How to Collect a Deposit Before You Start
Deposits protect your materials, confirm the customer is serious, and improve your cash flow. Here's how to build them into every job over a certain size.
If you’re starting jobs without collecting a deposit, you’re financing work you haven’t been paid for yet. You’re buying materials out of pocket, scheduling crew time, and carrying all the risk — while the customer carries none.
A deposit changes that. It confirms the customer is committed, covers your material costs upfront, and filters out the people who were never serious to begin with.
What Size Job Needs a Deposit
A common threshold: any job over $300–$500 should carry a deposit. Below that, the friction of collecting it isn’t worth it. Above it, the exposure is real.
For larger jobs — anything over $1,500 or $2,000 — a milestone structure works well: deposit at approval, a progress payment at a defined midpoint, and the balance on completion.
You don’t have to be rigid. Some contractors always collect deposits regardless of size. Others only do it for new customers. The right answer is whatever keeps cash flowing without costing you jobs.
How Much to Ask For
30–50% is the standard range for most trades. Higher than 50% can feel like a lot to a customer who doesn’t know you yet. Lower than 30% doesn’t meaningfully reduce your exposure.
For material-heavy jobs — HVAC equipment, roofing materials, custom fabrication — it’s reasonable to ask for the full material cost upfront plus a labor deposit on top. That’s a defensible conversation: you’re not asking for profit, you’re covering hard costs.
How to Present It
The deposit ask lands best when it’s framed as standard process, not negotiation. Don’t say “would you be okay with a deposit?” — that invites them to say no. Instead, work it into your estimate: the deposit amount is listed as a line item, and the approval process includes paying it.
Most customers expect a deposit. Contractors who don’t ask for one often feel less professional, not more generous.
What to say if they push back:
“We always collect a deposit on jobs of this size — it covers the materials we need to order before your scheduled date. The balance is due when we’re done and you’re happy with the work.”
That’s it. Most people accept that immediately.
When to Collect It
Collect the deposit at estimate approval, before you schedule the job. This is the moment when the customer is most motivated — they’ve decided they want the work done and they’re ready to commit.
Don’t wait until the day before the job. By then you’ve already ordered materials and blocked the time. If they back out at that point, you’re absorbing the cost.
In YouWork
YouWork’s estimate flow lets you include a deposit amount directly in the estimate. When the customer approves online, they can pay the deposit immediately through the same link — no separate invoice needed.
You see the payment hit your account before you ever touch a ladder.
