Purchase Request Form Template (Free Excel Download)
A ready-to-approve request form that turns scattered departmental asks into one clean document — fill it in and send it straight to your supplier.
What is a purchase request form?
A purchase request form is the internal document that puts a department’s need in writing and gets it approved before it reaches purchasing. It is not a purchase order and not a quote: it is the step before the order, and it answers what, how many, by when and against which budget on a single page.
It has three blocks. Header: requester, department, date, request number, urgency. Line table: description, brand/model, quantity, unit, whether an equivalent is acceptable, delivery location and date. Approval block: requester, approver, budget line. An incompletely filled form costs at least one round-trip of delay; the two fields skipped most often are packaging unit and delivery location.
The most time-consuming stage of purchasing is often neither the quote nor the delivery — it’s getting the request itself written down properly. An email that starts with “3-4 boxes of A4 and some toner” is still going back and forth three replies later over paper weight, brand and delivery date. A standard purchase request form ends that traffic in one pass: the requester states exactly what’s needed, the approver sees exactly what’s approved, and the supplier prices it right the first time.
Free purchase request form template
The workbook carries two sheets: a Turkish one and an English Purchase Request sheet with the same structure. Estimated line totals and the grand total calculate themselves. No sign-up, no email.
A print-and-sign Word version is also available, currently in Turkish only — you can find it on the Turkish version of this page.
What fields belong on a good request form?
We built the template around gaps we see in the requests we price — missing units, missing delivery details, and lines that bundle several items into one. It has two parts:
1. Request header
- Request number and date for tracking and archive — a simple scheme like PR-2026-014 works.
- Requester and department/branch — in multi-site organisations this also fixes the delivery destination.
- Cost centre / budget code so accounting posts the invoice correctly from day one.
- Need-by date: a concrete date instead of “urgent” — your supplier plans lead times around it.
- Delivery address and time constraints: business hours only? loading dock? weekend access?
2. Line-item table
- Item name and specification: not “gloves” but “nitrile work gloves, size 9, EN 388”. Sharper specs mean sharper quotes.
- Brand preference and equivalents policy: mark whether a brand is a requirement or a preference — lines open to equivalents are where savings appear.
- Quantity and unit: pieces, boxes, packs, kg... Unit confusion is the most frequent ordering error; note units per box too.
- Estimated unit budget (optional) to speed up internal approval before the request ever reaches a supplier.
- Notes column for line-level details: colour, size, delivery priority.
Approval block
The form closes with three signature fields — requester, department manager, purchasing. If your flow differs (single approval, value-tiered approval), adjust the blocks.
How to use it (4 steps)
- Download and adapt: logo, cost centres and approval tiers take ten minutes on first use.
- Share with requesters and make the rule known: purchasing requests arrive on this form.
- Run approvals on the form itself so a single document tells the whole story at audit time.
- Send the approved form to your supplier. A well-completed request form is a document a supplier can price the same day. Send it to AKSCO here and we’ll return a written line-by-line quote.
The five most common mistakes
- Quantities without units: “50 gloves” — 50 pairs or 50 packs? Make the unit mandatory on every line.
- Undated “urgent”: urgency without a date gets planned last. Write the actual need-by date.
- Many items in one line: “cleaning supplies (assorted)” cannot be quoted. One item per row.
- Unclear equivalents policy: needless brand locks inflate budgets; no policy at all invites quality surprises.
- Missing delivery details: address, floor, time window, receiving person — four lines that prevent days of delay.
Beyond the template
With a regular supply partner you eventually outgrow the form: an approved product list, agreed prices, a known delivery rhythm. With regular customers the aim is to reach that rhythm after the first few requests — here’s how the model works.
Where does the request form sit in the purchasing process?
