A Nusii report
State of Proposals 2026
What happened to the 9,022 proposals that freelancers, agencies and small teams sent through Nusii in 2025: how many clients opened them, how many said yes, how long they took, and what the proposals that won had in common.
By Michael Koper, founder of Nusii
Published · Data: proposals first sent in 2025
- Sent 9,022 · 100%
- Opened 8,358 · 92.6%
- Accepted 4,530 · 50.2%
In this report
The short version
Nine numbers from the report. Each one links to the section behind it.
- 50.2% of proposals were accepted: 4,530 of the 9,022 sent. More on this ↓
- 75.7% were opened within 24 hours. Half of the opened ones within 48 minutes. More on this ↓
- 3.1 days is the median time from sending to a yes. One yes in seven came after a month. More on this ↓
- 37.6% never got an answer either way. Only 12.2% got a no. More on this ↓
- 71.8% of proposals to past clients were accepted. New clients: 43.6%. More on this ↓
- 70.2% of proposals under $1,000 were accepted. From $50,000 up: 29.2%. More on this ↓
- 51.4% of proposals from one-person businesses were accepted, a shade above average. More on this ↓
- 57.6% of proposals sent a second time were accepted, against 48.3% sent once. More on this ↓
- 31.9% of proposals were first opened on a phone. More on this ↓
Half got a yes. Few got a clear no.
By the end of October 2026, every proposal first sent in 2025 had landed in one of three places.
- Accepted
- 50.2% 4,530 proposals 47.5% by the client in Nusii, 2.7% marked accepted by the sender
- No answer
- 37.6% 3,391 proposals Never accepted or declined
- Declined
- 12.2% 1,101 proposals 0.5% by the client in Nusii, 11.7% marked declined by the sender
Clients rarely say no in Nusii. Only 44 proposals (0.5%) were declined by the client on the proposal itself. The other declines, 11.7% of all proposals, were marked by the sender, a median of 50 days after sending.
Silence is far more common than a no. 37.6% of proposals were never accepted or declined, three times as many as were declined. Some of those clients said no by email or on a call and the sender never recorded it, so not all of it is silence.
2024 looked the same: 49.3% accepted, 10.9% declined and 39.8% without an answer.
Clients open fast, then take a few days
Most clients look at a proposal the day it arrives. The decision takes longer, and a good share of the yeses come late.
- is the median time from sending to the client's first look
- 48 min
- proposals are opened within 24 hours of sending
- 3 in 4
- is how soon half of the accepted proposals are signed
- 3.1 days
- 1 day 37.1%
- 3 days 49.1%
- 1 week 63.4%
- 2 weeks 76.1%
- 30 days 85.7%
Half of the opened proposals were opened within 48 minutes, and 48.4% of all proposals within the first hour. By 72 hours, 81.9% had been opened.
The yes takes longer. Once a client had opened a proposal, the median yes came 33 hours later, and 47.2% of the accepted proposals were accepted within a day of that first look.
Late yeses are common. More than a third of the accepted proposals (36.6%) were accepted more than a week after sending, and one in seven (14.3%) more than a month after.
Proposals go out fast too: half of them were sent within about 30 minutes of being created.
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| First opened | Accepted | Proposals | Share of all |
|---|---|---|---|
| Within an hour Proposals: 4,367 · Share of all: 48.4% | 53.6% | 4,367 | 48.4% |
| 1 to 24 hours Proposals: 2,463 · Share of all: 27.3% | 54.0% | 2,463 | 27.3% |
| 1 to 3 days Proposals: 563 · Share of all: 6.2% | 52.8% | 563 | 6.2% |
| 3 to 7 days Proposals: 478 · Share of all: 5.3% | 58.4% | 478 | 5.3% |
| After 7 days Proposals: 487 · Share of all: 5.4% | 46.6% | 487 | 5.4% |
| Never opened Proposals: 664 · Share of all: 7.4% | 8.7% | 664 | 7.4% |
When a client opens the proposal hardly matters. Proposals first opened within an hour were accepted 53.6% of the time, and proposals first opened three to seven days after sending 58.4%. Only after a week does the rate drop, to 46.6%.
