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How to Price Interior Design Projects: A Quotation Pricing Guide

Jun 11, 20264 min read
How to Price Interior Design Projects: A Quotation Pricing Guide

How to Price Interior Design Projects: A Quotation Pricing Guide

The single fastest way to lose money in interior design is to under-price the quotation. The second fastest is to over-price and lose the project. Here is a framework that gets you closer to the right number every time.

Start with one decision: pricing model

There are five pricing models in interior work. Pick the one that fits the project — sometimes one project mixes two or three.

1. Per square foot (most common for residential turnkey)

Quote a single rupee-per-sqft rate for the whole flat (e.g., ₹1,800/sqft for a 3BHK turnkey at a mid-finish spec). Simple for the client, dangerous for you if scope changes.

Use when: scope is well-defined, finish level is locked, you have done similar projects to benchmark.

2. Per running foot (wardrobes, TV units, kitchens)

Quote ₹/rft for carcass-and-finish. Then add hardware, handles, accessories as separate items.

Use when: modular work, where dimensions vary but spec is consistent.

3. Per piece (furniture and loose items)

Quote per chair, per sofa, per dining table. Always quote with full specification (size, material, finish).

4. Lump sum (design fee, supervision)

A single number for a scope of service — design fee, project management, site supervision. Usually 5–15% of project cost.

5. Hourly (consultation, change orders)

For ad-hoc work outside the main scope. Be explicit about the hourly rate in your terms.

Build your rate from cost upward

A pricing rate is not a guess. It is:

Material cost
+ Labour cost
+ Wastage (typically 5–10%)
+ Site logistics
+ Overhead allocation (rent, salaries, software)
+ Margin (your profit)
= Quoted rate

If you do not know your overhead allocation per project, you do not know your margin. Most studios over-discount because they underestimate this number.

How to compute overhead allocation

Take your monthly fixed cost (rent + salaries + software + utilities + marketing). Divide by the number of projects you typically deliver in a month. That is your overhead per project. Add this to every quotation before you compute margin.

Example: ₹4,00,000/month fixed cost, 4 projects delivered. Overhead per project = ₹1,00,000. A project under ₹1,00,000 in total cost is a guaranteed loss before you even start.

Set a target margin and protect it

Healthy interior margins in India are:

  • Design fee only: 50–70% gross margin.
  • Supply-and-fix turnkey: 20–35% gross margin.
  • Supply-only modular: 25–40%.
  • Civil and labour-heavy: 15–25%.

Set your minimum margin per category. Good quotation software will warn you when a discount breaches it.

Pricing psychology that wins more projects

  • Anchor with the full spec. "Greenply BWP + Hettich + Greenlam" justifies a higher rate than the same dimensions with no brand.
  • Tier the quotation. Good / Better / Best version of the same project. Clients pick "Better" 70% of the time.
  • Bundle small items. Do not quote ₹150 for door stoppers. Bundle into "Site finishing kit — ₹4,500".
  • Show the discount. A 5% line-item shows generosity; the same lower rate without a line is invisible.

Common pricing mistakes

  • No overhead in the rate. Margin disappears at the GST line.
  • Same rate for every room. Kitchens and bathrooms cost more than bedrooms.
  • Rounded-off totals. ₹10,00,000 looks suspicious. ₹9,87,450 looks calculated.
  • Discount-first. Drop the rate before the client even asks. Now they will ask again.

Revising a quotation without losing margin

When the client asks for a 10% discount:

  • Do not flatten across all rooms. Surgical cuts protect specific margins.
  • Drop scope, not rate. "We can hit your number by removing the false ceiling in the dining."
  • Switch a brand. "Greenlam → Merino in the kids room saves ₹14,000."
  • Adjust milestones, not the rate. Offer faster delivery; rate holds.

Putting it together: a real 3BHK example

  • Carpet area: 1,250 sqft
  • Spec: mid-tier turnkey, BWP + premium laminate + Hettich
  • Material cost: ₹11,20,000
  • Labour: ₹3,80,000
  • Wastage: ₹70,000
  • Logistics: ₹40,000
  • Overhead: ₹1,00,000
  • Total cost: ₹17,10,000
  • Target margin 25%: ₹4,27,500
  • Quote price: ₹21,37,500
  • Round to ₹21,50,000, show ₹50,000 client discount on PDF.

That is the math. Everything else is presentation.

What to do next

Open your last three quotations. Compute the real margin after overhead. If it is below your target, your pricing model needs surgery — not your discount habits.

Intorza shows your margin per quotation in real time and warns when you breach it. Start free →

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