Contract Glossary

Milestones

Definition

Milestones are checkpoints in a contract that trigger something, usually a payment, a review, or the next phase of work. They tie money to progress instead of time, so nobody's paying upfront for work that might never get done.

In Practice

You're building a $40,000 e-commerce platform. Instead of 50% upfront / 50% on delivery (risky for both sides), you set milestones: $8,000 on project kickoff, $8,000 when wireframes are approved, $8,000 when the frontend is built, $8,000 when backend integration is complete, $8,000 on final launch. The client knows they're paying for completed work. You know you're getting paid as you go. Everyone sleeps better.