Creating a winning RFQ isn’t just about filling in fields—it’s about structuring clarity, fairness, and efficiency while “selling the RFQ” to your suppliers. A well‑constructed RFQ template is the foundation of this process. Try our AI agent supporting you in generating best practice RFQ letters.
Below, we’ll walk through each section of the RFQ letter template, explaining why it matters, what to include, and how to optimize effectiveness. We’ll draw on best practices from industry leaders to help professional buyers up their game.
This post is connected to bundle The Sourcing Engine Room – a modern Sourcing process at Learn How to Source. The bundle includes courses like RFQ Template and Digital Supplier Onboarding. Attending these courses will help you understand how to source from the supplier market with structure and confidence.
Content…
Description of what to include in an RFQ letter
Introduction / Purpose of the RFQ
What to include: A concise invitation and the rationale for sourcing.
Why it matters: It sets tone and context—suppliers feel included and understand your intent immediately. Smartsheet emphasizes that being specific up‑front avoids misunderstandings later.
Tip: Reference your internal sourcing goal—new supplier, cost-saving, capacity expansion. This aligns expectations from the start.
Company Background
What: A brief corporate overview relating to this RFQ.
Why: Helps suppliers understand your industry, scale, and motivations. Procurement pros note that this builds supplier trust and alignment .
Tip: Keep it short—2–3 sentences that reinforce why this project matters to your organization.
Scope of Supply / Service
What: Summary + pointers to detailed specs in appendix. Include first PO timing and expected volumes.
Why: Clarity here means more accurate quotes. Wikipedia notes that detailed specs lead to legally binding, comparable responses .
Tip: Add “Estimated business level” to show scale—this helps suppliers coordinate internally to “sell” internally to support your RFQ.
RFQ Timeline / Key Milestones
What: Everything from RFQ issuance to contract award—questions, e-auction, onboarding.
Why: A transparent timeline reduces confusion and improves participation. Spendflo stresses standardizing timeline fields in RFQ templates .
Tip: Include intent-to-participate deadline, Q&A window, evaluation period, e-auction invite + decline, onboarding session, e-auction, contract award. This demonstrates a robust, fair procurement path.
Instructions to Suppliers
What: Response format, submission method, communication protocols.
Why: Clear instructions equal clean responses. Responsive.io recommends limiting respondents to ~8 suppliers for manageability .
Tip: Specify “Please confirm receipt” and “Questions must be submitted by…”—this avoids later disputes and keeps sourcing moving.
Pricing Model
What: Refer to your structured pricing appendix.
Why: Standardized pricing templates aid direct comparison. Asana underscores how critical a consistent pricing table is .
Tip: Break pricing into unit cost, volume breaks, delivery charges, optional extras—make sheet formula-driven if possible. Learn more about Price Model (blogpost) and Should Cost Analysis (course).
Evaluation Process
What: Reference measurement criteria: price, quality, delivery, compliance.
Why: Transparent evaluation builds trust, reduces back-and-forth. Wrike and Spendflo both flag the importance of robust evaluation scoring .
Tip: Use a weighted scorecard and share high-level weighting with suppliers—for example: price 50%, quality 30%, lead time 20%. Learn more about Evaluation models (Course).
Terms and Conditions
What: State your General Terms appendix acceptance.
Why: Prevents post-award surprises .
Tip: Include a clause—“By submitting a quote, you agree to these terms”—so acceptance is implicit. Learn more about General Terms and Conditions (course) and Contract Terms (tag I blog).
Confidentiality and Disclaimer
What: Confidential nature, right to cancel/amend RFQ.
Why: Essential for fairness. QuestCDN stresses the importance of accountability and transparency in the RFQ .
Tip: Include your legal team’s standard clause but keep it short, supplier-friendly, and clear. Potential have the supplier sign a NDA before receiving the appendixes.
Appendices List
Why: Helps navigation and ensures nothing is missed.
Tip: Label clearly—e.g. “Appendix 1: Specification”, “Appendix 2: Pricing Model”, and so on.
