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Change order template for web designers
Website projects accumulate small requests. A page count, a revision cap, and a written change order are how you keep the build on budget.
Web design scopes go sideways in predictable ways. A five-page site becomes seven. “You’ll use our existing copy” becomes “can you also write the About page?” A simple contact form becomes a membership login. None of that has to be a fight — if you treat each addition as a priced change, not a courtesy.
Requests that are often out of scope
- Extra pages or templates beyond the agreed page list
- Copywriting, photography, or stock when the scope was design-only
- E-commerce, memberships, bookings, or other integrations not named in the agreement
- Additional revision rounds after the revision cap
- A new breakpoint, language, or CMS the proposal never mentioned
Requests that often are in scope: typography or color tweaks during an agreed revision round; swapping a provided image; fixing a bug in a delivered page. The signed scope is the source of truth, not a gut feeling.
How to price a web-design change
Estimate hours honestly. A new inner page is rarely “an hour” once you count layout, content entry, mobile checks, and a revision. Integrations have a discovery cost — say so. If the client needs it this week, a rush surcharge (ChangeOrder uses +50% when you tick rush) is clearer than silently working nights.
Example: the signed scope is “Design a 5-page website; 2 rounds of revisions; no copywriting.” The client asks, “Can you also write the About page copy?” That is a textbook out-of-scope request. Price the writing, send a short change order, and start after they approve.
Paste that scope and request into ChangeOrder to see a sample verdict and draft reply. The tool uses a deterministic keyword classifier, not an AI model, so the same inputs produce the same result. Edit the draft before you send it. It is not legal advice.
Want a form you can attach to the email? The Contractor Change Order Template Pack ($9, PDF + Excel) includes a fill-in form, a log of mid-project requests, a pricing sheet, and short scripts you can adapt for design clients.
Try the free tool — paste your signed scope and the new request. Free tier: 3 change orders a month. Drafts are suggestions, not legal advice.
Open ChangeOrder $9 template pack (PDF + Excel)