Free Electrical Estimate Template
Good, better and best on one page. Type what the materials cost you and the estimate prices them, adds labor, permit and tax on materials, and totals each option. Your costs never print.
An Electrical Estimate Template With Good, Better and Best Built In
Most free electrical estimate templates are a blank table with one total. Panel upgrades, EV chargers and generator hookups usually get sold in options, and building three separate estimates by hand is where the evening goes. This template puts three options on one page: list every item once, set a quantity for each option, and each option gets its own total.
It also does the pricing. Type what an item costs you and it charges the price on the same sliding markup as our free electrical price book: a breaker or a connector carries a bigger markup than the panel does. Labor bills at your hourly rate, wire by the foot, permits at the fee plus 15%, and tax is charged on materials only. Your margin on each option is worked out beside the estimate and never prints.
The file is free and downloads straight away, no email needed. It opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers. For the prices behind it, see the free electrical price book (45 repairs with hours and parts).
What's in the Electrical Estimate Template
Three tabs. Amber cells are inputs; the rest are protected formulas (Review › Unprotect Sheet, no password, if you want to change one).
Start Here
Four steps: Settings, describing the options, pricing the lines, and printing.
Settings
Company block and license number. Labor rate ($110 an hour), after-hours rate ($165), your labor cost ($77, for the margin only), sales tax (7%), service call fee ($129) and how many days the estimate is good for (30). The materials sliding scale: seven costs from $2 to $5,000 with a multiplier for each. Wire by the foot (1.6 times cost), service items (2 times) and the permit markup (15%).
Estimate
Estimate number, date, prepared by and a good-until date worked out from Settings. Customer, job address and the existing service (amps, panel make). Three option descriptions, 26 line items with a type dropdown (Part, Wire, Service, Permit, Labor, After-hours, Fee, Other) and a quantity column for Good, Better and Best, then each option's materials, labor and services, permits, sales tax and total. An Approval box with the option chosen, its total, a signature and a date, and editable terms.
Beside the estimate
To the right of the print area: Your cost or rate (amber, where you type costs), Markup (filled in from the scale, type over it for one line), Unit cost, and the margin on each option. None of it prints.
How to Fill In the Electrical Estimate
- 1
Set your rates once
Labor and after-hours rates, service call fee, tax rate and how long estimates stay good, on the Settings tab. Change the sliding scale only if you price materials differently.
- 2
Fill in the header
Estimate number, date, who prepared it, the customer and job address, and what's there now: the service size and the panel make. On a panel job, note a recalled or problem panel here.
- 3
Write the three options
One line each, in words the customer understands: what they get, not the part numbers. Good is the job done right to code; Better and Best add what you'd want in your own house.
- 4
Price the lines
Pick a type and type your cost in the amber Your cost column; the price fills in. Wire lines take the cost per foot. Labor lines take hours; leave the rate blank and Settings supplies it. An Other line is charged at exactly the rate you type.
- 5
Set quantities per option
For each line, type the quantity under Good, Better and Best. Blank means that option doesn't include it. The totals under each column update as you go, and the margin for each option shows beside the estimate.
- 6
Check the terms
The starting terms cover hidden conditions found when the old panel comes out, the utility disconnect and the labor warranty. Edit them to match how you work.
- 7
Print, then get it signed
The print area is the customer estimate, so File › Print or Save as PDF gives a clean page with no costs on it. When the customer picks, set Option chosen; the total for that option fills in next to the signature.
Worked Example: A 200-Amp Panel Upgrade
This is the estimate as it downloads: the starting Settings ($110 an hour, 7% sales tax) and the three panel upgrade options from our electrical price book, with costs at supply-house and retail level.
Margins beside the totals read 42% for Good, 45% for Better and 44% for Best, before tax, with labor counted at $77 an hour and materials and the permit at cost.
How that compares: HomeAdvisor puts a panel upgrade at $518 to $2,193 (average $1,347) and HomeGuide has a new 200-amp panel at $1,800 to $2,500, figures our price book research found dated. Contractor pages written in 2026, such as this one, quote $2,500 to $6,500 for a panel and more for a full service upgrade, so many shops will price above this example.
Hours come from the price book: 8 for a same-location panel swap (estimating threads on the Mike Holt forum allow 6 to 10 for a service changeout) and 16 for a full service upgrade done by one electrician. Mast pipe, underground laterals and utility fees are not included. The electrical markup chart explains the sliding scale.
Electrical Estimate Template FAQ
How does the electrical estimate template price materials?
You type what each item costs you and the template prices it on a sliding scale: about 3 times cost for a $2 device, 2.5 times at $25, double at $100, 1.6 times at $500 and 1.3 times at $5,000, with costs in between read from the curve. Wire and cable by the foot is 1.6 times cost, service items like a load calculation are 2 times, and a permit is the fee plus 15%. These are the rules behind our free electrical price book, so an item prices the same in both.
How do the Good, Better and Best options work?
Every line is listed once, with a quantity column for each option. Leave a quantity blank and that line isn't in that option. Each column adds up to its own total, with materials, labor and services, permits and sales tax shown separately, so the customer compares three complete prices on one page and picks one in the Approval box.
Will the customer see my costs?
Not on the printout. The estimate prints descriptions, prices, quantities and the three totals. Your cost, the markup and the margin for each option sit in columns to the right of the print area, so a printout or PDF never shows them. The spreadsheet file still holds them, so send the customer a PDF, not the file.
Can I use it for jobs other than a panel upgrade?
Yes. The panel upgrade is the starting example because it's the job electricians most often quote in three options. Rewrite the three option lines, replace the line items with your own (26 rows), and set the quantities per option. An EV charger, a generator hookup or a lighting package all fit the same way.
Which lines are taxed?
Part and Wire lines only, at the rate on Settings (7% to start). Labor, service items, permits and fees are not taxed. Whether an electrician charges sales tax on materials depends on the state and on whether the job counts as a repair or an improvement to the home, so set the rate your state requires, or 0% if you don't collect it.
Why is the permit $172.50 here and $172 in the price book?
Both are the $150 allowance plus 15%. The price book rounds whole-dollar prices; the template keeps the cents. Change the allowance to what your city charges for a service change; it varies a lot from place to place.
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