Free Change Order Form Template (Printable PDF)

A change order is a short written agreement to change the scope, price or schedule of a job after the contract is signed. Get it signed before you do the extra work. A verbal yes on site is easy to forget and hard to prove when the final invoice is bigger than the customer expected.

The blank form below prints on one letter page. Fill it in by hand, or save it as a PDF and type into it.

Fields every change order needs

• Your business name and license number. California, for one, requires it on home improvement contracts.
• Job name and address. So the change order ties to one contract.
• Change order number. Number them 1, 2, 3 per job. It keeps the ledger in order and shows nothing is missing.
• Description of the change. What is added, removed or swapped. Be specific: brand, size, location, quantity.
• Line items and amount. Labor and materials with quantity and unit price. Show credits as negative lines.
• Schedule impact. How many days the change adds or saves. Write 0 if none.
• New contract total. Previous contract total plus this change order. The customer sees the running number, not just the delta.
• Signatures and dates. One line for the customer and one for you. Work starts after both sign.

Tips that prevent disputes

• Write it before the work starts. The change priced after the fact is the one customers argue about.
• Attach a photo of the area when the change is about hidden conditions like rot, old wiring or bad framing.
• Keep a signed copy for you and one for the customer.
• If the change saves money, still write it up. A credit change order keeps the final invoice easy to check.

In California, read what B&P §7159 requires before you fill it in.

Paper works. It is slower when you are on site and the customer is at work. You can send the same form as a link, they sign on their phone, and you both get a timestamped PDF.