How to write a quote in Switzerland: example and steps

A quote tells a client what you will deliver, how much it will cost and on what terms. Before work begins, it helps both sides agree on the job. Once the offer is accepted, that agreement may be legally binding.

To write a quote in Switzerland, start with the result: what exactly will the client receive? Then set out the price, timing and payment terms. Below is a worked example in Swiss francs, followed by the details to adapt to your business.

A Swiss quote example

Take a straightforward job: designing a four-page brochure for a business. The client supplies the text and images. The service provider is VAT-registered and offers a fixed price.

The amounts and deadlines are illustrative, not recommended rates. Replace the party details with the actual names and contact information. If you use terms and conditions, attach the applicable version and expressly include their acceptance.

Why is this more useful than a line saying “Brochure: CHF 600”? It explains that printing is excluded, limits the included revisions and says when the ten-day delivery period starts. The client can accept knowing what they will receive.

What should a quote include?

There is no single list of mandatory details that applies to every Swiss quote. The requirements depend on the contract and sector. For an ordinary service, these six elements help you create a usable document.

1. The parties. Who is selling and who is buying? Use the correct business names and full addresses. A contact person’s name alone does not identify a company. Add your Swiss UID number and, if registered, your VAT number.
2. The reference. Number and date the quote. If it changes, issue a clearly identified new version so the client does not accept an outdated price.
3. The work promised. Describe the result, quantities, inclusions and exclusions. For a website, for example, state the number of pages, the content the client must supply and whether maintenance is included.
4. The price. State the currency, pricing method, applicable VAT and total. Separate optional extras clearly from the base price.
5. The schedule. Distinguish the deadline for accepting the offer from the time needed to complete the work. State what you need from the client before starting.
6. Acceptance and payment. Explain how to accept, any deposit, when the balance falls due and which contractual terms apply.

Your terms and conditions supplement the quote. Make them available before acceptance and clearly incorporate them into the agreement. Attaching them for the first time to the invoice is too late to rely on their initial acceptance.

How do you calculate the price?

Before entering a figure, estimate the time, purchases and costs involved. Include preparation and the revisions you promise: your price must cover that time too.

For our brochure, suppose your internal estimate is four hours at CHF 150, or CHF 600 excluding VAT. The client is buying a result at a fixed price. Your internal calculation does not turn the quote into hourly billing.

Add VAT if it applies

In this example, the service is subject to the standard rate of 8.1%. The calculation is 600 × 8.1% = CHF 48.60 in VAT, then 600 + 48.60 = CHF 648.60 including VAT.

The rate depends on the supply: see our explanation of Swiss VAT rates. If you are not VAT-registered, do not charge VAT. You can state “Business not registered for VAT” and show the amount payable. That is different from a supply taxed at 0%.

If you are unsure, first check the VAT registration requirements. For an offer to consumers covered by the Price Indication Ordinance, the price actually payable must include compulsory taxes and surcharges. SECO’s price indication information (in French) explains the scope.

Check what is left for your business

A quote can be clear for the client yet unprofitable for you. Take the CHF 600 fee excluding VAT, with an assumed internal labour cost of CHF 70 per hour and CHF 80 in other direct job costs:

• At four hours: 4 × 70 + 80 = CHF 360 in costs. That leaves CHF 240.
• At six hours: 6 × 70 + 80 = CHF 500 in costs. That leaves CHF 100.

Two extra hours have used up CHF 140 of the CHF 240 you expected to retain. The amount left must still cover costs excluded from this calculation; it is not automatically your net profit. For future jobs, work out your product or service cost before setting your selling price.

Fixed quote or estimate?

The document’s title alone does not settle whether the price is fixed. State clearly how you will charge for the work.

A fixed price for defined work

For the brochure, the agreed price stays at CHF 600 excluding VAT if the specified work takes six hours instead of four. For a contract for work and services, Article 373 of the Swiss Code of Obligations generally requires the contractor to honour the fixed price even if labour or expenses were underestimated. It provides a court remedy for certain extraordinary circumstances; a simple pricing mistake is not enough.

Clear wording would be: “Fixed fee of CHF 600 excluding VAT for the services described above.” If the client later requests different work, you can agree on an additional charge together.

