FIDIC glossary · Documents
Bill of Quantities (BoQ)
Bill of Quantities
In short
A priced schedule of work quantities; the basis of payment in the Red/Pink Book (re-measurement).
What is a Bill of Quantities (BoQ)?
A Bill of Quantities (BoQ) is a schedule of work items with units, estimated quantities and the Contractor's rates. It underpins the Red Book's pricing model, where payment follows quantities actually measured rather than a lump sum.
The property that is most often misread: the quantities in a BoQ are **estimated, not guaranteed**. What gets paid is what was actually done and measured. More work than billed means more money; less means less. That is why the Red Book suits work whose quantities are only approximately known in advance — earthworks, roads, networks.
The BoQ rates then serve as a valuation tool: when a Variation arises, the first step is an applicable rate from the bill, then a rate derived by analogy, and only then a newly agreed one. So how carefully the BoQ was built at tender stage directly determines how predictably changes will be valued.
A substantial change in the quantity of an item can justify revisiting its rate: where the quantity shifts significantly, the original rate stops reflecting the true unit cost.
The Yellow and Silver Books have no BoQ in this role — the price is lump sum, and the breakdown serves milestone payments.
Related terms
Need this read against your own contract?
This explains how the mechanism works in the standard form. How it works in your contract, after the Particular Conditions, is a separate question.
Talk to an expert →A reference explanation of the FIDIC standard conditions. Not legal advice, and not a reproduction of the FIDIC books.