Kill Fee Clause Generator — What to Charge If a Client Cancels Mid-Project

A "kill fee" is a cancellation clause: if a client calls off a project partway through, this sets what percentage of the total fee you're still owed, depending on how far along the work was. Having this agreed in writing before the project starts protects you from doing weeks of work and being paid nothing if the client walks away. TidyPapers' Kill Fee Clause Generator lives at tidypapers.com/kill-fee-clause-generator/. This guide covers every field.

Note: this tool works in US dollars (USD) only — there is no currency switcher on this page, unlike most other TidyPapers tools.

Step 1 — Project details

1. Client name — text field, placeholder example "e.g. Acme Inc."
2. Project name — text field, placeholder example "e.g. Website Redesign."
3. Total project fee (USD) — a number field, pre-filled with a default of 5000 that you should change to your actual project fee.

Step 2 — Cancellation tiers

The page explains this section as: "Set what percentage of the project fee is owed if the client cancels at each stage. Your percentages are remembered in this browser for next time." There are three fixed stages, each with its own percentage field and a live dollar amount shown next to it:

1. Before work starts — a percent field, defaulting to 10%. This is what you'd keep if the client cancels before you've done any work at all (covers your time already spent scoping/planning, and compensates for turning away other work to hold the slot).
2. Mid-project — a percent field, defaulting to 50%. What you're owed if the client cancels partway through.
3. Near completion — a percent field, defaulting to 90%. What you're owed if the client cancels when the work is essentially done.

Each tier's dollar amount (e.g. "$500.00") updates live as you change the percentage or the total project fee above.

Step 3 — Read the generated clause

Below the form, under the heading "Your kill fee clause," the page generates ready-to-use contract text combining your client name, project name, fee, and the three tier percentages/amounts into one paragraph you can paste directly into a proposal or contract.

Step 4 — Copy or download

1. "📋 Copy clause text →" — copies the generated clause to your clipboard, with a checkmark confirming the copy.
2. "📄 Download PDF →" — downloads the clause as a standalone PDF document.

Where this fits with your other paperwork

This tool has no "business name" field of its own — only client name and project name — so it's meant to be used to draft clause wording you then paste into a proposal, contract, or Client Onboarding Kit, rather than as a standalone document sent on its own. The page cross-links to the Change Order Generator (for scope additions, which are the opposite situation from a cancellation) and the Late Payment Interest Calculator (for a client who doesn't pay on time rather than cancels outright). None of these tools share data with each other — see How Your Data Moves Between TidyPapers Tools.

The page also states plainly: "No sign-up, no login... nothing gets uploaded" — everything you type here stays in your own browser.