The proposals that lose are the ones never opened: 7.4% of all proposals, and 8.7% of those were accepted. 2024 showed the same pattern.
How you compare
By the size and industry each business gave when it signed up. We only show groups with more than 250 proposals from at least 15 businesses, so no group stands for one or two businesses.
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| Business size | Accepted | Proposals | Opened within 24 hours | Median days to a yes | Median accepted value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Just me Proposals: 1,170 · Opened within 24 hours: 79.2% · Median days to a yes: 3.6 · Median accepted value: $3,150 | 51.4% | 1,170 | 79.2% | 3.6 | $3,150 |
| 2 to 5 people Proposals: 3,380 · Opened within 24 hours: 75.7% · Median days to a yes: 4.8 · Median accepted value: $3,000 | 44.9% | 3,380 | 75.7% | 4.8 | $3,000 |
| 6 to 10 people Proposals: 1,861 · Opened within 24 hours: 74.5% · Median days to a yes: 2.8 · Median accepted value: $3,349 | 51.5% | 1,861 | 74.5% | 2.8 | $3,349 |
| 10 to 20 people Proposals: 719 · Opened within 24 hours: 72.6% · Median days to a yes: 1.9 · Median accepted value: $1,044 | 49.5% | 719 | 72.6% | 1.9 | $1,044 |
| More than 20 people Proposals: 900 · Opened within 24 hours: 74.2% · Median days to a yes: 6.7 · Median accepted value: $2,030 | 53.8% | 900 | 74.2% | 6.7 | $2,030 |
Freelancers hold their own. One-person businesses had 51.4% of their proposals accepted, and their clients opened fastest (79.2% within 24 hours). Teams of two to five, the biggest group, had the lowest rate: 44.9%. The largest businesses waited longest for a yes, a median of 6.7 days.
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| Industry | Accepted | Proposals | Opened within 24 hours | Median days to a yes | Median accepted value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agencies marketing, web, advertising, video Proposals: 4,356 · Opened within 24 hours: 74.9% · Median days to a yes: 4.2 · Median accepted value: $3,286 | 47.7% | 4,356 | 74.9% | 4.2 | $3,286 |
| Consultants IT, marketing, sales Proposals: 848 · Opened within 24 hours: 73.0% · Median days to a yes: 4.7 · Median accepted value: $2,500 | 44.2% | 848 | 73.0% | 4.7 | $2,500 |
| Software and IT services Proposals: 756 · Opened within 24 hours: 79.4% · Median days to a yes: 2.6 · Median accepted value: $1,368 | 57.9% | 756 | 79.4% | 2.6 | $1,368 |
| Design services Proposals: 347 · Opened within 24 hours: 76.9% · Median days to a yes: 1.9 · Median accepted value: $2,503 | 49.6% | 347 | 76.9% | 1.9 | $2,503 |
| Professional services Proposals: 291 · Opened within 24 hours: 81.8% · Median days to a yes: 1.7 · Median accepted value: $2,836 | 50.9% | 291 | 81.8% | 1.7 | $2,836 |
Software and IT services firms won most often (57.9%), with the smallest accepted proposals (a median of $1,368). Agencies sent almost half of all proposals, won 47.7% and had the highest median accepted value ($3,286). Consultants had the lowest rate (44.2%) and waited longest for a yes (4.7 days).
SaaS and financial services companies are left out this year: too few businesses for a fair number.
Smaller proposals win more often
Values are what the client saw when they opened the proposal, before tax, converted to US dollars.
- was the median proposal with a one-off price. The middle half ran from $1,300 to $7,750.
- $3,100
- was the median accepted proposal. The middle half ran from $1,000 to $6,000.
