Contract template for web developers
Web projects stall at the end more often than at the start. The site is built, the client keeps finding small things, the last content never arrives, and the final payment waits on a launch that nobody schedules. A contract that defines acceptance, with a deadline for feedback after which the site counts as accepted, keeps the project from drifting for months.
The second source of trouble is accounts. A plugin licensed to your email, hosting on your card, a domain in your registrar. When the relationship ends, the client wants all of it moved and assumes that is free. Decide up front which accounts belong to whom and what a handover costs.
Not legal advice. This is a plain-language starting point, not a contract drafted for your situation or your country. For anything large or unusual, have a lawyer where you work read it before you sign.
Clauses specific to web developers
- Launch acceptance. The client reviews the staging site and reports issues within 10 working days. Without a report in that time the site is treated as accepted and the final invoice is due.
- Client content. The client supplies final text, images and legal pages and confirms it has the right to publish them. Delays in content do not delay the payment schedule.
- Third-party licences. Themes, plugins, fonts and paid services are licensed by their vendors on their own terms. Ongoing licence fees are paid by the client.
- Accounts and handover. Hosting, domain and licence accounts are registered to the client where possible. Moving accounts out of the developer's name after launch is billed at the hourly rate.
- Browser support. The site is built and tested for the browsers and devices listed in the quote. Fixes for other browsers or later browser updates are additional work.
- Maintenance. Updates, backups and security monitoring after launch are only included under a maintenance agreement. Without one, the developer is not responsible for issues caused by updates the client applies.
The clauses every freelance contract needs
- Parties. Who the agreement is between: your legal name or business, the client's legal entity, and the addresses of both.
- Scope of work. What you will deliver, in what form, and what is explicitly not included. Refer to the quote or proposal by number if it lists the details.
- Fees and payment terms. The total fee or rate, the currency, any deposit, when invoices are issued and how many days the client has to pay.
- Late payment. What happens when an invoice is late: interest or a fixed fee if you want one, and your right to pause work until the account is settled.
- Changes and revisions. How many revision rounds are included, what counts as a change of scope, and how extra work is priced and approved.
- Timeline and client delays. Key dates, and that deadlines move when the client is late with feedback, content or approvals.
- Ownership and licence. Who owns the finished work and when (usually on full payment), what the client may use it for, and what you keep, such as your tools, templates and know-how.
- Confidentiality. Both sides keep the other's non-public information private, during the project and after it.
- Cancellation. How either side can end the agreement, the notice required, and payment for work done up to that point.
- Liability. A cap on what either side can claim, often the fees paid under the agreement, and no liability for indirect losses.
- Governing law. Which country's law applies and where disputes are heard. Usually where you are based.
A plain-language sample
Copy it, fill in the brackets, and cut what doesn't apply. Shorter is fine as long as the scope, the money and the rights are clear.
1. Parties
This agreement is between [Your name or business], the web developer ("we"), and [Client legal name], the client ("you"), and starts on [date].
2. The work
We will deliver the work described in quote [number], dated [date]. Anything not listed there is outside this agreement and will be quoted separately before we start on it.
3. Launch acceptance
The client reviews the staging site and reports issues within 10 working days. Without a report in that time the site is treated as accepted and the final invoice is due.
4. Client content
The client supplies final text, images and legal pages and confirms it has the right to publish them. Delays in content do not delay the payment schedule.
5. Third-party licences
Themes, plugins, fonts and paid services are licensed by their vendors on their own terms. Ongoing licence fees are paid by the client.
6. Accounts and handover
Hosting, domain and licence accounts are registered to the client where possible. Moving accounts out of the developer's name after launch is billed at the hourly rate.
7. Browser support
The site is built and tested for the browsers and devices listed in the quote. Fixes for other browsers or later browser updates are additional work.
8. Maintenance
Updates, backups and security monitoring after launch are only included under a maintenance agreement. Without one, the developer is not responsible for issues caused by updates the client applies.
9. Fees and payment
The fee is [amount and currency]. We invoice [a deposit of X on signing and the balance on delivery / monthly in arrears]. Invoices are due within [14] days. If an invoice is more than [14] days late we may pause work until it is paid.
10. Changes
The quote includes [number] rounds of revisions. Further changes, or changes to work you have already approved, are charged at [rate] once you have agreed to the cost in writing.
11. Delays
Dates in the quote assume you send feedback and material on time. If you are late, the dates move by at least the same amount.
12. Confidentiality
We both keep the other's non-public information confidential, during this project and after it ends.
13. Ending the agreement
Either of us can end this agreement with [14] days' written notice. You pay for the work done up to the end date, and anything already paid for is yours to use under the terms above.
14. Liability
Neither of us is liable for indirect or consequential losses. Our total liability under this agreement is limited to the fees you have paid under it.
15. Law
This agreement is governed by the law of [country], and disputes are heard by the courts of [city or country].
Signatures
Web developer: [name, date]. Client: [name, title, date].
Questions web developers ask
Who owns the website code, the developer or the client?
Whoever the contract says. Many developers assign the custom code to the client on full payment and keep the right to reuse their own general tools and snippets. Themes and plugins stay under their vendors' licences either way.
What if the client never approves the website?
Add an acceptance clause with a review period. If no issues are reported within that period, the site counts as accepted and the last payment is due. It moves the final invoice off the client's to-do list and onto a date.
Am I responsible if the site breaks after a plugin update?
Not unless you agreed to maintain it. Spell out that maintenance is a separate agreement, and that updates made by the client or another developer are outside your warranty.
Get it signed without printing it
OIO has contract templates built in (service agreement, retainer, IP assignment, NDA) that you edit to fit, sign in the Sign app and send as a PDF. The contract sits next to the project and its invoices. Free plan, no card.
Start freeAlso for web developers: invoice template and quote template. Contract templates for related trades: UX designers, software developers, SEO consultants, graphic designers. Or browse all contract templates.