What Is a Work Order?
By BRIX Editorial Team · Updated
A work order is the document that authorizes and describes a specific job: what needs doing, where, for whom, by whom, and with what parts. In the trades it travels from the office to the technician, collects notes, photos, parts and hours on site, and becomes the record the invoice is built from when the job is done.
Key takeaways
- A work order turns a customer request into an assigned, trackable job.
- A good one carries everything the tech needs to finish on the first visit: problem, history, access, parts and approvals.
- Service ticket and work order are often used interchangeably. Where they differ, the ticket is the customer's request and the work order is the authorized job.
- Parts and hours recorded on the work order feed the invoice and job costing, so missing entries mean lost money.
How does a work order work?
A work order moves through four stages. It's created when a request is qualified and booked, assigned to a tech during dispatching, worked on site where the tech records what was found and done, and closed when the job is complete and the information goes to invoicing. If the customer approves extra work along the way, that gets added (or written as a change order on larger projects).
What should a work order include?
A work order should include the customer and site details, a clear description of the problem or requested work, the assigned technician and time window, any approved price or not-to-exceed amount, and space to record work performed, parts used, labor hours, photos and the customer's signature. The test: could a tech who's never met the customer finish the job without calling the office?
| Section | Fields | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Customer and site | Name, phone, service address, billing address if different, access notes, gate code, pets | Saves the driveway phone call |
| Job details | Problem as described, job type, priority, equipment make, model, age | Lets dispatch send the right skill and parts |
| History | Prior visits, warranties, maintenance agreement status | Avoids re-diagnosing and catches warranty work |
| Assignment | Tech or crew, date, arrival window, estimated duration | Builds the schedule |
| Authorization | Approved price, quote number, or not-to-exceed limit; who approved | Prevents billing disputes |
| Work performed | Diagnosis, what was done, recommendations | Feeds the invoice and the next visit |
| Parts and materials | Item, quantity, from truck or supplier | Billing and truck stock restocking |
| Labor | Clock-in, clock-out, hours per tech | Billing on T&M jobs; job costing on all jobs |
| Proof | Photos, readings, customer signature | Protects you in disputes and warranty claims |
What's the difference between a work order and a service ticket?
In most trades shops, service ticket and work order mean the same thing: the record of one job. Where they're separated, a service ticket (or service request) is the customer's request as it came in, and a work order is the job the business has approved, scheduled and assigned. One ticket can produce one or several work orders.
| Document | What it is | Who creates it | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service request / ticket | The customer's request as received | Customer, CSR or AI receptionist | First contact |
| Estimate or quote | The proposed price for the work | Tech, estimator or office | Before approval. See estimate vs. quote vs. bid |
| Work order | The authorized, assigned job and its field record | Office or dispatcher | After booking or approval |
| Purchase order | Your order to a supplier for materials | Office or tech | When parts are needed |
| Change order | A signed change to the agreed scope or price | Contractor and customer | Mid-project |
| Invoice | The bill for completed work | Office, from the work order | After completion |
Work orders by trade
| Trade | Trade-specific fields | Common miss |
|---|---|---|
| HVAC | Equipment make, model, serial, tonnage, refrigerant type, filter size, readings | No serial number, so warranty claims and replacement quotes take a second visit |
| Plumbing | Fixture or heater specs, shut-off location, camera footage for drains | Shut-off location not recorded for the next emergency |
| Electrical | Panel brand and amperage, circuits affected, permit number | Permit and inspection status not tracked on the job |
| Roofing | Roof type, pitch, layers, photos of damage, insurance claim number | Photos stored on a tech's phone, not the job |
| Landscaping and lawn care | Property map, service list, gate and irrigation notes | Extra work done on site never added to the bill |
| Cleaning | Room checklist, products to avoid, entry instructions | Customer preferences lost when the team changes |
| Pest control | Target pest, products and amounts applied, areas treated | Application records incomplete for regulators or follow-ups |
| Garage door | Door size, spring type and size, opener model | Wrong spring size on the truck |
Common work order mistakes
- Vague job descriptions. 'Check AC' tells the tech nothing. Capture symptoms, when it started and what the customer already tried.
- Parts used but not recorded. Every unrecorded part is a part you paid for and gave away, and a gap on the truck tomorrow.
- Extra work approved verbally. Write it on the work order with the price and get a signature or text approval before doing it.
- Paper work orders that come back days later. By then nobody remembers the details. Close the work order on site.
- Invoicing from memory. Build the invoice from the work order, not the other way around.
- No photos. Before-and-after photos settle most disputes in seconds.
Frequently asked questions
Is a work order a contract?
A work order on its own usually isn't a full contract, but a signed work order that shows the agreed work and price is strong evidence of what the customer authorized. For larger jobs, use a written contract or signed quote, and use the work order to track the work against it.
Who creates a work order?
Usually the office: a CSR, dispatcher or office manager creates it when a job is booked, or software creates it from a phone call or online booking. The technician then adds diagnosis, work done, parts, hours and photos in the field.
What is the difference between a work order and an invoice?
A work order describes the job to be done and records what happened on site. An invoice is the bill sent to the customer for that work. The invoice should be built from the closed work order so nothing that was done gets left off.
What is the difference between a work order and a purchase order?
A work order authorizes your team to do a job for a customer. A purchase order is a document you send to a supplier to buy materials. A single work order can trigger one or more purchase orders when parts aren't on the truck.
Should work orders be numbered?
Yes. A unique number lets you tie the job to its quote, purchase orders, invoice, photos and payment, and makes it easy to find when a customer calls back. Software numbers them automatically.
Do I need work order software?
If you run more than one truck or do more than a handful of jobs a day, work order software saves time and lost billing. It sends jobs to techs' phones, collects photos and signatures, and turns completed work orders into invoices without retyping.
Related
- What Is Dispatching?What dispatching is in field service, how to assign the right tech to the right job, the board rules that cut drive time, and mistakes that cost you calls.
- What Is a Change Order?What a change order is, what it must include, how to price one with overhead and profit, and how to track change orders so extra work gets paid.
- What Is a Scope of Work?What a scope of work is, the sections every contractor SOW needs, a filled-in example, and the exclusions that prevent disputes and unpaid extra work.
- What Is Field Service Management (FSM)?Field service management explained for trades owners: the job lifecycle it covers, FSM vs. CRM, what software does, and how to tell when you need it.
- What Is Job Costing?Job costing tracks what each job really cost vs. the estimate. What to track, a sample job cost report with variances, and a simple system for small crews.
- What Is Truck Stock?What truck stock is, how to build a stock list from real usage, min/max restocking, what a supply-house run really costs, and truck stock tips by trade.
- Contractor Invoice TemplateFree contractor invoice template you can print or edit: every field explained, a filled plumbing example, trade variations and mistakes that delay pay.
- Scheduling and Dispatch Software That Puts the Right Crew on Every JobScheduling and dispatch that puts the right crew on the right job by skills, location and availability, with jobs booked straight from the phone.
- Contractor invoicing software that sends the invoice and chases the moneyTurn finished jobs into invoices the same day, send polite automatic reminders on unpaid ones, and sync invoices and payments to QuickBooks.
- What Is Callback Rate?What callback rate means for contractors, how to calculate it, what each callback really costs, and how HVAC, plumbing and electrical shops bring it down.