?
No. Nobody is asked to sign or approve anything here.
Can I send it to the client?
You can print it or save it as a PDF and send it yourself. The tool does not send anything.
How do I turn it into a quote?
Use Create a quote from this brief. Or open the quote builder and choose Start from a saved client brief.
Do I need an account?
Only to save. Without an account, what you type stays on this page and nothing is saved.