- $2,500
- of proposals had no one-off price. Some priced only monthly fees.
- 34.4%
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| Value | Accepted | Proposals | Share of priced |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1,000 Proposals: 1,129 · Share of priced: 19.4% | 70.2% | 1,129 | 19.4% |
| $1,000 to $4,999 Proposals: 2,577 · Share of priced: 44.4% | 54.9% | 2,577 | 44.4% |
| $5,000 to $14,999 Proposals: 1,306 · Share of priced: 22.5% | 49.5% | 1,306 | 22.5% |
| $15,000 to $49,999 Proposals: 634 · Share of priced: 10.9% | 40.5% | 634 | 10.9% |
| $50,000 and up Proposals: 161 · Share of priced: 2.8% | 29.2% | 161 | 2.8% |
Every step up in price meant fewer yeses, from 70.2% under $1,000 to 29.2% at $50,000 and up. 2024 had the same slope (67.2% to 24.6%).
The 34.4% of proposals with no one-off price were accepted 43.0% of the time.
What goes with a yes
We compared the proposals with and without each of these. The differences are associations, not proof of cause: a proposal to a past client is often a quick renewal, and a proposal with a video is often a bigger pitch to someone new. To take some of that out, we also compared only the businesses that sent proposals both ways, and we checked every result against 2024.
- With
- Without
| Proposals with | Share of proposals | Accepted, with / without | Same businesses | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The client | ||||
| Sent to a past client a client who had accepted an earlier proposal from the same business 23.4% of proposals · Same businesses: 72.1% / 46.2% · 2024: 73.2% / 42.6% | 23.4% | With: 71.8% Without: 43.6% | 72.1% / 46.2% | 73.2% / 42.6% |
| How it was sent | ||||
| Sent again a second send more than an hour after the first, such as a reminder or a revised version 20.2% of proposals · Same businesses: 57.5% / 49.7% · 2024: 56.8% / 47.6% | 20.2% | With: 57.6% Without: 48.3% | 57.5% / 49.7% | 56.8% / 47.6% |
| More than one recipient on the first send 12.9% of proposals · Same businesses: 44.1% / 52.1% · 2024: 47.7% / 49.7% | 12.9% | With: 44.4% Without: 51.1% | 44.1% / 52.1% | 47.7% / 49.7% |
| An expiry date 32.7% of proposals · Same businesses: 46.7% / 50.6% · 2024: 43.2% / 52.3% | 32.7% | With: 44.8% Without: 52.8% | 46.7% / 50.6% | 43.2% / 52.3% |
| What was in it | ||||
| Images not counting the cover image 60.8% of proposals · Same businesses: 45.7% / 54.6% · 2024: 44.1% / 58.2% | 60.8% | With: 44.8% Without: 58.6% | 45.7% / 54.6% | 44.1% / 58.2% |
| A video YouTube, Vimeo, Loom, Wistia or Vidyard 14.4% of proposals · Same businesses: 36.9% / 43.5% · 2024: 38.9% / 51.1% | 14.4% | With: 38.6% Without: 52.2% | 36.9% / 43.5% | 38.9% / 51.1% |
| How it was priced | ||||
| Options the client can choose optional sections, checkboxes or a pick-one list 35.9% of proposals · Same businesses: 37.8% / 55.7% · 2024: 38.5% / 55.3% | 35.9% | With: 38.1% Without: 57.0% | 37.8% / 55.7% | 38.5% / 55.3% |
| Recurring fees a monthly or other repeating price 38.8% of proposals · Same businesses: 44.5% / 54.3% · 2024: 43.3% / 52.7% | 38.8% | With: 43.5% Without: 54.5% | 44.5% / 54.3% | 43.3% / 52.7% |
| A discount line a line with a negative amount 3.2% of proposals · Same businesses: 54.7% / 48.0% · 2024: 57.5% / 49.0% | 3.2% | With: 54.5% Without: 50.1% | 54.7% / 48.0% | 57.5% / 49.0% |
| A payment request on acceptance a deposit or the full amount, only businesses with Stripe connected 8.5% of proposals · Same businesses: – · 2024: 70.2% / 41.6% | 8.5% | With: 62.2% Without: 42.4% | – | 70.2% / 41.6% |
Acceptance rates are of all the proposals with or without the feature. Same businesses: only the businesses that sent proposals both with and without it. 2024: the same comparison for the proposals first sent in 2024.
