Contractor bid comparison
Compare the same work - not just the total.
A low bid can be incomplete; a high bid can still hide important unknowns. Make sure each bid covers the same work, products, allowances, exclusions, payments, permits, and warranty before deciding.
Seven comparison fields
Give every bidder one scope. Review every answer in the same order.
Scope and quantities
Dimensions, demolition, preparation, products, installation, affected trades, cleanup, restoration, and final records.
Allowances
Every placeholder amount, what it buys, who selects the product, markup treatment, and what happens above or below the allowance.
Exclusions
Work the contractor is not pricing, owner-supplied items, utility or structural unknowns, repairs, permits, design, and disposal.
Schedule and access
Start assumptions, duration, sequencing, long-lead products, occupied-home protection, access, storage, delays, and cleanup.
Payments
Deposit, milestone amounts, objective completion triggers, change-order payment, and final-payment conditions.
Permits and inspections
Who prepares applications, pays fees, schedules inspections, corrects failed work, documents approvals, and closes permits.
Warranty and final records
Workmanship warranty, manufacturer coverage, manuals, approvals, and final records.
Allowances
An allowance is not a fixed product price.
Ask what exact quantity and quality the allowance assumes, whether labor and delivery are included, how contractor markup applies, and how credits or overruns are calculated. A lower allowance can make one proposal look cheaper without reducing the eventual project cost.
Ask bidders to state
- The named product or quality benchmark.
- The quantity, tax, delivery, and labor included.
- The selection deadline and lead-time assumption.
- The markup and written approval process for changes.
- How unused allowance money is credited.
Payment schedule
Tie money to visible progress and documented approvals.
Define objective milestones
Replace vague dates with observable work: approved drawings, materials delivered, rough inspection approved, specified installation complete, punch-list work complete, and final approvals received.
Approve changes in writing
Document the changed scope, price, schedule effect, allowance effect, and authorization before changed work proceeds whenever practical.
Require final records and approvals
Confirm inspections and permits, punch-list completion, cleanup, manuals, warranty information, final product records, and lien documents.
Bid-comparison red flags
Pause when the proposal makes the project harder to compare.
- The scope relies on “standard” or “builder grade” without naming products or performance.
- Large parts of the work are allowances with no quantity or quality benchmark.
- Demolition, disposal, protection, restoration, permits, or inspections are unclear.
- The payment schedule runs ahead of visible completed work.
- Changes can be performed or billed without a documented approval rule.
- Warranty, cleanup, final approvals, or final records are missing.
Contractor follow-up template
Ask for one revised proposal - not answers scattered across texts.
Replace the brackets, remove questions that do not apply, and send the same request to every finalist. Ask the contractor to return the answers inside one revised written proposal before you compare totals again.
Do not send account numbers, passwords, payment details, or other sensitive personal records.
Start clarification emailDownload text templateSubject: Written clarification request for [project]
Thank you for the proposal. Before I compare final bids, please revise the written proposal to confirm:
- The exact included work, quantities, preparation, cleanup, and restoration.
- Named products or performance requirements - not only “standard” or “builder grade.”
- Every allowance, assumed quantity, markup, overage, and unused-amount credit.
- Every exclusion, owner responsibility, and condition that could change the price.
- Who handles permits, fees, inspections, corrections, and final approvals.
- Start assumptions, major milestones, payment triggers, and final-payment conditions.
- The written change-order process, schedule effects, warranty, and final records.
Please include these answers in one revised proposal and identify anything that still requires drawings, investigation, selection, or municipal confirmation.
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