Free punch list template

Near the end of the job, before the final walkthrough. Walk the job with your own team first, then again with the client.

Corrections and unfinished work belong on the punch list. New work the client wants belongs on a signed change order.

That depends on your contract. Spell out in your payment schedule whether the final payment is due at substantial completion or after the punch list is done.

A punch list is the list of small items left to fix or finish near the end of a job, such as touch-up paint, a door that rubs or a missing outlet cover. You and the client walk the job, write each item down, and the job closes out once every item is done and signed off. This template gives each item a location, an owner, a due date and a status.

Typical punch list items are small and specific: paint touch-ups, caulk gaps, scratched fixtures, doors that stick, missing trim or outlet covers, grout haze and final cleaning. A good punch list example names the room and the spot, like “primary bath, left of vanity: caulk gap at backsplash.” Keep each row to one item so it can be assigned, dated and checked off.

Once every item is done and the client has OK’d it, both of you sign off, then you send the final invoice and hand over the warranty. Many contractors record the close-out on a certificate of completion, with the completion date, the warranty start and where final payment stands. In ECHOPS, service calls work out warranty from that completion date.

This free construction punch list template comes as an Excel file and a printable PDF. The Excel version has status drop-downs, color coding and live counts of open, in-progress and done items. There’s no Word version; print the PDF when you’d rather write by hand during the walkthrough, then type the list into Excel back at the office.