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Quoting

Quote Validity

The short answer

Quote validity is the date after which a quoted price no longer applies. Stating one in writing protects you from honoring an old number once materials or your own rates have moved on.

What it means

A quote with no expiry date is a promise with no end — technically still valid whenever the client decides to accept it, even if the price behind it stopped making sense months ago. Stating a validity window, typically two to four weeks, turns an open-ended offer into a real deadline for both sides.

It matters most when your own costs move: material prices rise, a supplier’s rate changes, or your price itself goes up in the meantime. A stated expiry date means an old quote simply lapses instead of becoming an argument over whether you’re obligated to honor a number you’d price differently today.

For example

You quote a fencing job at $2,400, valid for 21 days. The client calls back two months later, once lumber prices have risen. Because the quote had a stated expiry, you re-quote at the current price instead of honoring the old one.

The mistake to avoid

Leaving the validity date off a quote, then feeling stuck honoring a months-old number once a client finally says yes, instead of it simply expiring on its own and getting re-quoted at the current price.

See also

Want this handled automatically?

BizBinder keeps quotes, invoices, deposits, and reminders in one binder, so using the right term is the least of it — the underlying habit runs itself.