Template
Service level agreement template with uptime and credits
A service level agreement template defines measurable commitments for a service: a monthly uptime target, how downtime is measured, support response times by severity, service credits when targets are missed and the reporting the customer receives. It usually sits as a schedule next to a SaaS agreement. Signee gives you 10 clauses with plain notes and sends the SLA for signature.
- 10 clauses with plain notes
- Uptime, credits and response times
- Written as a SaaS schedule
- Not legal advice, review before signing
Service Level Agreement
Template, 10 clauses
- 1.Scope. Which services the SLA covers
- 2.Availability target. Uptime percentage per month
- 3.Measurement. How downtime is counted
- 4.Exclusions. What does not count
- 5.Support and response times. Severity levels and first response
- 6.Service credits. What the customer gets when targets are missed
- 7.Claiming credits. How and when to ask
- 8.Reporting. Monthly uptime and incident reports
- 9.Chronic failure. Exit after repeated misses
- 10.Changes to the SLA. Updating targets and terms
Provider
Customer
What an SLA is for
A promise of high availability means little without a number, a way to measure it and a consequence when it is missed. An SLA turns the promise into three things a customer can check: the target, the measurement and the credit. For the provider, it limits the remedy to something predictable instead of an open ended damages claim.
The SLA rarely stands alone. It is attached to a SaaS agreement template or to a statement of work under a master service agreement template, and the main agreement says which document wins if they disagree.
Keep the SLA as a separate schedule. Targets and support hours change more often than liability or IP terms, and a separate document can be updated and re signed without reopening the whole contract.
Downtime allowed per 30 day month
| Uptime target | Downtime allowed | Typical credit if missed |
|---|---|---|
| 99.0 percent | 7 hours 12 minutes | 25 percent |
| 99.5 percent | 3 hours 36 minutes | 15 percent |
| 99.9 percent | 43 minutes | 10 percent |
| 99.95 percent | 22 minutes | 5 to 10 percent |
| 99.99 percent | 4 minutes 19 seconds | Negotiated |
Downtime figures are arithmetic for a 30 day month. Credit levels are common examples, not a market standard.
Clause by clause
What each clause does and what to negotiate
Read these notes next to the outline above. They explain the usual position and where the other side tends to push back.
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1Scope
Names the services, environments and plans covered, and states that the SLA is a schedule to the main agreement.
Negotiate. Customers want every production module covered. Providers usually exclude beta features and test environments.
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2Availability target
Commits to a monthly uptime, for example 99.9 percent, which allows about 43 minutes of downtime in a 30 day month.
Negotiate. The number itself, and whether it is measured per month or per quarter. Each extra nine is much harder to deliver.
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3Measurement
Defines downtime, who measures it and from where, for example external checks every minute on the main endpoints.
Negotiate. Whether partial outages and severe slowness count, and whether the customer can rely on its own monitoring.
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4Exclusions
Excludes scheduled maintenance announced in advance, customer caused problems, third party networks and events outside reasonable control.
Negotiate. A monthly limit on maintenance hours and a minimum notice period before planned work.
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5Support and response times
Sets severity levels, support hours and the time to a first response for each level, for example one hour for a full outage.
Negotiate. Response versus resolution targets, weekend coverage and the channel for urgent issues.
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6Service credits
Gives a credit against future invoices on a sliding scale, for example 10 percent below 99.9 and 25 percent below 99.0.
Negotiate. Credit levels, a monthly cap on credits and whether credits are the sole remedy.
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7Claiming credits
Requires the customer to request credits within a set period with the dates of the incidents.
Negotiate. Customers often ask for credits to apply automatically, without a claim.
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8Reporting
Commits the provider to publish uptime figures and incident summaries, with a root cause note for major incidents.
Negotiate. Report frequency and how quickly a written incident review must follow a major outage.
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9Chronic failure
Lets the customer terminate if the target is missed in several months within a period.
Negotiate. How many misses trigger the right and whether prepaid fees are refunded.
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10Changes to the SLA
Explains how the SLA can be updated and promises that changes will not reduce the commitment during a paid term.
Negotiate. Customers want any change during the term to require their agreement.
Common mistakes
Where SLAs usually go wrong
No measurement method
An uptime figure without a definition of downtime and a measuring point cannot be checked by either side.
Unlimited maintenance
If any announced maintenance is excluded, the provider can schedule its way out of the target. Cap the hours.
Credits that are too small
A 2 percent credit after a full day offline gives the customer no real remedy and no reason to trust the SLA.
Response time sold as resolution
A one hour response is not a one hour fix. Say clearly which one the SLA promises.
SLA inside the main contract
When targets live inside the main agreement, every change reopens the whole contract. Keep a separate schedule.
No chronic failure exit
Without an exit right, a customer stuck with repeated outages can only collect small credits for the rest of the term.
In Signee
Attach the SLA and send it with the contract
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1
Pick the template
Open the Service Level Agreement and choose the uptime target, support hours and credit scale.
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2
Link it to the contract
Send the SLA together with the SaaS agreement or SOW, so both are signed in one round.
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3
Approve changes
On Business and Company, a higher uptime promise or larger credits can require approval before sending.
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4
Keep it findable
The signed SLA sits next to the main agreement in the repository, searchable when an incident happens.
When an outage happens, the first question is what was promised. A contract repository with full text search finds every customer with a 99.9 percent commitment in seconds, and contract renewal tracking shows which of them come up for renewal soon.
This template is not legal advice. Signee is not a law firm and does not review your agreement for you. Service levels interact with the liability terms of the main agreement, so have a qualified lawyer review the SLA for large customers or regulated industries.
| Agreement | Type | Key date |
|---|---|---|
| Acme Retail SLA schedule | Customer | Dec 1, 2026 |
| Harbor Analytics SLA | Customer | Nov 14, 2026 |
| Kestrel Outdoor SLA | Customer | Mar 3, 2027 |
Service level agreement template questions
What is a service level agreement
What uptime should I promise
Are service credits the only remedy
Does the SLA replace the SaaS agreement
Can the SLA be changed later
Is this template legal advice
Keep reading
Send your SLA with the main agreement
Fill the SLA from your targets, send it with the SaaS agreement in one signing round and keep both searchable. Plans start at 24 USD a month billed yearly.