An estimate where the final price is not yet known

If you cannot predict the workload, state the assumptions, rate and chargeable expenses. For example: “Estimated four hours at CHF 150 excluding VAT per hour, totalling CHF 600 excluding VAT. Billed according to time actually spent. No work beyond four hours will begin without prior written approval of an additional budget.”

That last sentence is a monitoring commitment you must honour. Simply calling a price “indicative” does not let you increase the invoice freely.

For contracts for work and services, Article 374 of the Swiss Code of Obligations and Article 375 of the Swiss Code of Obligations address prices that are not fixed precisely and approximate estimates. An excessive overrun without fault on the client’s part may entitle them to withdraw; special rules apply to construction on their land. Do not assume a universal right to exceed the estimate by 10%: the contract and circumstances must be examined.

These provisions concern contracts for work and services. A consulting assignment governed by mandate law, for example, must be assessed under its own rules.

When is a quote binding?

A sufficiently precise quote may constitute an offer. If the client accepts without changing essential terms, a contract may be formed. Article 1 of the Swiss Code of Obligations requires agreement between the parties; Article 11 of the Swiss Code of Obligations requires a particular form only where the law provides for it.

A signature or wording such as “approved and accepted” is therefore not compulsory for every service. An explicit email may be sufficient, subject to any form required by law or agreed between the parties. In practice, keep the exact quote and evidence of acceptance before starting.

“That looks interesting, I’ll get back to you” is not a clear acceptance. “I accept quote Q-2026-014, version 1, for CHF 648.60 including VAT” is much more precise. If the client says “agreed, but for eight pages at the same price”, you still need to agree on that change.

The acceptance deadline also binds you: under Article 3 of the Swiss Code of Obligations, the person making an offer with a deadline generally remains bound until it expires. Where no deadline is given, Article 5 of the Swiss Code of Obligations addresses, in particular, offers made to someone who is not present. There is no automatic 30-day validity period for all quotes.

If the client changes the brief

Your client now wants an eight-page brochure. This is different from simply spending more time on the original four pages: the requested result has changed.

Before producing the extra pages, send an amendment referring to the original quote, the additional work, its price and its effect on the schedule. You could adapt the following wording:

“In addition to quote Q-2026-014, four extra pages using content supplied by the client: CHF 300 excluding VAT, or CHF 324.30 including VAT. The total project price becomes CHF 972.90 including VAT. The delivery period is extended by three working days after receipt of your written approval and the additional content. All other terms of the original quote remain unchanged.”

The calculation can be checked: 600 + 300 = CHF 900 excluding VAT; 900 × 8.1% = CHF 72.90 in VAT; total CHF 972.90 including VAT. Deduct the CHF 194.58 deposit already paid, leaving CHF 778.32 including VAT.

Correcting your own mistake, however, is not automatically additional chargeable work. First check what you promised. When invoicing, reconcile the accepted quote, approved amendments and payments already received.

You can then prepare the invoice and track the payments without starting from scratch.

Before sending your quote

Read it as if you were the client and had not taken part in the earlier discussions. Check these five points:

• The deliverables and main exclusions make sense without a spoken explanation.
• The total, VAT and options are consistent. The deposit and balance add up to the amount payable.
• Offer validity, delivery timing and payment deadlines are clearly distinguished.
• The reference and version identify exactly which offer is accepted.
• The client knows how to accept and has any applicable terms and conditions.

In your email, repeat the scope, total and next step: “Please find our proposal for the four-page brochure, totalling CHF 648.60 including VAT. To confirm the order, please send us your acceptance of quote Q-2026-014 before 14 November.”

Conclusion

A good quote helps the client decide and lets your business work from a clear agreement. Start with the result, explain the price and state what triggers the work. Then keep a record of approved changes.

You can adapt the example above in our free quote and invoicing tool. It makes formatting easier; you still need to tailor the content to the job.

Sources and references

The following official sources are in French.

• Swiss Code of Obligations, Articles 1, 3, 5, 11 and 373–375: contract formation, form, fixed prices and approximate estimates.
• Federal Tax Administration: current VAT rates.
• SECO: price indication for consumers.