Can you provide an example of a statement of work for a design agency?

Short answer

Yes. A design agency statement of work lists the parties, objectives, in-scope deliverables, exclusions, a monthly request allowance, revision rounds, a single approver, timeline, and payment terms. Below is a design retainer example with 2 revision rounds per deliverable and a 5-business-day review window, ready to adapt with legal review.

When does this SOW example apply?

This example fits ongoing design retainers and design subscriptions, where the client buys a steady flow of work each month. One-off projects, like a rebrand, need milestones and a fixed fee instead of a monthly allowance.

A statement of work is a document that outlines scope, goals, deliverables, and milestones. The Institute of Project Management adds timelines and responsibilities between the parties. Canva draws the line this way: a scope of work covers the work itself, while an SOW is the more formal version with timelines, background, legal terms, and payment details.

In practice, designers use "SOW" for either one. A thread on r/graphic_design shows people using it for both, so check which one your client means.

Two assumptions to keep in mind:

• You may have an MSA. If you do, the SOW sits under it and only covers the work and the money.
• Numbers will differ. Alex Berman says his real agency samples come from $8K to $15K projects. The fee below is invented, so swap in your own.

This is a template, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review it before you send it. For a general SOW with a hint under every section, start from our statement of work template. If you're not sure whether you need an SOW or a contract, see SOW vs contract.

What does a design retainer statement of work look like?

Here is a copy-ready SOW for a fictional studio and client. Rock says every agency SOW needs 10 sections, and its example deliverable is a one-off like a 7-page responsive website. For a retainer, swap that for a countable monthly output.

STATEMENT OF WORK: MONTHLY DESIGN RETAINER

1. PARTIES AND EFFECTIVE DATE
Studio: Northfield Design Studio ("Studio")
Client: Harbor & Pine Coffee Co. ("Client")
Effective date: November 2, 2026
Term: 6 months, then month to month
Governing agreement: Master Services Agreement signed October 19, 2026

2. OBJECTIVES
- Keep social, web, and print marketing consistent with the Client's brand guidelines.
- Deliver a first draft within 3 business days of a complete brief.

3. IN SCOPE (EACH MONTH)
- Up to 8 design requests. One request = one deliverable, or one design in up to 5 size variations.
- Eligible work: social graphics, email templates, print collateral, and Figma designs for up to 2 web pages.
- 2 revision rounds per deliverable. A round = one consolidated set of feedback from the Approver.
- Unused requests do not roll over.

4. OUT OF SCOPE
- Copywriting, front-end development, photography, and video
- Logo or brand identity redesign
- Rush work needing delivery in under 2 business days (quoted separately)
- Requests beyond 8 per month

5. RESPONSIBILITIES
Studio: design, internal QA, file delivery, and a monthly recap.
Client: provide copy, product photos, and brand assets before work starts; name one Approver who gives all feedback; review each deliverable within 5 business days. If there is no response after 5 business days, the deliverable is treated as approved.

6. CHANGE MANAGEMENT
Out-of-scope or over-allowance work is sent as a written estimate. Work starts only after the Client approves it.

7. TIMELINE
Kickoff: November 2, 2026. Briefs confirmed within 1 business day of submission. Monthly recap in the first week of each month.

8. FEES AND PAYMENT
$4,500 per month, invoiced on the 1st, Net 15.

9. SIGNATURES
[Studio signatory, date] [Client signatory, date]

Header, parties and objectives

The header names who is agreeing to what, and when. The AICP statement of work template opens the same way, with an effective date and defined parties.

Pointing to the MSA keeps legal terms like liability and IP in one place. Objectives stay short and measurable, because they are what you point back to when a request drifts.

Scope, allowance and exclusions

This is the section that prevents arguments. "Up to 8 design requests" can be counted. "Reasonable design support" cannot.

Define what a request is, what a revision round is, and what happens to unused requests. Termageddon's web design guide also lists the number of deliverables among typical SOW items.

Exclusions belong in the same section, in plain words. If the client will ask for copywriting eventually, name it now.

Approvals, timeline and payment

Fluent Boards splits duties this way: the agency handles design, build, testing, and launch, while the client supplies content, brand assets, and one approver. The single-approver rule matters most. Without it, feedback arrives from five people and your two rounds disappear in a day.

The 5-business-day review window plus deemed approval keeps deliverables from sitting forever. Monthly fees need no milestone schedule, but the payment terms should be explicit.

Incomplete briefs are the usual cause of burned revision rounds. Pair this SOW with a creative brief clients fill in so every request starts complete.

How do you make the SOW check every request?

Turn the SOW's numbers into checks that run when a request arrives. A clause nobody consults at request time doesn't prevent scope creep. Monday.com calls an SOW a single source of truth, but it only works as one if the team actually looks at it.

Here is the workflow, step by step:

1. Write the SOW in countable terms. Eight requests, two rounds, one approver, five days. Adjectives can't be checked.
2. Set up the client's portal. In Dora, each client gets a branded client portal for requests, files, and approvals. A client portal is the one place requests arrive, so you're not hunting through inboxes.
3. Load the allowance. Dora lets you set a monthly request allowance per client and choose whether to warn or queue when they go over. That is clause 3 enforced without anyone writing an awkward email.
4. Let clients ask however they like. With email intake, a client can forward a message and it becomes a request, so nobody has to learn a new tool.
5. Get complete briefs. Dora's AI account manager asks for what's missing and writes the brief. The brief then shows whether the request lands in your exclusions, such as copywriting or rush delivery. That call stays with your team, and so do all decisions about the work.
6. Quote extras instead of absorbing them. Over-allowance or out-of-scope work goes out as an estimate the client approves in one click, which matches clause 6.
7. Close the loop on approvals. One-click approval from the portal or email, nudges for quiet clients, and auto-approval after the number of days you choose (the default is 7). Set it to match the review window in your SOW, and state deemed approval in the contract so the two agree.

Revision rounds still rely on your team applying the rule to the feedback in the thread. The tool shows each round, but you decide what counts.

To see whether it works, measure it for the first 60 days. Count requests that arrived missing details, requests that fell outside scope, and revision rounds used per deliverable. Compare against your last retainer without intake checks, and bring the numbers to the monthly recap.

Billing is simple too: per-client pricing means a retainer client costs $10 a month after your first. Want those allowances checked automatically? Try Dora free: your first client is free, forever.

Related questions

What should a SOW include?

At minimum: the parties, objectives, scope and deliverables, exclusions, timeline, responsibilities, acceptance criteria, payment terms, and signatures. For retainers, add the monthly allowance, revision rounds, and the named approver. Rock counts 10 sections for agency SOWs, so treat the list above as a floor you can extend.

What is the difference between a SOW and a scope of work?

A scope of work describes the work itself: what's included and what isn't. A statement of work wraps that in timelines, background, legal terms, and payment details, as Canva explains. Many people use the terms interchangeably, so ask what the client expects to receive.

How do you write a statement of work?

Start with scope and exclusions, because everything else depends on them. Add countable deliverables, name one approver with a review window, then add timeline and payment. Last, link it to your master agreement and have a lawyer review it. Writing the numbers first makes the rest easier.

How many revision rounds should a design SOW allow?

Pick a number you can defend. Two per deliverable, as in the example, is common. What matters more is the definition: a round is one consolidated set of feedback from the single approver. Without that definition, a stream of small comments from different people can quietly use up several rounds.