FREE TEMPLATES · WORD + PDF
Free web design proposal template — plus the contract and client questionnaire
The three documents a web design business sends before it builds anything, written for selling to small businesses. Read them here, then download each as Word or PDF — no email, no sign-up.
Free to apply · A person reads every application · No agency fee
What's in the pack
- The proposal — one page that sells the outcome (more calls from the right searches), the build, the monthly plan, the timeline and the price.
- The contract — scope, approvals, payment, who owns what, the monthly plan and how either side ends it, in plain English.
- The client questionnaire — the questions that get the client's real services, customers, proof and logins before you start.
Replace every [bracketed] line. The documents assume the client owns their domain and content and gets their own login — the clients you keep are the ones who stay because the work is good.
TEMPLATE 1 OF 3
Web design proposal template
One page, written around what the client wants — being found and getting calls — with the build, the monthly plan and the price in plain view.
Template · replace the [brackets]
WEBSITE PROPOSAL
Replace every [bracketed] line and delete what you don't offer.
1. What you told us
[Client business name] wants more [calls / bookings / quote requests] from people in [area] searching for [services]. Today, [what's not working: the site is slow on phones / services aren't listed / there's no way to book].
2. What we'll build
- A [number]-page website: Home, [Service] pages, About, Reviews, Contact
- Each page written for the searches your customers type, with its own search title and description
- Your Google reviews and business details on the site
- A contact form and one-tap calling on phones
- [Online booking / quote requests / a gallery of your work]
3. What keeps working after launch
Every month, on the monthly plan:
- Google Business Profile upkeep and new photos
- Asking your customers for reviews, and replying to them
- Changes within [number] working days of your request
- A new page when a new service or area matters
- A short report: visitors, inquiries, what changed and what's next
4. Timeline
- [Date]: a first draft of your site to review
- [Date]: your changes, [number] rounds included
- [Date]: launch
5. Investment
Website build (one-time): ____________________________
Monthly plan (per month, cancel with [30] days' notice): ____________________________
Payment terms: ____________________________
6. What we need from you
- Your logo, photos of your work and your team
- Access to your Google Business Profile and your domain
- One person to approve the draft
7. Next step
Sign below and pay the [50%] deposit, and we'll start on [date]. You'll own your domain and your content, and you'll have your own login to your site.
Client
Name: ____________________________
Signature: ____________________________
Date: ____________________________
[Your business name]
Name: ____________________________
Signature: ____________________________
Date: ____________________________
TEMPLATE 2 OF 3
Web design contract template
The clauses a small web design job needs, in plain English. A starting point, not legal advice — have a lawyer where you work review it before you use it.
Template · not legal advice
WEB DESIGN AGREEMENT
A starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer where you work review it before you use it.
1. The work
Designer will build the website described in the proposal dated [date] (the "Proposal"), which is part of this agreement. Work outside the Proposal is quoted separately before it starts.
2. Timeline and approvals
Designer will deliver a first draft by [date]. Client will review within [5] business days. The price includes [2] rounds of changes; further rounds are billed at [rate] per hour. Delays in Client content or approvals move the launch date by the same time.
3. Fees and payment
Invoices are due within [14] days. Late payments may pause work until the account is current.
Website build: ____________________________
Deposit due on signing: ____________________________
Balance due at launch: ____________________________
Monthly plan: ____________________________
4. Client content
Client supplies text, photos, logos and business details and confirms it has the right to use them. Designer may write copy where the Proposal says so; Client approves it before launch.
5. Ownership
Client owns its domain name, its content and the finished text and images made for the site once the build is paid in full. The domain is registered in Client's name, and Client has its own login to the website platform. Designer may show the finished site in its portfolio unless Client objects in writing.
6. Platform and hosting
The site is built and hosted on [platform]. Its plan fees are [included in the monthly plan / paid by Client directly], and use of the platform is subject to its own terms.
7. Monthly plan
The monthly plan covers the services listed in the Proposal. Either party can end it with [30] days' written notice. When it ends, Designer hands over any logins it holds for Client's accounts.
8. Warranties and liability
Designer will do the work with reasonable skill and care. Designer can't guarantee search rankings, traffic or sales. Designer's total liability under this agreement is limited to the fees Client paid in the [12] months before the claim.
9. Ending the agreement
Either party can end this agreement with written notice if the other seriously breaches it and doesn't fix the breach within [14] days. Client pays for work done up to that date.
10. General
This agreement and the Proposal are the whole agreement. It's governed by the laws of [state / country]. Changes must be in writing and signed by both parties.