The client matters more than anything in the proposal. Past clients said yes 71.8% of the time and new clients 43.6%. Within the same businesses the gap was almost as wide (72.1% against 46.2%), and 2024 was the same.
Sending again went with more yeses (57.6% against 48.3%). That counts reminders and revised versions, so part of it runs the other way: a proposal that's being negotiated gets revised and sent again.
Extras didn't go with more yeses. Proposals with images, a video, an expiry date, more than one recipient or options to choose from were accepted less often, in 2025, in 2024 and within the same businesses. Bigger, harder pitches use more of them, so that's no proof they hurt. There's just no sign they help.
Options do raise the price. Of the proposals with options that clients accepted online, and that had a price to compare, 24.6% ended with a total above the one first shown and 1.2% with a lower one.
Shorter proposals won. Accepted proposals had a median of 7 sections, and the rest 9. The same was true in 2024.
When you send matters less than you'd think
By the day and hour each proposal was first sent, in the sender's time zone. We don't know the client's time zone. We know the sender's for 6,616 of the 9,022 proposals.
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| Sent on | Accepted | Proposals | Median time to first open |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday Proposals: 1,205 · Median time to first open: 0.8 h | 50.9% | 1,205 | 0.8 h |
| Tuesday Proposals: 1,258 · Median time to first open: 0.7 h | 51.0% | 1,258 | 0.7 h |
| Wednesday Proposals: 1,393 · Median time to first open: 1.0 h | 52.5% | 1,393 | 1.0 h |
| Thursday Proposals: 1,306 · Median time to first open: 0.8 h | 51.0% | 1,306 | 0.8 h |
| Friday Proposals: 1,220 · Median time to first open: 0.8 h | 50.7% | 1,220 | 0.8 h |
| Saturday Proposals: 126 · Median time to first open: 2.3 h | 45.2% | 126 | 2.3 h |
| Sunday Proposals: 108 · Median time to first open: 4.1 h | 50.9% | 108 | 4.1 h |
The line marks the 50.2% average for all proposals
| Sent | Accepted | Proposals | Median time to first open |
|---|---|---|---|
| Before 6 am Proposals: 66 · Median time to first open: 3.4 h | 48.5% | 66 | 3.4 h |
| 6 to 9 am Proposals: 319 · Median time to first open: 1.0 h | 53.9% | 319 | 1.0 h |
| 9 am to noon Proposals: 1,556 · Median time to first open: 0.6 h | 52.2% | 1,556 | 0.6 h |
| Noon to 3 pm Proposals: 1,839 · Median time to first open: 0.6 h | 53.8% | 1,839 | 0.6 h |
| 3 to 6 pm Proposals: 2,053 · Median time to first open: 0.9 h | 50.6% | 2,053 | 0.9 h |
| 6 to 9 pm Proposals: 529 · Median time to first open: 2.3 h | 45.0% | 529 | 2.3 h |
| After 9 pm Proposals: 254 · Median time to first open: 7.8 h | 39.0% | 254 | 7.8 h |
The weekday made almost no difference: 50.7% to 52.5% from Monday to Friday. Only 3.5% of proposals went out at the weekend, and their clients took longer to open them.
Late evening did. Proposals sent between 9 am and 3 pm were first opened a median of 0.6 hours later. Proposals sent after 9 pm waited 7.8 hours and were accepted 39.0% of the time. 2024 showed the same (6.7 hours, 41.0%).
