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Free Change Order Template

Fill in the project, the parties and the contract sum, then the change: what is added, what is taken out and what it costs. The net change, the new contract sum and the new completion date work themselves out, and you print it or save it as a PDF to sign.

This is a document template, not legal advice. The change clause in your contract decides how changes are priced, signed and dated, so follow it and have anything unusual reviewed.

What a change order includes

  • Project and contract

    The project name and address, the owner and the contractor (and the architect or engineer if there is one), the contract date and the original contract sum.

  • Number, date and reason

    A change order number in sequence, the date, and why the change is needed: the owner asked for it, a condition nobody could see, or a design change.

  • Description of the change

    What is being added, changed or left out, in words the owner will recognise on site, with the drawing or specification it changes if there is one.

  • Price of the change

    Each item added (+) or removed (−) with quantity and unit cost, any agreed markup, and the net change in the contract sum.

  • New contract sum

    Original sum, plus the net of earlier change orders, plus this one: the contract sum after this change order, so nobody has to rebuild the history.

  • Time and signatures

    How many days the change adds or saves, the new completion date, and the signatures of the owner and the contractor (and the architect when used).

How a change order works

A signed contract sets the scope, the price and the finish date. A change order is the written agreement to change them. The usual sequence: someone asks for a change or finds a condition, the contractor prices it and works out the time, the owner reviews it, both sign, and only then does the work go ahead and the contract sum change.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) publishes a standard change order form for construction contracts, AIA Document G701, Change Order. The AIA describes it as the form for changes "agreed to by the owner, contractor, and architect", and says signing a completed G701 "indicates agreement upon all terms of the change, including any changes in the contract sum … and contract time." This template follows the same idea with its own layout; if your contract uses AIA documents, use the AIA form.

When the owner wants the work to go ahead but price or time are not yet agreed, AIA contracts use a different document, the construction change directive (G714). Check what your own contract says before you start work without a signed change order.

Writing the original scope? Start with the statement of work template, so changes have something clear to change.

Pricing the extra work first? Use the quotation generator and copy the lines into the change order.

Change order, change directive, work order, statement of work

Change order
A signed agreement that changes the contract: the work, the price and the time, agreed by both sides.
Construction change directive
In AIA contracts, the owner's written direction to proceed with a change when price or time are not agreed yet (G714).
Work order
An instruction to do a job and the record of it: tasks, hours, parts and sign-off. It does not change a contract.
Statement of work
The original scope, deliverables and price. A change order amends it; it does not replace it.

Tips for change orders that do not turn into disputes

  • Sign before the work

    A change priced and signed before the crew starts is a line on the next invoice. One done first and priced later is an argument.

  • Say what is not included

    If the new outlet does not include patching and painting, write that. Exclusions stop the scope creeping again.

  • Price the time, not only the money

    Extra days matter to the owner as much as dollars. Put the days and the new completion date on every change order, even when the answer is zero.

  • Keep the running total

    Carry the net of earlier change orders forward so everyone sees the current contract sum. "Start the next change order" does it for you.

More for construction sellers and project managers: construction meeting minutes, the construction daily report, building materials sales.

Sources (checked October 7, 2026)

The change order is the paper. The site walk is where the change was asked for.

The owner's "while you're at it", what you said it would cost and how many days it adds: that is said out loud on site or in the project meeting. Record that conversation in ParrotNotes and get the summary and action items, so the change order says what was agreed. Free for 100 minutes of recording a month.

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