Try Our AI Assistant: RFQ Writer (Powered by Chatbase)
Meet our RFQ Writer IA assistant
Your RFQ Journey: How Our Agent Helps You Create Clear, Powerful RFQs
Issuing a Request for Quotation, or RFQ, can feel like navigating a maze. Whether you’re a seasoned professional buyer or someone handling procurement for the first time, building a precise, fair, and effective RFQ letter is a challenge that takes time, thought, and expertise. The RFQ sets the stage for how suppliers see your company — it’s your opening move in a professional dialogue that leads to competitive quotes and strong supplier relationships.
That’s why we created our AI-powered RFQ Writer agent: to make this part of your sourcing journey smoother, smarter, and more rewarding.
At its core, an RFQ (Request for Quotation) is a formal document where a buyer invites selected suppliers to submit a price and proposal for clearly specified goods or services. The RFQ differs from an RFP (Request for Proposal) in that it focuses more on price and delivery terms for well-defined needs, rather than open-ended solutions. And while the concept of an RFQ might seem simple, the devil is in the details — a great RFQ ensures that supplier responses are clear, comparable, and aligned with your business objectives.
Our RFQ Writer agent is designed to help you issue RFQs confidently and efficiently. Instead of starting from scratch, you’ll engage with an interactive guide that asks you targeted questions about your sourcing project: What are you buying? When do you expect to place the first order? What volume or contract value do you estimate? When should suppliers respond, and how will you evaluate their quotes? As you provide these inputs, the agent dynamically builds your RFQ letter, following proven structure and best practices used by professional buyers around the world.
But this isn’t just about generating a document. Our RFQ template is built on real-world sourcing experience, reflecting what works in supplier communication, competitive sourcing, and negotiation. And because the agent explains every step — including terms like evaluation criteria, e-auction, or general conditions — you can feel confident that you understand the process as you build your RFQ.
What’s exciting is that this RFQ Writer agent will not stand still. Over time, it will evolve and improve through collaboration with users like you. Every sourcing event is unique, and we know that real-world input makes tools like this better. Your suggestions, ideas, and feedback will help us refine the RFQ template, add new features to the agent, and make the experience even more valuable for buyers of all levels.
We warmly invite you to be part of that journey. If you have thoughts on how to enhance the RFQ Writer agent (including the RFQ Template forming the foundation) or the RFQ it generates, please don’t hesitate to reach out. You can contact fredrik@sourcingpartner.se with your suggestions, insights, or stories about how the tool helped you in your work.
Our vision is to build a tool that grows with its users — one that not only helps you draft an RFQ today, but also adapts to the changing needs of modern procurement tomorrow. Together, we can create a smarter, more collaborative way of issuing RFQs that makes sourcing fairer, faster, and more effective.
So, if you’re ready to experience the possibilities, give the RFQ Writer agent a try. See how it can help you turn your procurement goals into clear, supplier-friendly RFQs — and know that your feedback will help shape its future.
Summary of Sources used in the Blogpost collecting Best Practice, beside LHTS content.
🔹 Smartsheet — RFQ Process Overview & Best Practices
👉 https://www.smartsheet.com/rfq-process
Smartsheet offers practical guidance on structuring RFQs (RFQ Template), defining scope, and managing supplier communication, including tips for timelines and Q&A management.
🔹 QuestCDN Blog — Mastering the RFQ Process
👉 https://blog.questcdn.com/quest-blog/mastering-the-request-for-quotation-process-expert-tips-strategies
QuestCDN shares detailed strategies for managing RFQ events (and RFQ Template ) with transparency and accountability, including evaluation and decline communication practices.
🔹 Spendflo — RFQ Process Best Practices
👉 https://www.spendflo.com/blog/rfq-process
Spendflo outlines how to standardize RFQ template, limit supplier lists for better efficiency, and ensure structured evaluations.
🔹 Wrike — How to Write an RFQ
👉 https://www.wrike.com/blog/rfqs-explained-how-to-write-a-request-for-quote
Wrike explains the fundamentals of RFQ writing (including RFQ Template ), including supplier shortlisting, clear instructions, and evaluation scorecards.
Note: Illustration to the blogpost about RFQ Template was created by Chat GPT on July 1, 2025