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What is a Bill of Quantities (BoQ)?
A Bill of Quantities (BoQ) lists the work and materials for a building by bill: Preliminaries; Substructure (PROVISIONAL); Superstructure / Walling; Roofing and rainwater disposal; Doors and windows (ironmongery); Finishes; Plumbing and drainage; Electrical; External works; Provisional and Prime Cost (PC) sums; and a Summary. Each item has a unit (SM, CM, LM, No., Kg or Item), a quantity, a rate and an amount, plus a blank column for your contractor to fill in their own rate.
Substructure items (excavation, hardcore, concrete and steel) are PROVISIONAL and indicative, subject to the structural engineer's design and soil investigation. A quantity surveyor registered with BORAQS should review project-specific quantities and rates.
Note: in Kenya "BQ" can mean either quantities or staff quarters, so Blueprints Kenya always says Bill of Quantities (BoQ) for the document and DSQ for staff quarters.
Estimates as of October 2026. Costs vary by county, site conditions, supplier and finishes.
These are design and planning drawings. Before construction or county approval, have a registered architect (BORAQS) and a structural engineer (EBK) review them and produce the required drawings, and use an NCA-registered contractor.
Foundations, footings, columns, beams, slabs and reinforcement are NOT designed or shown in these drawings. They depend on soil conditions (for example black cotton soil), loading and local requirements, and must be designed by a registered structural engineer (EBK) after a site and soil assessment. Substructure quantities and costs in the Bill of Quantities are provisional and indicative only. Do not start construction from these drawings.