Interior design client onboarding checklist: turn a signed project into a working brief
A free interior design client onboarding checklist for Google Sheets and Excel, covering contacts, scope, budget, decision makers, site access, billing and kickoff. No email required.
By Idan Mann, founder of NYA
The short answer
An interior design client onboarding checklist turns the signed agreement into the facts a team needs to start: who decides, what is in scope, the working budget, communication rules, site access, billing contacts and immediate milestones. This sheet gives each item an owner, due date, status and evidence link so kickoff gaps stay visible.
Onboarding fails quietly. The contract is signed, everyone is enthusiastic, and the first design week disappears into finding a survey, confirming who can approve purchases and discovering that invoices go to a different email. A checklist makes those dependencies part of project setup rather than scattered follow-up.
The checklist is operational, not a substitute for an agreement or legal advice. Put signed documents in their controlled storage location and link to them; do not rewrite legal terms in this spreadsheet.
Project setup — what each field carries
| Field | What goes in it | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Project name | A consistent project name prevents folders, invoices, drawings and client messages from accumulating under different labels. | Riverside apartment |
| Primary client | The primary contact anchors communication while the decision-maker fields below preserve the real approval structure. | Maya Chen |
| Project address | The full site address is needed for access, shipping, tax, insurance and consultant coordination. | 215 Riverside Drive, New York, NY |
| Internal project lead | One person owns setup completion and resolves missing information before it blocks design or procurement. | Amelia Ortiz |
| Kickoff date | The kickoff date gives every due item a shared reference and makes onboarding duration measurable. | 2026-09-04 |
| Onboarding complete | A formal completion date distinguishes an active project from one still waiting on prerequisites. | 2026-09-06 |
Onboarding checklist — what each field carries
| Column | What goes in it | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Grouping contacts, scope, money, site and communication makes the checklist easy to filter during kickoff. | Decision making |
| Checklist item | One clear deliverable per row makes completion testable instead of leaving broad setup tasks open indefinitely. | Confirm final approver for purchases |
| Why required | The reason helps the client and team understand the consequence of leaving the item incomplete. | Orders need one authorized decision |
| Owner | A named person is responsible for collecting, deciding or uploading the required information. | Maya Chen |
| Due date | A real date puts prerequisites ahead of the milestone they would otherwise delay. | 2026-09-03 |
| Status | A controlled state such as requested, received, confirmed or blocked makes the remaining setup visible. | Confirmed |
| Answer / decision | The final fact belongs in the row so teammates do not have to infer it from an email thread. | Both clients review; Maya has final approval |
| Document / link | Evidence links point to surveys, inspiration, signed documents or access instructions without duplicating controlled files. | Drive / 01_Admin / Client brief |
| Confirmed by | Attribution matters when a budget, scope boundary or approval rule is questioned later in the project. | Maya Chen |
| Confirmed date | The confirmation date shows which version of the project facts was known at kickoff. | 2026-09-02 |
| Notes | Use notes for dependencies or follow-up without weakening the definition of complete in the status field. | Accountant copied on invoices |
The minimum facts to settle before design begins
- Client contacts, billing contact and every person who can approve scope, design or purchasing.
- Included rooms and services, known exclusions, working budget and contingency treatment.
- Site access, building rules, existing drawings, consultant contacts and photography permission.
- Meeting rhythm, normal response window, approval method and the location of final project records.
Common questions
- What should be included in interior design client onboarding?
- Collect the project team and decision makers, scope and exclusions, budget, site information, existing documents, communication rules, approval process, billing contact, access requirements, immediate milestones and the location of signed documents. Assign each missing item an owner and due date.
- When is client onboarding complete?
- Onboarding is complete when the team can begin the agreed first phase without chasing a prerequisite. That usually means decision rights, scope, budget, access, base information, communication and billing setup are confirmed, with any accepted exceptions recorded as project risks.