A Christmas light estimate priced by the foot of roofline.

What makes a Christmas light quote different

Holiday lighting is priced by the linear foot of roofline, the height of the house, and whose lights go up - and every job is really two visits, the install and the takedown. The estimate has to show the footage and the rate, put each tree and bush on its own line, and write both dates down before the calendar fills.

• Roofline feet and stories on the job block - the two numbers every per-foot price comes from, where the customer can see them.
• A display-plan section above the line items for what gets lit: gutter line, peaks, trees, bushes, wreaths, and pathways.
• An item column for the roofline, trees, bushes, decor, and power, so "roofline, 150 ft" and "tree wrap, 12 to 18 ft" are separate visible prices.
• Leased or customer-owned lights, install and takedown dates, and the deposit in the terms - the lease model, the January visit, and the date you are holding.
• Signatures, with takedown included unless noted and a weather-or-roof-access clause in the fine print.

Pricing it

1. Write the footage times the per-foot rate on the roofline line so the customer sees the math. Our Christmas light pricing guide carries 2026 per-foot benchmarks by height and by who supplies the lights.
2. Every tree is a line item, priced by height. Folding trees into the roofline is how installers quietly lose money.
3. Include the takedown in the install price or list it - it is a second trip and about a third of the install time.
4. Take a deposit to hold the install date. The season is about six weeks of dates, and a cancelled one cannot be sold again.

When the estimate should happen from the driveway

Most lighting quotes can be priced from the street. FastEstimateMaker lets you snap the house, speak the footage and the trees, and text a priced estimate before you leave - with the deposit collected when they accept. In January, the same job becomes the takedown invoice.

Questions contractors ask