Bill of Sale Example
A blank form tells you where the lines are. It does not tell you what belongs on them. Here are four bills of sale filled in the way a careful seller would fill them — a used truck, a motorcycle, a fishing boat and a registered horse.
What a finished bill of sale looks like.
Every value below is illustrative — the names, VINs and prices are invented. What is real is the shape: which field takes what, and how precise each entry has to be to still mean something a year later.
Car bill of sale example
A used pickup sold between neighbors — the mileage line is what an odometer disclosure is read against.
Motorcycle bill of sale example
Note the VIN runs 17 characters on a modern bike, same as a car.
Boat bill of sale example
The hull ID (HIN) is 12 characters and lives on the transom — it is not the motor's serial number.
Horse bill of sale example
Registered horses are identified by registry number; markings identify the unregistered ones.
What each field is actually for.
In consideration of. The price, written honestly. If the item is a gift, write “gift” rather than $1 — several states treat a $1 sale as an attempt to dodge tax and will assess the standard presumptive value anyway.
The description block. The identifying fields change with the item, and that is the whole point: a car has a VIN and an odometer, a boat has a hull ID and a separate motor, a horse has a registry number and markings. Copy these off the item itself, not off the title — titles carry transcription errors more often than people expect.
AS-IS. Our forms say the item is sold with no warranty, express or implied. That is the normal footing for a private sale, and it is what protects a seller from a phone call three weeks later. If you are promising something — a working motor, a clean title in hand — write it in the additional terms box instead of leaving it spoken.
Signatures and date. Both parties, both copies, on the day of the sale. The date is what fixes the moment liability moved — which is the reason a seller keeps their copy at all.
About filled-out examples.
What does a completed bill of sale actually look like?
Like the four samples on this page: names and addresses for both parties, a sale price written out, a description of the item precise enough to identify it later, the date, and signatures. There is no official layout for a private sale in most states — a document with those elements is a bill of sale whether it is typed, printed from a template, or handwritten on notebook paper.
Can I copy the wording from these examples?
Yes. The wording in the samples is the same wording our blank forms print, and you are free to use it. What you should not copy are the sample values themselves — the VINs, serial numbers and prices here are illustrative and belong to no real transaction.
How specific does the item description need to be?
Specific enough that a stranger could tell your item from a similar one. For vehicles that means the VIN, not just the make and model. For a boat it is the hull ID. For equipment, the serial or PIN. For a registered animal, the registry number; for an unregistered one, markings. Vague descriptions are what make a bill of sale hard to rely on later.
Does the price have to be the real price?
Yes. Writing a lower number to reduce the buyer's tax is tax fraud in every state, and it also caps what the buyer can claim if the item is stolen or totalled. Several states now check the declared price against a standard presumptive value and simply tax the higher figure.
Do both people need their own copy?
Both should have one. The seller's copy proves when liability transferred; the buyer's copy is what gets presented at the DMV or county office. Sign two originals rather than photocopying one — it costs nothing and removes an argument.
Not legal advice. Sample values are illustrative and describe no real transaction. State rules vary — see the 50-state requirements table before you finalize a transfer.