The request form is the second step of the purchasing process — after the need is described, before any supplier is approached. How well it is filled in determines the input to every step that follows: a line item written vaguely does not surface at the quoting stage, it surfaces at delivery.
| Step | What happens | Role of the request form |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Define the need | The department decides what it wants | Not yet — a line list or specification is produced |
| 2. Purchase request | The need is put in writing and approved | The form is filled in and signed here |
| 3. Collect quotes | The line list goes out to suppliers | The line table is copied straight into the RFQ |
| 4. Compare and approve | Quotes are laid side by side | The request number ties every quote to the same request |
| 5. Purchase order | The chosen supplier is ordered from | The approval block is what the order rests on |
| 6. Goods receipt | Goods arrive, are counted and inspected | Ordered quantity is checked against requested quantity |
| 7. Invoice and payment | The invoice is posted to the account | The budget code books the spend to the right cost centre |
Who fills in the form, and who approves it?
The department that has the need fills it in — not purchasing. The distinction matters: the requester is the side that knows the technical content of the need; purchasing’s job is to source it. Most forms carry three signatures:
- Requester: the person who wrote the item and the quantity, and who answers “why was this needed” later.
- Approver: the manager who accepts that the request is necessary — department head or branch manager.
- Budget / purchasing approval: the side confirming the spend has budget cover. In smaller companies the second and third signature collapse into one person; that is fine — having none is the problem.
A request form with an empty approval block should not go out to a supplier. When an unapproved request turns into an order, it stays unclear who owns the invoice, and payment can be delayed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
- EN 388 — Protective gloves against mechanical risks: abrasion, cut, tear and puncture performance levels (CEN; the standard text is copyrighted). Cited as an example of why the “standard / specification” column has to be filled in
- The form structure on this page is not a statutory requirement; it is drawn from the fields actually asked for in corporate purchasing. Approval thresholds and the signature flow are set by each organisation’s own internal procedure.
How we choose sources, verify figures and date our pages is set out in how we source and verify what we publish. Spotted an error? Write to info@aksco.com.tr — verified errors are corrected.
Can I request a quote without filling in the form?
Yes. Whatever format your list is in — an email, a photo, an old invoice — we can start the quoting process. The form speeds up internal approval and quote accuracy; it is not a precondition.
Which programs open the template?
It’s a standard .xlsx file and opens cleanly in Excel, LibreOffice Calc, Google Sheets and Numbers. An English sheet is included.
How many line items does it support?
It ships with 40 rows; add rows for hundreds of items. For very large lists (500+ lines), don’t split the file — send it as is and we process it line by line.
Why is the price column optional?
As an internal document the form may carry estimated prices for budget approval, but the copy sent to a supplier doesn’t need them — pricing is the quote’s job.
What is a purchase request form?
The internal document that puts a department’s need in writing and gets it approved before it reaches purchasing. It is not a purchase order and not a quote — it is the step before the order, and it answers what, how many, by when and against which budget on one page. It has three blocks: header, line table and approval block.
Who fills in a purchase request form?
The department that has the need, not purchasing. The requester is the side that knows the technical content of the need; purchasing’s job is to source it. Forms usually carry three signatures: requester, approving manager, and budget or purchasing approval. In smaller companies the last two collapse into one person.
What are the steps of the purchasing process?
Seven: (1) define the need, (2) raise a purchase request — the step where the form is filled in and approved, (3) collect quotes, (4) compare quotes and approve, (5) issue the purchase order, (6) goods receipt, (7) invoice and payment. The request form is produced at step two and its line table is carried into the RFQ at step three.
What does the “equivalent accepted?” column do?
It gives the supplier permission to offer an equivalent to the brand you named. Marked “Yes”, the supplier may propose an alternative; marked “No”, only the named brand and model may be quoted, and if it is out of stock the lead time stretches. Leaving the column blank works in practice like “No”, which is why it should always be filled in.
Send your needs list — your quote is ready within 1 business day.
Quotes are free of charge and carry no purchase obligation. Requests received during business hours (Mon–Fri, 09:00–18:00 Türkiye time, UTC+3) are processed the same day; those arriving outside them go to the front of the queue the next business morning.