How to Invoice as a Carpenter: Rates, Terms and Templates

Carpenters move between rough framing, trim, cabinets, and custom built-ins. Your invoice should name the phase and the room or elevation so GCs and homeowners reconcile it to the schedule. When you supply material, show lumber, hardware, and finishes separately from labour when practical—subs who hide everything in one number get second-guessed.

Shop drawings, site-built templates, and finish touch-up return visits are all billable when scope allows; the invoice is where you prove the work happened. If you carry workers’ compensation and tool insurance into loaded rates, say “labour (loaded)” or similar when the GC’s spreadsheet expects it.

Typical rates

Hourly finish carpentry often runs $60–$100+ in many US markets; rough or production work may price lower per hour but move faster on volume. Flat per opening (doors, windows) or per linear foot (base, crown) works when you have historical production data. Materials may be cost-plus with disclosed markup or allowance against receipts. For safety and training context that supports professional rates, OSHA’s wood-related workplace topics underline why competent site carpentry is regulated work. Site-built benches, builtins, and stair parts should quote finish level (paint grade vs stain grade) explicitly—changing species mid-job is a classic invoice fight.

Payment terms

Small residential: deposit on custom order, progress at rough-in or cabinet delivery, final after punch. GC work: follow pay-app schedules; reference SOV line or change order number in invoice notes. Net 30 after approval for established builders. Retail walk-in custom work: 50% upfront is common. Use invoice payment terms to keep wording consistent. Holdbacks should match the prime contract—if the GC pays you 90% until punch, your invoice should show retention math the same way their pay app does.

What to include

Business and licence info, client/GC, job address, invoice number and date, scope by area, labour hours × rate or unit pricing, materials itemised, subcontracts you pass through, subtotal, tax, total, due date. Reference CO # when applicable. See how to write an invoice for a full checklist. Fastener schedules or hidden hardware upgrades (e.g. corrosion-resistant clips) can be itemised when they were a spec upgrade, not a shortcut. Protection and dust control on occupied remodels should be labelled when you priced it—otherwise clients assume it was charity.

Common mistakes

No tie to approved drawings when dimensions changed mid-job. Delayed CO billing—invoice when the extra work finishes, not three jobs later. Blended rates that mix apprentice and journeyman time without explanation. Missing lien prelim dates where your state requires notice—track separately from the invoice but stay aligned. Cabinet hardware supplied by you but not listed—clients think it was included in “cabinet install.” Site conditions (out-of-plumb walls) that drove extra scribe time without a CO line. Dumpster or bagster fees left off install jobs—even small trim jobs generate debris, and clients notice when your invoice suddenly adds disposal after the fact without a prior note.

Template link

Use the freelance invoice template for flexible labour, materials, and fee rows that fit carpentry jobs of any size.

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