Client
Name: ____________________________
Signature: ____________________________
Date: ____________________________
Designer
Name: ____________________________
Signature: ____________________________
Date: ____________________________
TEMPLATE 3 OF 3
Web design client questionnaire
Send it before the first meeting. The answers become the site's pages, words and search titles.
Template · send before you start
NEW WEBSITE QUESTIONNAIRE
Fill in what you can — a sentence each is plenty. We'll go through the rest together.
1. Your business
Business name: ____________________________
What you do, in one sentence: ____________________________
Where you work (towns or areas): ____________________________
Years in business: ____________________________
2. Your customers
Who your best customers are: ____________________________
What they type into Google when they need you: ____________________________
The jobs you want more of: ____________________________
The jobs you'd rather not get: ____________________________
3. Your services
Your main services: ____________________________
Prices or starting prices you're happy to show: ____________________________
What makes you different: ____________________________
4. Proof
Your Google Business Profile link: ____________________________
Reviews or testimonials you'd like on the site: ____________________________
Photos of your work, team or premises: ____________________________
5. Your current website
Current website address (if any): ____________________________
Who holds the domain name and its login: ____________________________
What you like and dislike about it: ____________________________
Two or three websites you like, and why: ____________________________
6. What the site should do
The one action a visitor should take (call / book / request a quote): ____________________________
Forms, booking or payments you need: ____________________________
How you'll know the website is working: ____________________________
7. Practical details
Who approves the draft: ____________________________
Launch date you're aiming for: ____________________________
Budget range: ____________________________
The proposal is signed. The site takes minutes.
Build the client's site from a sentence, send a draft the same day, and run every client from one dashboard. No agency fee — apply to Zarla Partners.
Free to apply · A person reads every application · No agency fee
HOW TO USE THEM
How to write a web design proposal that gets signed
Six steps, in the order a client meets them.
Send the questionnaire first
The client's own words about their customers and services are the best raw material for both the proposal and the site.
Open with their goal
The first lines repeat what they told you they want — more calls, more bookings — so they know you listened.
Describe outcomes, then pages
Say what the site will do before listing what's on it. Owners buy the result; the page list is the proof.
Show the monthly plan
List what keeps happening after launch. It's what makes a lower build price work, and it's why the client stays.
Put the price in plain view
One build price, one monthly price, the payment terms. Hiding the number reads as a sales trick.
Attach the contract and ask for the deposit
Make signing the easy next step: sign, pay the deposit, and the draft arrives on a date you name.
Web design proposals and contracts: common questions
Keep it to one or two pages: what the client told you they want, what you'll build, what continues after launch, the timeline, the price and what you need from them — then a signature line and the deposit. Lead with their goal, not your process.
For web design: the client's goal, the solution (what you'll build), the timeline, the investment (build and monthly prices), and the next step (sign and pay the deposit). The template above adds what continues after launch and what you need from the client.
The client's problem in their words, the scope of work, the timeline, the price and payment terms, and how to accept. For a website, add who owns the domain and content, and how many rounds of changes are included.
A common breakdown: an introduction, the problem or goal, the proposed solution, the scope and deliverables, the timeline, the budget, and the terms with a way to accept. The one-page web design proposal above covers all seven, in the order a small-business owner reads them.
Scope (usually by reference to the proposal), timeline and approvals, fees and payment terms, who supplies content, who owns the domain, content and finished work, the platform and hosting, how the monthly plan ends, limits of liability, and how either side ends the agreement. Have a lawyer where you work review it.
What they do and where, who their best customers are and what those customers search for, which jobs they want more of, their services and prices, the reviews and photos they have, who holds their domain and logins, what the site should make a visitor do, and how they'll judge whether it worked.
It can draft one, and it's useful for turning your questionnaire notes into clear sentences. Check every promise it makes — AI drafts tend to promise rankings and timelines you can't guarantee — and keep the price, scope and terms your own.
Most often given as clear, concise and compelling: plain words, no padding, and a reason to say yes now. A one-page web design proposal that leads with the client's goal covers all three.
Yes — free to use and edit for your own clients, with no sign-up. The contract is a starting point, not legal advice. If you build client sites on Zarla, there's no agency fee either; each site goes on a per-site plan when it goes live.
More for people who build websites for clients
Start the web agency you couldn't have started five years ago.
The AI does the production. You own the client. Apply to Zarla Partners — a person reads every application, usually within 3 business days.
Free to apply · A person reads every application · No agency fee