A third of first opens happen on a phone
The device of the client's first open, and of their last look before accepting online.
- of first opens were on a phone. Tablets: 0.3%.
- 31.9%
- of accepted proposals were looked at on a phone before the yes.
- 39.7%
- of online acceptances came from a phone (the client's last look before accepting).
- 24.8%
The decision still happens mostly at a desk: three in four online acceptances came after a look on a desktop or laptop. But two in five accepted proposals were read on a phone along the way, so a proposal has to work on a small screen. 2024 was much the same (33.7%, 40.9% and 23.7%).
Seven years, the same answer: about half
The same measures for the proposals first sent in each year since 2019.
| First sent in | Accepted | Opened | Opened within 24 hours | Median time to first open | Median days to a yes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 44.0% | 92.6% | 77.2% | 1.1 h | 3.8 |
| 2020 | 48.0% | 93.7% | 78.7% | 1.0 h | 3.1 |
| 2021 | 51.9% | 94.2% | 77.8% | 1.1 h | 3.8 |
| 2022 | 51.4% | 93.6% | 76.3% | 1.0 h | 3.9 |
| 2023 | 50.4% | 93.1% | 76.2% | 0.9 h | 4.0 |
| 2024 | 49.3% | 93.1% | 75.3% | 1.1 h | 3.0 |
| 2025 | 50.2% | 92.6% | 75.7% | 0.8 h | 3.1 |
Acceptance has stayed between 48% and 52% every year since 2020 (it was 44.0% in 2019). Clients open proposals about as fast as they did in 2019, and they take about as long to decide: three to four days.
Stats you can cite
Free to quote. Please link to this page as the source. Each stat has its own link, and the full data is in the CSV.
-
1.
50.2% of the proposals first sent through Nusii in 2025 were accepted (4,530 of 9,022).
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
2.
92.6% of proposals were opened by the client, and 75.7% within 24 hours of sending.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
3.
Half of the proposals that were opened were opened within 48 minutes of sending.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
4.
The median accepted proposal was accepted 3.1 days after it was sent.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
5.
36.6% of accepted proposals were accepted more than a week after sending, and 14.3% more than a month after.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
6.
37.6% of proposals were never accepted or declined, and 12.2% were declined.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
7.
Only 0.5% of proposals were declined by the client on the proposal itself.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
8.
Proposals to past clients were accepted 71.8% of the time, against 43.6% for new clients.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
9.
Proposals under $1,000 were accepted 70.2% of the time, and proposals of $50,000 or more 29.2%.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
10.
The median proposal with a one-off price was worth $3,100 before tax, and the median accepted proposal $2,500.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
11.
One-person businesses had 51.4% of their proposals accepted.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
12.
Proposals sent a second time were accepted 57.6% of the time, against 48.3% for proposals sent once.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
13.
Accepted proposals had a median of 7 sections, and proposals that weren't accepted 9.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
14.
31.9% of proposals were first opened on a phone.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
15.
Proposals sent after 9 pm (the sender's local time) waited a median of 7.8 hours for the first open and were accepted 39.0% of the time.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat -
16.
From 2020 to 2025, between 48% and 52% of the proposals sent through Nusii were accepted every year.
Source: Nusii, State of Proposals 2026 Link to this stat
How we measured
Every number comes from Nusii's own database, read on 27 October 2026 through our internal reporting tools. Nothing is estimated, surveyed or taken from another source.
- The proposals
- Every proposal first sent through Nusii from 1 January to 31 December 2025 (UTC): 9,022 proposals from freelancers, agencies and small teams. A proposal sent more than once counts once, at its first send. Test proposals, reports and deleted proposals are left out.
- Opened
- The client opened the proposal page or its PDF. Views by bots, such as link previews and email security scanners, don't count. Times run from the first send to the first open. Medians of time to open are of the opened proposals, and hours are rounded to a tenth.
