How to Read a Bid Set: A Contractor's Quick Guide

A full bid set can run to hundreds of pages, and not all of them matter equally when you're pricing a job. Working through it in the right order saves time and catches scope you'd otherwise miss.

Start with the drawing index

The cover sheet and drawing index tell you what's actually included in the set — and, just as often, what's referenced but missing. Confirm you have every sheet listed before you take off a single quantity.

Read the specifications alongside the plans

Drawings show quantity and location; specifications (organized by CSI division) define quality, materials, and installation methods. A wall shown on the architectural plan might reference three different spec sections depending on assembly type.

Check addenda last, but check them

Addenda issued after the original bid set frequently change scope, and it's easy to price from an outdated drawing if you don't cross-reference every addendum against the original sheets.

Flag ambiguity instead of guessing

If a detail is unclear or a dimension doesn't match between sheets, that's worth a bidder question — not an assumption baked silently into your number.