Free site diary and daily report template
Fill in today’s site diary in your browser: weather, workforce on site by trade, plant, deliveries, work done, delays, visitors and safety incidents. No sign-up. Print it to PDF or export Excel or CSV.
- No account needed
- Saves in your browser
- Totals workers and hours
- Export PDF, Excel and CSV
- Works on a phone
Site Diary Template
What a site diary is
A site diary, also called a daily report or daily site report, is the day-by-day record of what happened on a construction site: who was there, what plant was working, what arrived, what was built, what held the job up, who visited and whether anyone was hurt.
It is written on the day, by someone who was on site, usually the site supervisor or site engineer. Months later, when a delay claim, a variation or a dispute turns on what happened on a particular day, a complete diary entry is often the best evidence either party has.
When to use a daily site diary
- Every working day, including days lost to rain or other delays, so there are no gaps.
- To support an extension of time claim with the weather, the hours lost and the trades affected.
- To record instructions given on site, such as a verbal direction from the superintendent, with who gave it and when.
- To check subcontractor dayworks and delivery dockets against what was actually on site.
- To give a client, head contractor or project manager a short daily report.
How to fill in a site diary
- 1. Set the dayEnter the project, date, shift and your name. Record the morning and afternoon weather, the temperatures and whether the site was workable.
- 2. List the workforceAdd one row per trade and company with the number of workers and the hours they worked. The tool totals the people and hours.
- 3. Record plant and deliveriesList each machine with its hours and status, and each delivery with its quantity, unit and docket number.
- 4. Describe the work doneWrite what was completed, by area and activity, specific enough that someone could rebuild the day from the diary alone.
- 5. Note delays, visitors and incidentsRecord each delay with its cause and time lost, each visitor and why they came, and every incident or near miss with the action taken.
- 6. Export or sharePrint to PDF for signing or filing, export Excel or CSV, or copy a share link. Start tomorrow’s entry with New.
Site diary fields explained
Day and project
- ProjectRequired
- The project or site the diary is for.
- Project number
- Your job or contract number, if you use one.
- DateRequired
- The day this entry records. Keep one diary entry per day.
- Shift
- Day or night shift, where the site runs both.
- Prepared byRequired
- The person writing the entry, usually the site supervisor or site engineer.
- Weather, morning
- Weather at the start of the shift.
- Weather, afternoon
- Weather later in the shift. A change in weather often explains lost time.
- Minimum temperature (°C)
- Lowest temperature on site, in degrees Celsius.
- Maximum temperature (°C)
- Highest temperature on site, in degrees Celsius.
- Site workable
- Whether work could go ahead. Record wet weather and other lost days here.
Workforce on site
- TradeRequired
- The trade or role, for example carpenter or plant operator.
- Company
- Your own crew or the subcontractor.
- Workers (people)
- Number of people of that trade on site.
- Hours (h)
- Total hours worked by that group, in hours.
- Work area or notes
- Where they worked or anything worth noting.
Plant and equipment
- Plant itemRequired
- The machine, for example 20 t excavator or franna crane.
- Owner or hire company
- Who supplied it.
- Quantity (count)
- How many of that item.
- Hours (h)
- Hours the plant worked, in hours.
- Status
- Working, on standby, broken down or off hired.
Deliveries
- Supplier
- Who delivered it.
- Material or itemRequired
- What arrived, for example 32 MPa concrete or reo bar.
- Quantity
- The amount delivered, as a number. Put the unit in the next column.
- Unit
- The unit of the quantity, such as m³, t or each.
- Docket number
- The delivery docket number, so the invoice can be checked later.
- Received by
- Who checked the delivery in.
Work done
- Work completed todayRequired
- What was built or completed, by area and activity. Be specific enough to rebuild the day from the diary alone.
Delays
- DelayRequired
- What happened.
- Cause
- The main cause. Delays caused by others may support an extension of time claim.
- Time lost (h)
- Working time lost, in hours.
- Trades or areas affected
- Who or what was held up.
Visitors
- NameRequired
- The visitor’s name.
- Company
- Who they represent, for example the client, the certifier or an authority.
- Purpose
- Why they came, for example a hold point inspection.
- Time in
- Arrival time.
- Time out
- Departure time.
Safety and incidents
- TypeRequired
- The kind of event.
- What happenedRequired
- A factual description: where, when and who was involved.
- Action taken
- Immediate action and any follow-up.
- Reported by
- Who reported it.
Instructions and notes
- Instructions and directions received
- Verbal or written directions from the client, superintendent or designer. Record who gave them and when.
- Other notes
- Anything else worth keeping on record for the day.
Sample site diary entry
A filled-in day on a residential build. Load it into the tool to see how each section reads, then replace it with your own.
