How to Write a Quotation Request Email (With Samples)

A quotation request email is the simplest way to get prices from vendors. It's quick, everyone knows how to answer it, and for most small and medium purchases it's all you need. The catch is that a vague email gets vague quotes, and vague quotes can't be compared. This guide covers what to include, then gives you sample emails to copy.

What to include

Before you write, have these details ready. If any of them is missing, vendors will either ask, which costs you a day, or guess, which costs you more.

1. What you need. Item name, specification, grade, size, make if it matters, and a drawing or datasheet if you have one.
2. How many. Quantity and unit (pieces, kg, metres). If you might buy more over the year, say so, because it changes the price.
3. Where and when. Delivery address with city and PIN code, and the date you need the goods by.
4. How to quote. Ask for the unit price before GST, with GST rate and HSN code shown separately, freight included or listed, and delivery time.
5. Your terms. Payment terms you expect, and any need for test certificates, samples or warranty.
6. The deadline. The date and time you need the quote by, and how long the price should stay valid.
7. Your details. Company name, GSTIN, contact person and phone number.

Subject lines that get opened

Put the item, the quantity and the deadline in the subject. Vendors get a lot of email, and a subject like 'Enquiry' tends to get missed. Some examples:

• Quotation request: 2,000 corrugated boxes, quote by 30 Sept
• RFQ: 500 kg MS round bar EN8, delivery Nashik
• Urgent quote needed: 2 hydraulic pumps, delivery this week

Sample 1: first request to a new vendor

Use this when the vendor doesn't know you yet. A line about your company helps them take the request seriously.

Sample 2: repeat item from an existing vendor

For a vendor you already buy from, keep it short and refer to the last order so they quote the same thing.

Sample 3: urgent request

When something is urgent, say so clearly, and say what matters more to you: speed or price. Send it to two or three vendors at once rather than one at a time.

Follow-up email

If a vendor hasn't replied a day before the deadline, one short reminder is enough. Reply on the same thread so they have the details in front of them.

Mistakes that lead to bad quotes

• Sending different details to different vendors. If one vendor hears 'about 2,000' on the phone and another gets '1,800' by email, the quotes won't match.
• Leaving out the delivery location. Freight from Ludhiana to Chennai is not a small number.
• Not asking for prices before GST. You'll get a mix of inclusive and exclusive prices and have to work them back.
• No deadline. Quotes arrive over two weeks and the first vendor's price has expired by the time the last one comes in.
• Telling one vendor what another quoted. It's tempting, but it teaches vendors to hold back their best price until you ask.
• Putting ten vendors in the To field. Use BCC or send separately so vendors don't see each other.

When an email isn't enough

Email works well for a handful of vendors and a few items. It gets harder when you're sending to eight vendors, with twenty line items, or when the value is high enough that auditors will ask how the vendor was chosen. That's when a formal RFQ is better: one document, a set format for replies, and a record of who was invited and what they quoted. Our RFQ template is a good starting point, and RFQ vs RFP vs RFI explains which request to use when.

Once the quotes are in, the next step is comparing them fairly. See how to compare vendor quotations for a worked example. In Procupy, you can send an RFQ to your vendors in one go, they reply on a portal or their phone, and the quotes line up side by side in the same format. If several vendors can supply, you can turn it into a reverse auction instead.