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Free Punch List Template

Walk the job and add an item for each thing still to fix: where it is, what it is, which trade, how urgent, who owns it and when it is due. The list numbers itself, counts open against complete, sorts by room or trade, and the final walk view shows only what is left. Print it in landscape with one line per item, save a PDF, copy it as text or download a CSV.

A template for the walk-through, not a contract document. Your contract sets which items hold back payment or handover.

What goes on a punch list

  • Project header

    Project, address, the date of the walk-through, who walked it, the contractor or GC and the client or owner, so the list is tied to one job and one visit.

  • Location and item

    The room or area and a one-line description of the defect or unfinished work: "Kitchen: touch up paint above the range". One defect per line, so each can be assigned and closed on its own.

  • Trade and responsible party

    General, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, painting, flooring, drywall, roofing, landscaping or other, and the sub, crew or person who fixes it, so the list can be sorted and handed out by trade.

  • Priority and due date

    Low, medium or high, and the date it has to be done by. High items are the ones that stop occupancy or payment; the rest can wait for the next visit.

  • Status

    Open, in progress, complete and verified. Complete is the contractor's word; verified is the owner's or inspector's check at the final walk. The counts update as you go.

  • Notes, cost and sign-off

    A note per item for photos taken or parts ordered, an optional cost, general notes, and signature lines for the contractor and the owner once the items are accepted.

How to run a punch list walk

Walk the job in a fixed order, room by room, with the contractor and the client if you can, and write one item per defect as you see it. Say where it is first, then what it is; "Bath 2: faucet drips" is enough for the plumber to find it. Give each item a trade and the party responsible for it, and a due date that fits the handover. Mark anything that affects safety, occupancy or payment as high priority; cosmetic items are low or medium.

A punch list is the list of items to be completed or corrected before the job is accepted and final payment is released. On projects run on AIA forms, the Certificate of Substantial Completion (AIA Document G704–2017) records the date of substantial completion, and the contractor prepares the list of items to be completed or corrected following substantial completion, which the architect verifies and amends. Whatever form your contract uses, the list that goes with it is this one.

Hand the list out by trade, then come back for the final walk with the final walk view on: only the open items show, numbered as on the full list, each with a box to tick. Mark items complete as the contractor reports them and verified once you have seen them. When nothing is open, both parties sign and the list goes in the project file with the closeout documents.

An open item that turns into a job of its own? Write it up with the work order template and quote the item number.

The client asked for something that was never in scope? That is not a defect: price it with the change order template before anyone does it.

Punch list, snag list, work order, change order

Punch list
The US and Canadian term for the list of items to fix or finish before the job is accepted: this template.
Snag list
The same list in UK, Irish and Australian usage; "snagging" is the walk that produces it. Same columns, same sign-off.
Work order
The instruction to a technician or crew to do one job, with hours and parts. An open punch list item can become a work order; the punch list itself is the master list.
Change order
A signed change to the contract scope and price. Something the client wants that was never agreed is a change order, not a punch list item.

Tips for punch lists that close

  • One defect per line

    "Paint touch-ups throughout" never gets verified because nobody knows when it is done. "Living room, scuff left of the window" does.

  • Walk with the people who will sign

    A list agreed on site with the contractor and the client is a list nobody argues about at payment time. Items added later by email are where the arguments start.

  • Sort by trade before you send it

    The electrician wants only the electrical items. Sort by trade, print or copy, and each sub gets a list they can finish in one visit.

  • Separate defects from wishes

    If it was never in the drawings or the quote, it is a change order. Keeping those off the punch list keeps the punch list short and the payment on time.

More for people who walk jobs for a living: the construction meeting minutes template, property inspection notes, home improvement sales, building materials sales.

Source

Every item gets called out on the walk. Not every item gets written down.

On a walk-through you are looking up at the ceiling, not down at a clipboard. Record the walk with ParrotNotes on your phone and get the transcript and summary, so every item named in each room is there to add to the list afterwards, with the room it was said in. Free for 100 minutes of recording a month.

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Punch list questions