How to Price When Material Costs Are Rising
Written by James Walker · Last reviewed 16 August 2026
James Walker has 2 degrees in construction (BSc (Hons) Building Surveying · MSc Environmental Design of Buildings) and an extensive background in issue resolution, resolving over £4 billion of consumer issues.
The short answer
- A quote accepted three months after you sent it may no longer be profitable.
- Put a validity period on every quote. Thirty days is normal and nobody objects.
- Say which prices are subject to supplier confirmation at the time of order.
- Padding every quote against possible rises makes you uncompetitive on all of them.
- Where lead times are long, order early or have the customer pay the supplier directly.
The problem
Domestic customers take weeks or months to decide, especially on larger work. Extensions can sit through a planning application.
Meanwhile your material prices move. A quote that was profitable in March can be a loss by September, and the customer accepting it has no idea anything has changed.
Validity periods
Put one on every quote. Thirty days is standard and customers accept it without comment, it is normal commercial practice and it does not read as a warning.
Beyond that, requote. Not as a penalty, just as a fact: "That quote was based on March prices, let me update it." Most customers find that entirely reasonable if they hear it before they have committed.
Naming the moving parts
Rather than padding everything, identify the volatile items and say so: "Timber and insulation are confirmed at the time of order, everything else is fixed."
That keeps you competitive on the bulk of the quote and protects you on the part that actually moves.
Long lead times
Where something has a long lead time, either order it early, with the customer paying for it, or have them pay the supplier directly.
The second is usually better. They own the goods, you carry no exposure to the price or to their change of mind, and it removes the largest single risk in the job.
What not to do
Do not absorb a large rise silently to keep the customer happy. Doing it once sets the expectation, and the next customer discovers you moved on the last one.
Do not announce a rise mid-job without evidence either. Show the supplier invoice.