Most freelancers learn about deposits the hard way: a project starts on trust, the client goes quiet halfway, and the work you have already done becomes a favour. A deposit fixes that. But “ask for a deposit” is advice with a missing number in it. How much?
There is no universal answer, and anyone who gives you one is guessing. What follows is a way to arrive at a number you can defend, not a rule to copy.
What a deposit is actually for
A deposit does three jobs at once, and it helps to know which one you care about most on a given project.
- It covers your risk. If the client disappears, you are not out of pocket for the work already done or the costs you have already paid.
- It confirms commitment. A client who has paid something has decided. A client who has only said yes has not.
- It smooths your cash. Work rarely pays on the day you deliver it. A deposit means the month does not start at zero.
A three-question way to size it
Ask these in order. The answers usually agree with each other.
1. What will I spend before I deliver anything? Stock, prints, travel, a second shooter, a paid font licence, a freelancer you are subcontracting. Money that leaves your account on the client’s behalf should never be waiting on the final payment. Start the deposit at at least that.
2. What does the first phase cost me in time? If the first stage is research and a first round of concepts, that is the work most likely to be wasted if the project dies. A deposit that covers it means the worst case is that you are paid for what you actually did.
3. How well do I know this client? A repeat client who pays on the 15th every month is a different risk from a new one with no track record. Repeat clients can get a smaller deposit, or none. New ones, or those with a history of slow payment, warrant a larger one.
Some worked numbers
These are illustrations of the reasoning, not recommendations. Round numbers, in euros.
| Project | Fee | Deposit | Balance | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-day shoot for a new client | €1,200 | €300 (25%) | €900 on delivery | Low cost up front, short job, modest risk |
| Brand identity, six weeks | €4,000 | €1,600 (40%) | €2,400 on delivery | The first concept round is a big share of the work |
| Packaging with printed proofs | €2,200 | €1,100 (50%) | €1,100 on delivery | Real costs before the first proof is even printed |
The same three questions give three different answers. That is the point: the percentage follows from the job, not the other way round.
Put it in the quote, in plain words
A deposit that is discussed on a call and never written down is a deposit you will have to argue for later.
In the quote or the agreement, say:
- the amount, and what it is a share of
- when it is due, for example before you start work
- what the deposit covers, and whether it is refundable if the client cancels
Keeping track of it
A deposit is money you have agreed but not necessarily received. Those are two different facts, and mixing them up is how a month looks better on paper than it feels in the bank.
In Kreativo, the deposit is a field on the job, next to the payout: enter a job with a €1,200 payout and a €300 deposit, and the other €900 is understood to be the balance. The job counts toward your income only for the parts you have marked as received in Earnings, so a deposit that has been agreed but not paid does not inflate the month. Mark it received when it actually lands, and it moves the numbers.
Earnings, with each job's deposit and balance shown as a chip you click when the money lands.
One thing Kreativo does not do: it does not send the invoice. It records what you agreed and what you were paid. The invoice itself you still make somewhere else.
The short version
Cover what you will spend. Cover the stage most likely to be wasted. Ask for more from clients you do not know. Write the amount and the date down. And record the difference between “agreed” and “received”, because that difference is where cash flow problems live.