Template · 8 min read
Freelance proposal template
A free freelance proposal template in eight sections, for writers, designers, developers and anyone else who sells their own time. It is short on purpose: the client’s problem, what you will deliver, when, for how much, and what happens next. Copy the skeleton, use the AI prompt to turn a client brief into a finished proposal, and send it as a link that tells you when it was opened.
The template
The eight-section freelance proposal template
FREELANCE PROPOSAL [Client name] · [Project] · From [your name] · [date] 1. THE PROJECT, AS I UNDERSTAND IT [Two or three sentences in the client's words: what they need, why now, and what a good result looks like for them.] 2. WHAT I WILL DELIVER - [Deliverable 1, countable: "a 2,000-word guide", "5 screens", "a working API"] - [Deliverable 2] - [Deliverable 3] Not included: [the things they might assume are] 3. HOW WE WILL WORK Milestone 1 [First draft / prototype] [date] Milestone 2 [Revised version] [date] Milestone 3 [Final delivery] [date] Feedback: [x] working days per round, [y] rounds included. 4. PRICE [Fixed price: total, split per milestone] or [Rate: per hour/day, estimate] Payment: [deposit %, then per milestone], [payment terms, e.g. 14 days] Valid until: [date] 5. RELEVANT WORK - [Project]: [the problem it solved, one line] [link] - [Project]: [the problem it solved, one line] [link] 6. WHAT I NEED FROM YOU [Access, brief, assets, one person who gives feedback] 7. TERMS Revisions beyond the included rounds: [rate] Cancellation: [kill fee, e.g. payment for completed milestones + x%] Ownership: [rights transfer on final payment] 8. NEXT STEP [Reply "yes" or approve on this page; I send the invoice for the deposit; I start on [date].]
The eight sections, one line of advice each
- The project, as I understand it. The client’s need in their words. If you get this right, the client relaxes: you listened. If you get it wrong, better to find out now than at the first delivery.
- What I will deliver. Countable deliverables and a short “not included” line. “Website copy” invites argument; “copy for five pages, up to 600 words each” does not.
- How we will work. Milestones with dates, the number of feedback rounds and how fast you need feedback. Freelance projects stall on the client side more often than yours; this is where you set the pace.
- Price. A fixed price split by milestone, or a rate with an estimate, plus payment terms and a validity date. A deposit before you start is normal; say so plainly.
- Relevant work. Two or three examples, each with the problem it solved. One close match beats a full portfolio link.
- What I need from you. Access, the brief, assets, and one person who gives feedback. Two reviewers with different opinions is the most common cause of a third revision round.
- Terms. Rate for extra revisions, a kill fee if the project is cancelled, and when rights transfer (usually on final payment). Short, factual, no legalese.
- Next step. What the client does now and when you start: reply yes, pay the deposit, start on a named date.
Responding to a job post on a marketplace? Use sections 1, 2, 4 and 5 as the message, and link to the full proposal page for the rest.
Example
A proposal they read on their phone
A fictional example: a freelance writer’s proposal to Northwind Studio to rewrite their customer onboarding guide, built from the template above and published as a page on the writer’s own domain.
Three milestones, a fixed price split across them, two relevant samples, and a start date. It reads well on a phone, which is where most clients first open a proposal.
Open a live example proposal to see how a proposal page behaves in the browser (a fictional consulting one).
Turn a client brief into a proposal with AI
Paste the client’s brief and your terms, and the prompt produces the whole proposal in your voice, first person, with the milestone timeline and price table laid out. It tells the AI never to invent past clients or results, so what you send is true.
Copy, fill in the brackets with the brief and your price, and paste into Claude or ChatGPT:
You are producing a freelance project proposal as a single, self-contained HTML file.
CONTEXT (replace everything in brackets):
- Client: [client name and what they do]
- From: [your name, your trade: writer / designer / developer / ...]
- The project, from the client's brief or call: [paste it as it is]
- Deliverables: [list, countable]
- Not included: [list]
- Milestones with dates: [list]
- Price: [fixed per milestone, or rate and estimate], payment terms, validity date
- Relevant work: [project: problem solved: link, one per line]
- What you need from the client: [list]
- Terms: [included revision rounds, rate after, kill fee, ownership]
- Brand: [primary hex color], or "simple and neutral"
REQUIREMENTS:
- Sections in this order: The project · What I will deliver · How we will work · Price · Relevant work · What I need from you · Terms · Next step.
- Write in the first person singular ("I"), not "we". Keep it short: a client should read it in five minutes.
- Show milestones as a simple timeline and the price as a small table that adds up to the total.
- Keep every name, date, link and number exactly as I gave it. If something is missing, write a clearly marked [TBD]. Never invent past projects, clients, testimonials or results.
- Self-contained HTML: inline CSS, no external scripts or fonts, readable on a phone, printable.
- Tone: friendly, precise, confident. No filler about passion or dedication.- 1 Paste the prompt (with your details filled in) into Claude or ChatGPT. You get a finished, self-contained HTML document. Review it, correct anything, and iterate until it's right.
- 2 Publish it as a tracked link: with the Pagelive connector in Claude, say "publish this page" and the link comes back in chat. Next cycle, "update it" replaces the content at the same URL. Or upload the HTML file at app.pagelive.io.
Sending it
Paste the link, then time the follow-up
Paste the link in the marketplace message or the email; it opens on a phone and you see when it was read. Free tells you about the first open; Solo and Team email you when it is opened again, and Solo can serve it from a subdomain of your own site. A proposal opened twice over a weekend is a good moment for a short follow-up; one never opened needs a different message than “just checking in”.
The honest limits: an open is a signal for timing, not proof of interest, and an approval on the page is a decision, not a signature. If the client needs a signed contract, send it through your e-sign tool once they say yes.
Frequently asked
The client’s problem in their words, what you will deliver, how you will work (milestones), the timeline, the price and payment terms, two or three examples of relevant work, what you need from the client, terms for revisions, cancellation and ownership, and the next step.
Make it about their project, not your bio. Restate the problem precisely, show one or two pieces of work that solved something similar, give a clear price with what it includes, and end with a start date. Specific and short beats long and general.
Fixed price per milestone works best when the scope is clear: the client knows the cost and you are paid for results, not hours. Hourly or day rates fit open-ended work. Either way, write down what is included and the rate for anything beyond it.
One page for small jobs; a few screens for larger projects. Long enough to remove the client’s doubts about scope, price and timing, short enough to read in one sitting.
A fee the client pays if they cancel the project partway, usually a percentage of the remaining milestones or payment for work done so far. Stating it in the proposal protects your calendar if the project stops.
Related: all proposal templates · consulting proposal template · Pagelive for consultants
One page, one link, a follow-up that lands.
Write it from the brief, send one link, and follow up when it has been read. Free for 2 public pages.