- Project
- Riverside Apartments
- Project number
- P-1042
- Date
- 6 Nov 2026
- Shift
- Day
- Prepared by
- Sam Taylor
- Weather, morning
- Fine
- Weather, afternoon
- Showers
- Minimum temperature (°C)
- 14
- Maximum temperature (°C)
- 24
- Site workable
- Part day
Workforce on site
| Trade | Company | Workers (people) | Hours (h) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formworker | Apex Formwork | 6 | 57.0 |
| Concreter | Solid Pour | 5 | 40.0 |
| Steel fixer | Reo Fix Co | 3 | 28.5 |
| Labourer | Head contractor | 2 | 19.0 |
Plant and equipment
| Plant item | Owner or hire company | Quantity (count) | Hours (h) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete pump, 42 m boom | City Pumping | 1 | 6.0 | Working |
| Tower crane | Head contractor | 1 | 9.5 | Working |
| Scissor lift | Lift Hire | 2 | 0.0 | Standby |
Deliveries
| Supplier | Material or item | Quantity | Unit | Docket number | Received by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metro Concrete | 32 MPa concrete | 64.00 | m³ | MC-55812 to MC-55819 | Sam Taylor |
| Steel Supplies | N16 reinforcement bar | 2.40 | t | SS-20931 | Alex Nguyen |
Delays
| Delay | Cause | Time lost (h) | Trades or areas affected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rain stopped work on the Level 3 deck | Weather | 1.5 | Formworkers, steel fixers |
Visitors
| Name | Company | Purpose | Time in | Time out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Lee | Superintendent | Level 2 slab pre-pour inspection (hold point) | 06:45 | 07:30 |
Safety and incidents
| Type | What happened | Action taken | Reported by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near miss | Unsecured off-cut fell from Level 3 deck edge into the exclusion zone. No one was in the zone. | Work stopped, edge protection mesh checked and toe boards added. Raised at the afternoon prestart. | Alex Nguyen |
Work completed today
Level 2 slab, grids C to F: poured 64 m³, finished and curing compound applied. Level 3 columns, grids A to C: formwork stood and reinforcement fixed, ready for inspection. Basement: waterproofing to north wall completed.
Instructions and directions received
Superintendent (J. Lee) confirmed by phone at 9:10 am that the revised stair detail, drawing S-301 revision C, applies from Level 3.
Other notes
Pump truck booked again for Thursday 7:00 am.
Free site diary template or TaskRox Daily Reports
The free template is one diary entry at a time, kept in one browser. TaskRox Daily Reports keeps every shift report for the project in one place, for the whole team.
Free site diary template
- One day at a time, saved in one browser
- Workforce as trades, headcount and hours
- Plant with hours and status
- Print to PDF, or export Excel or CSV
- Text only
- Hours stay in the diary
TaskRox Daily Reports module
- Every daily report for the project in one register, by date and shift
- Labour by company, crew and role, with ordinary, overtime, night, travel and standby hours
- Plant run, idle, downtime and standby hours with meter readings, plus production quantities
- Two-level approval; approved reports are locked and every edit is recorded; CSV and Excel export
- Photos and attachments, with links to schedule tasks, NCRs and HSE incidents
- Approved labour hours hand over to timesheets and payroll, and the Android app records reports in the field
What the TaskRox Daily Reports module does not do today
- It has no separate deliveries section; record deliveries in the report notes.
- Incidents are a text field on the report with a link to an HSE incident record, not a table of incidents.
Site diary questions
Is this site diary template really free?
Yes. There is no account, no trial period and no download. Open the page and start typing. You only need a TaskRox account if you want to run the site diary with your team inside a project; that starts with a 14-day free trial, no credit card.
What should a construction site diary include?
At least the date, weather, workforce on site by trade, plant, deliveries, the work completed, delays and their causes, visitors, safety incidents, and instructions received. This template has a section for each, plus your own notes.
Is a site diary the same as a daily report?
Mostly. A site diary is the full daily record kept on site; a daily report is often a shorter summary sent to the client or head contractor. This template works for both: fill in the sections you need and print it.
Who should write the site diary?
Someone who was on site that day, usually the site supervisor, foreman or site engineer. Write it on the day, while the details are fresh, and keep one entry per day.
Can I keep a diary for every day?
The free template holds one day at a time. Export each day as a PDF or Excel file before starting the next with New, or use TaskRox Daily Reports to keep every day in one register.
Where is my site diary saved?
In your browser's local storage on the device you are using. It saves automatically as you type and is not sent to TaskRox. Clearing your browser data deletes it, so export a CSV or Excel copy, or copy a share link, if you want a backup.
Can I open it in Excel or save it as a PDF?
Yes. Export an Excel workbook (.xlsx), a CSV file for Excel or Google Sheets, or a PDF through your browser's print dialog. Every export carries a small line naming the free tool. You can also import a CSV back in, for example a site diary you kept in a spreadsheet.
How do I share the site diary?
Choose Share and copy the link. Everything is packed inside the link itself, after the # sign. Browsers do not send that part of a link to a server, and the TaskRox page analytics are set to ignore it. Anyone with the link opens their own copy to edit; your copy does not change.
Related tools and reading
- Site diary best practices for construction projects
- TaskRox manual: Daily Reports and site diary
- TaskRox daily reports and delivery features
- TaskRox for site engineers
- Free RFI log and RFI form template
- Free variation register template
- Free defect and punch list template
- Free NCR template (non-conformance report)
- Free toolbox talk record template
- Free document transmittal template
- Free online Gantt chart maker
- Free Inspection and Test Plan builder