- Accepted, declined, no answer
- Accepted means the client accepted in Nusii or the sender marked the proposal accepted; declined works the same way. No answer means neither, by 27 October 2026. Acceptance rates are of all the proposals in a group, opened or not.
- Value
- The total the client sees when they open the proposal, before tax: the required sections and lines, and the first choice where the client picks one. Optional extras and recurring fees aren't included. Converted to US dollars at the European Central Bank's average rates for 2025. 112 proposals in currencies without an ECB rate are left out of the value numbers.
- Business size and industry
- What the business chose when it signed up. A group needs more than 250 proposals from at least 15 businesses, which leaves out SaaS and financial services this year. Businesses that didn't say still count in the totals.
- Send time
- In the time zone set on the sender's Nusii account. We don't know the client's time zone. Accounts still on the default UTC time zone, most of them created before October 2022, are left out of the send-time numbers (2,406 proposals).
- Devices
- From the browser's user agent, for the first opens that have one (7,428 of 8,358). iPads report as desktops. A sender who opens their own link while signed out counts as the client.
- With and without
- Acceptance for the proposals with and without each feature. Same businesses repeats the comparison for only the businesses that sent both kinds. Images don't count the cover image. A video is a YouTube, Vimeo, Loom, Wistia or Vidyard link or embed. Nusii has no discount field, so a discount here is a line with a negative amount. Payment requests only count businesses with Stripe connected.
- The 2024 check
- We ran every with-and-without comparison and the value bands again on the 10,460 proposals first sent in 2024. The direction held every time. For more than one recipient, the gap shrank to 2 points.
- Limits
- Nusii's customers are mostly small businesses: agencies, consultants, freelancers and small teams. The numbers describe them, not every company that sends proposals. Nusii only sees answers given in Nusii or recorded by the sender, and none of these comparisons proves a cause.
- Other benchmarks
- Other reports count different things: only proposals that got an answer, deals in a CRM, or the quotes of large sales teams. We count every proposal sent and say what we left out, so compare definitions before you compare numbers.
Download and cite
Every number on this page is in the CSV download, with the number of proposals behind each rate. To cite the report:
Nusii (2026). State of Proposals 2026. https://nusii.com/state-of-proposals-2026/
Questions about the data? Email support@nusii.com.
Questions
What is a good proposal acceptance rate?
About half. 50.2% of the proposals sent through Nusii in 2025 were accepted, and the rate has stayed between 48% and 52% every year since 2020. Among the industries we show, it ran from 44.2% for consultants to 57.9% for software and IT services.
If more than half of your proposals win, you're above the overall rate.
How long do clients take to accept a proposal?
A median of 3.1 days after sending. 37.1% of the accepted proposals were accepted within a day, and 85.7% within 30 days. The rest, about one in seven, came later than that.
How quickly do clients open a proposal?
Usually within the hour. Half of the opened proposals were opened within 48 minutes of sending, and 75.7% of all proposals within 24 hours. 7.4% were never opened.
When should I follow up on a proposal?
If it hasn't been opened after a day or two, check that it arrived: 81.9% of proposals are opened within 72 hours. Once it's opened, give the client a few days, as the median yes comes 33 hours after the first look.
Don't give up after a week: 36.6% of the yeses came later than that.
What's the best day and time to send a proposal?
Any weekday, during working hours. Monday to Friday made almost no difference (50.7% to 52.5% accepted). Proposals sent after 9 pm, the sender's local time, waited a median of 7.8 hours for the first open and were accepted 39.0% of the time.
Do proposals with pricing options win more often?
Not in our data. Proposals with options were accepted 38.1% of the time, against 57.0% without, and the gap held within the same businesses.
Options do lift the price: of the proposals with options that clients accepted online, and that had a price to compare, 24.6% ended with a total above the one first shown.
Can I use these numbers?
Yes. Quote them with a link to nusii.com/state-of-proposals-2026. The full data is in the CSV download, and every stat in the list above has its own link.
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