What exactly is a service agreement?

A service agreement is a contract where one party agrees to perform defined services for another in exchange for payment. It is the standard paper behind freelancing, consulting, maintenance work, and agency engagements.

Its purpose is to answer the expensive questions before they are asked. What exactly is included? What does it cost and when is it paid? How long does it run? Who owns the output? How does either side leave? What happens when the client requests more than the scope?

It differs from a statement of work in altitude: the agreement sets the legal relationship, while an SOW details one project inside it. For a single engagement, one combined document does both jobs fine.

This simple service agreement template covers all of it in plain fields, free.