Compare contractor quotes on the same terms — a free worksheet

Worksheet version 1.0.0 · First published 2026-09-22 · Built against ScopeSpec 0.1 · Maintained by Ben Davis, ben.davis@bidbro.com · Licensed CC BY 4.0

In short

Three quotes for the same job are rarely for the same work. This worksheet sets them side by side on the 15 fields ScopeSpec 0.1 says a quote should answer — 13 of them required — and says what each blank answer costs you. Download the CSV or JSON, fill one column per bidder, and keep it on your own machine. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is scored, and no contractor is recommended.

Download the blank worksheet

3 quote columns, 15 rows. There is no form on this page and no upload: whatever you write stays on your machine, which is the only sensible place for three contractors’ prices to live.

Worksheet (CSV) — opens in any spreadsheet.
Worksheet (JSON) — the same rows, keyed by ScopeSpec field name, for anything that reads the published schema.

Both files are generated from the ScopeSpec 0.1 field registry, not typed out, so they cannot describe fields the standard does not define.

The 15 fields, and what a blank one costs you

These are the fields ScopeSpec 0.1 defines for a conforming quote. The first two columns are the standard’s; the last is this worksheet’s own reading of what you lose when a bidder leaves the field empty.

ScopeSpec 0.1 quote fields — 15 fields, 13 required by the standard.
Field	What it means	If it is blank
`priceBasis` required	How the price is constructed. Two prices on different bases are not comparable and must not be presented as if they were.	You cannot tell whether the number is a fixed price, a not-to-exceed cap or an hourly estimate. Prices on different bases are not comparable at all.
`priceTotal` required	The total for the scope as quoted, in the stated currency, exclusive of allowances listed separately.	There is no price to compare.
`currency` required	ISO 4217 currency code.	Assume nothing; ask.
`allowancesCarried` required	The brief's allowances as carried in this quote, so identical allowances sit on identical base prices.	An allowance the brief asked for may be buried in the base price here and itemised there, which can make the cheaper-looking quote the more expensive one.
`assumptionsAccepted` required	The brief's assumptions this quote accepts, verbatim.	You do not know which of your stated assumptions this bidder is actually working to.
`assumptionsRestated` required	Assumptions the bidder replaced, with the replacement text. Required even when empty — this is where two apparently identical prices stop being identical.	This is the most common reason two apparently identical prices are not identical. A blank here is not the same as "none" — ask for it explicitly.
`exclusionsAdded` required	Anything the bidder excludes beyond the brief's own exclusions. Required even when empty.	Work you believe is in scope may not be. A blank here is not the same as "nothing extra is excluded".
`validUntil` required	The date the price expires. A quote without an expiry cannot be compared against one with a short expiry on equal terms.	The price may be withdrawn before you finish comparing.
`startWindow` required	When work could begin, as a stated window rather than a promise of a date.	You cannot compare availability, which is often worth more than the price gap.
`durationEstimate` required	Expected working duration, with the unit stated.	You cannot compare disruption, only cost.
`paymentSchedule` required	Each payment as a stated trigger and amount or percentage.	A large deposit is a real cost and a real risk. Two equal totals with different schedules are not equal.
`warranty` required	Workmanship warranty in plain words, stated separately from any manufacturer warranty.	You cannot compare what happens if the work fails.
`changeOrderPolicy` required	How a change is priced and authorised. Unstated at quote stage, it is negotiated at the worst possible moment.	You have no stated protection against the price changing after work begins.
`licenseNumber` optional	The contractor's licence number as issued by the relevant authority. Optional in the standard because licensing regimes differ; verification is the reader's responsibility, not the standard's.	You have nothing to check against the state register. ScopeSpec records what a bidder states; it verifies nothing.
`insuranceOnFile` optional	Whether the bidder asserts current liability and workers' compensation cover. An assertion, not a verification — the standard never implies BidBro or anyone else has checked it.	You have nothing to ask a certificate for. Again: a stated value, not a verified one.

A worked example: one quote, reconciled against its brief

ScopeSpec 0.1 publishes one example brief and one example quote answering it. Both are illustrative artifacts of the standard, not a real project and not a real contractor’s price — so what follows demonstrates the reconciliation of a single quote against a brief, which is the part the published artifacts actually support. Comparing several bidders is what the blank worksheet above is for.

The brief (example-roofing-001, trade profile roofing-replacement): Replace the asphalt shingle roof on a two-storey house, including new underlayment and all flashing. It states 3 assumptions and 1 allowance.

The quote answers on a fixed-price basis at $18,400, valid until 2026-10-10, starting between 2026-10-06 and 2026-10-20, over 3 working days, weather permitting.

Assumptions it accepted verbatim (2)

Work proceeds in a single mobilisation
One layer of existing shingles only

Assumptions it replaced with its own (1) — read these first

Decking replacement beyond the two noted areas is priced at a stated rate per sheet rather than assumed sound

Exclusions it added beyond the brief (0)

None — and because the field is required, that blank is a stated “nothing”, not a silence.

Allowances it carried (1)

Decking replacement — $900, material and labour, priced per sheet beyond the two noted areas.

The reconciliation adds up: the brief’s 3 assumptions are all accounted for — 2 accepted and 1 replaced — and the one replacement is the whole story. A second bidder who quietly assumed sound decking could return a lower headline number for materially less work, and only the assumptionsRestated row would show it.

Even so, this conforming example answers 14 of the 15 fields and leaves 1 blank (licenseNumber). That is the ordinary case, and it is why the worksheet has a column for blanks rather than assuming every quote will be complete.

Source artifacts, all published: field registry · example brief · example quote.

What this worksheet does not do

It does not price anything. ScopeSpec describes a project; it does not cost one. Nothing here predicts, implies or validates a price.
It does not rank or recommend bidders. There is no score. It sets out what each bidder stated and where they differ; the judgement is yours.
It verifies nothing. licenseNumber and insuranceOnFile record what a bidder states. Checking either against the state register or a certificate is the reader’s job — the Hampton Roads permit and licensing source directory lists where to do it.
It is not legal advice and it is not a contract review.
Field names may change in 0.2. Every 0.1 URL and artifact stays available permanently, so a worksheet filled in today stays readable.

Using and citing this

The worksheet and this page are licensed CC BY 4.0. Lenders, realtors, inspectors, consumer educators and contractors are welcome to hand it out, print it, or rebuild it against the published schema — no permission needed, no link required, nothing conditioned on one.

Suggested citation: BidBro. Compare contractor quotes on the same terms — ScopeSpec quote comparison worksheet, version 1.0.0. 2026-09-22. https://www.bidbro.com/tools/scopespec-quote-comparison

Corrections and questions: ben.davis@bidbro.com.

Related on BidBro

ScopeSpec 0.1 — the open standard this worksheet is built from, with the full field registry and JSON Schema.
Virginia Beach contractors — contractors by trade across the city, with licence records where on file.
Virginia home-improvement projects — live projects taking bids.
Hampton Roads Home Project Observatory — BidBro’s published construction data and its methodology.
All free tools.