Client keeps asking for revisions? How a revision clause sets the limit
Endless revisions stop when the agreement does four things: lists exactly what you deliver, separates a revision from a new brief, includes a set number of revisions with a fee for each extra one, and gives the client a fixed window to approve. When the window passes in silence, the work counts as approved and payment falls due.
"Just one more small change." Every freelancer has heard it on the seventh revision. The client is rarely acting in bad faith: nobody told them where the job ended, so it never did.
Revisions are not the problem. Unpriced, unlimited, undated revisions are. Here is how to put edges on them.
1. Write down exactly what you deliver
Most revision fights are really scope fights. "A logo" can mean one mark or a full identity system; "an edit" can mean a 30-second cut or every cut-down for every platform. List the deliverables and make the list exhaustive: what is not on it is not owed. Working files, raw footage, stems and outtakes are a common surprise; if the client needs them, list them and price them.
2. Separate a revision from a new brief
A revision refines something you agreed to make: adjust the colour, tighten the copy, swap a shot. A scope change alters the brief, the creative direction or the basic requirements: a new script, a new audience, a new format. Revisions come out of the number you included. Scope changes are new work, quoted and approved in writing before you start. Writing this distinction into the agreement turns "is this a revision?" from an argument into a lookup.
3. Set the number of revisions, and price the rest
Agree how many revisions the fee includes, and the fee for each revision beyond that. The number matters less than the fact that there is one. A client who knows the fourth revision costs money will often put all their feedback into the third.
4. Put approval on a clock
Give the client a fixed number of business days to approve or send specific written feedback after each delivery. If the window passes with no written feedback, the work is deemed approved and the payment for it falls due. Also say that feedback, or a revision in progress, does not push back the payment date. Without a clock, "still reviewing" can last as long as the client likes, and your invoice waits with it.
5. Tie payment to delivery, not to the last word
Pay dates should follow delivery and approval (actual or deemed), not the end of all discussion. A milestone delivered and approved is a milestone owed, even if the client later wants a change, which is then a revision or a scope change.
What counts as a revision, by kind of work
The line in our agreement: a revision changes or refines something already agreed; a change to the brief, the creative direction or the basic requirements is a scope change. In practice:
| Work | Usually a revision | Usually a scope change |
|---|---|---|
| Logo and brand design | Adjusting the colour, weight or spacing of the agreed mark | A new concept after one has been approved |
| Copywriting | Tightening lines, fixing tone within the agreed message | A new message, audience or product |
| Video editing | Trimming, swapping shots, re-timing the agreed cut | Cut-downs or formats not on the deliverables list |
| Illustration and animation | Refining details in the agreed style | A different style after the style was approved |
| Music | Mix and instrument changes within the agreed direction | A new direction after the demo was approved |
| Creator Content & Sponsored Posts | Changing the caption, the hook or the cut of the agreed reel or post | A new concept, an extra post, or a platform not in the brief |
Where the line falls depends on what the brief says, which is one more reason to write the brief down.
How The Goodwill Network handles it
Our agreement's Deliverables & Approval clause does all of this in one place, and you switch it on when your job goes through feedback and revisions. You list the deliverables (the list is exhaustive), set how many revisions are included and the fee for each extra one, and set the approval window. If you set the extra revision fee to 0, the agreement says extra revisions are provided at no additional charge. The clause defines a revision and a scope change for you, and a scope change needs the client's written approval first: on a day or unit rate, extra days or units are charged at your locked rate; on a fixed fee, and for different work, it goes under a separate written agreement. The approval window works even without the deliverables list: silence past the window means approval, and the payment date does not move for feedback. How our agreement handles revisions and approval →
Questions
How many revisions should I include?
Enough for the job to be done well, few enough that each one is taken seriously. The form suggests a starting number; set what fits the work.
What if the client wants unlimited revisions?
Price it: a higher fee with more revisions included, or a fee for each one. "Unlimited" with no price is free work with no end date.
Does feedback delay my payment?
Not under our agreement. Payment dates stay fixed; feedback and revisions do not move them.
This explains how revision clauses work. It is not legal advice on your deal. For that, Legal Help Access connects you with a lawyer.