What does bid writing cost in the UK?

Start with the work remaining

Provide the complete pack, current clarifications and any draft. Count the required outputs, but also explain their complexity: response limits, technical inputs, schedules, attachments and portal questions. Say what is already approved and what still needs work.

Ten questions supported by current evidence can be less work than three questions that need a delivery model nobody has agreed yet and interviews across several sites. The deadline also affects whether the provider can put the right people on the job and review the work properly.

What the available price evidence shows

From the agency quotes and buying conversations we see, traditional bid-writing support ranges from £4,500 to £20,000 for one tender, with complex, high-value tenders reaching the upper end. Independent writers, managed teams and traditional agencies often include different levels of planning, interviews, writing, review and submission support, so a day rate or headline fee is not comparable until the written scope is aligned.

Understand how the fee is structured

A fixed fee can make a defined assignment easier to budget. Check the scope assumptions and what triggers a change. A day rate can suit work that is hard to define at the start, but it needs an estimate, agreed priorities and a spending limit or review point.

An ongoing fee may reserve the provider’s time and cover work between tenders. Ask exactly what is included and how overlapping deadlines are handled. No fee model proves value on its own. Each needs a clear description of the work and the terms.

Compare proposals using one scope

Put the proposals against the same list of deliverables and responsibilities. Ask each provider what they have assumed your team will supply. Note whether the fee covers the whole response or only the quality narrative.

For example, one quote might cover answer plans, interviews, drafting and one revision, while another also includes independent review and portal preparation. Get prices for the missing items before comparing totals.

• •Pack review, planning and evidence interviews
• •Drafting, graphics, attachments and formatting
• •Review, revision rounds and final checks
• •Meetings, portal preparation and submission support
• •VAT, expenses and any separately charged specialist work

Count your own team’s time in the cost

Find out how many people need to be interviewed, what they must prepare and when approvals are due. A provider may need you to supply source records; another may help organise them. Either way, your business must approve operational facts, commercial decisions and the final offer.

A simple budget adds up the external fees, your team’s estimated hours at an internal cost rate and any technical or legal advice you need separately. Keep those estimates so you can compare them with what the bid actually took.

Agree how extra work is approved

Ask what happens if the buyer adds questions, changes the specification or moves the deadline. Confirm how extra review rounds, late evidence from your team, a withdrawal and urgent work outside the agreed schedule are handled.

Insist on a clear estimate, and your approval, before any extra chargeable work starts. For a day-rate assignment, agree regular updates on progress and spend. For ongoing support, agree how work beyond the reserved time is taken on.

Use the buying decision to test the bid decision

The support fee is part of the cost of pursuing the opportunity. Consider it alongside your team’s time, your chances of submitting a competitive response, the delivery margin and the other opportunities you would have to put off.

Bidgen’s current pricing page explains its service options, but a live tender needs an agreed scope. Send us the pack, the deadline and where the response stands, and we can give you a proposal to compare and approve on its own terms.

Customer outcomes

80% of our customers win at least one award within three months of starting with Bidgen, and 90% do so within six months. These figures cover our customers as a whole, measured from the date each one started with Bidgen. Our case studies describe the work, scores and award outcomes behind these results.

Fixed fee or day rate?

A fixed fee suits a defined response and agreed deliverables. Check the questions, interviews, review rounds, attachments and submission support included, and which changes would need a new quote. Additional lots, new buyer schedules or evidence that still needs developing can change the work.

A day rate can suit an uncertain or changing assignment. Agree the working day, deliverables, expenses, a spending cap and who can approve more time. For either model, confirm what happens if the buyer extends or cancels the procurement. A short, bounded scoping review can establish the remaining work before the main fee is agreed.