Free Service Agreement Template
Pick the kind of service, list what you will do, choose a fixed fee, an hourly rate or a monthly retainer, and the service agreement lays itself out as you type, with the fee worked out. Print it, save a PDF or copy it into an email. No account.
What goes in a service agreement
Parties and date
Who provides the service and who receives it, with legal names, addresses and who signs for each, and the date the agreement starts.
The services
What you will do, one line per service, plus any deliverables or service levels such as a response time or a visit schedule.
Fees and expenses
A fixed fee, an hourly rate with an estimate, or a monthly retainer, and whether expenses are billed, included or approved first.
Invoicing and payment
When you invoice, how many days the client has to pay, and your late-payment wording if you use one.
Term and termination
How long the agreement runs, whether it renews, and how much notice either side gives to end it.
The standard clauses
Independent contractor, confidentiality, who owns the work product, any limit on liability, the governing law you choose, and signatures.
Service agreement, statement of work or MSA
A service agreement sets the terms of the relationship: what the provider does, what it costs, how payment works, how long it lasts and how either side ends it. For a cleaning contract, a monthly IT retainer or a consulting engagement, it is often the only document you need.
A statement of work describes one project: its scope, deliverables, acceptance criteria and timeline. Washington State's Statement of Work Template calls it a document that "describes the scope of work required to complete a specific project". When the work is a defined project, sign the service agreement for the terms and attach a statement of work for the project.
A master services agreement (MSA) is a service agreement written for repeat work: the general terms are signed once, and each new project is ordered with its own statement of work under it, so the legal terms are not renegotiated every time.
Describing one project in detail? Use the Statement of Work Template.
Scope changed after signing? Write it up with the Change Order Template.
Three ways to charge
Pick one in the form and the agreement works out the amounts:
- Fixed fee
- One price for the services listed. The client knows the cost up front; if the work takes longer, you absorb it, so keep the services list specific.
- Hourly rate
- Your rate times the estimated hours gives the estimate in the agreement. Invoices follow the hours actually worked, so the estimate is a forecast, not a cap.
- Monthly retainer
- A set amount each month for ongoing services such as cleaning, IT support or marketing. Add the number of months and the agreement shows the total.
- Whichever you pick
- Say how expenses are handled and how fast invoices are paid. Those two lines prevent most payment disputes.
Clauses that prevent disputes
A notice period both sides can live with
Thirty days is the default here. Long enough to hand over the work, short enough that nobody feels trapped.
What happens to work in progress
The termination clause says the client pays for services performed and approved expenses up to the end date, so ending early does not start an argument.
Expenses decided in advance
Billed at cost with written approval, included in the fee, or not billed at all. Pick one before the first invoice.
Who owns the work
Deliverables made for the client usually belong to the client once paid; your own tools and methods stay yours. The form offers three simple options.
More for consultants, agencies and service sellers: consultant meeting notes, sales handover template, B2B SaaS sales.
Sources
The terms are agreed on a call. The agreement should say the same.
The scope, the price and the start date get settled in the sales meeting or the site visit, before anyone writes the agreement. Record that meeting in ParrotNotes and you get a summary and the action items, so the agreement matches what the client asked for. Free for 100 minutes of recording a month.
Get ParrotNotes freeRelated tools
- Statement of Work TemplateWrite a statement of work with scope, deliverables, timeline, acceptance, pricing and sign-off, then print it or save it as a PDF.Open the tool
- NDA TemplateWrite a mutual or one-way non-disclosure agreement with the parties, what is confidential and for how long, then print it or save it as a PDF.Open the tool
- Quotation GeneratorBuild a clean price quote with line items, discount, tax and terms, then print it or save it as a PDF. Nothing to sign up for.Open the tool
- Change Order TemplateWrite a change order with the work added or removed, the price and schedule change, and signatures, then print it or save it as a PDF.Open the tool