Pilot Agreement

A simple, flexible agreement to run product pilots or trials—whether your software is cloud-based or on-prem.

Create your free pilot

A higher standard

Common Paper agreements help you get on the same page, faster.

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Industry-standard terms

Written by a committee of experienced attorneys to make negotiations simple and streamlined.

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Easy to negotiate

Highly-structured format makes dealing with commonly negotiated terms faster and simpler for both parties.

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Free and open source

You shouldn’t need to start a new agreement from square one. Our agreements are available for anyone to use and modify.

Using this agreement

The Common Paper pilot agreement consists of a Cover Page, plus the Standard Terms that are hosted online and incorporated by reference. Creating and executing an agreement is easy:

Customize your agreement terms in the Cover Page

Use this document to describe the terms of the products and services being sold in the Order Form section, plus the legal details of the agreement in the Key Terms section.

Send for signature

Once both parties have agreed on the terms, send the Cover Page for signature using your preferred method.

About this Common Paper agreement

What is a Pilot Agreement?

A pilot agreement—sometimes also called a trial or evaluation—is a short-term contract that allows a prospective customer to test a product or service before committing to a longer-term deal. These agreements help both parties manage risk and gather data to inform future decisions. If the pilot is successful, it may lead to a full commercial agreement such as a Cloud Service Agreement (CSA) or Software License Agreement.

How is the Pilot Agreement different from a full commercial contract?

Companies may choose to use a standalone Pilot Agreement when a customer is not ready to commit to a CSA or Software License Agreement. Pilots generally do not come with the same protections for the customer as a full commercial agreement, but have a more limited scope, reduced time commitment, and are easier to terminate. Pilots can be paid or provided for free, and the agreement may be quicker to negotiate.

Customers who are able to commit to a long-term contract but want a pilot period before their full subscription starts can leverage the Pilot Period option contained in the Common Paper CSA or Software License Agreement. This gives reassurance to the vendor that the customer is committed to purchasing the product while giving the customer a chance to evaluate the product and, in some cases, terminate the full commercial agreement if they are not satisfied during the pilot period.

How do I use this Pilot Agreement?

To use this Pilot Agreement, first download a copy of it in your preferred format. Then, fill in the details in the Order Form. Finally, sign the Order Form with your counterparty via the signing process of your choice.

What license is this agreement released under?

Common Paper agreements are free to use and modify under CC BY 4.0.

Available formats

This agreement is free to use or modify under CC BY 4.0. The agreement is available in the following formats.

Standard Terms

 Full text:
Standard Pilot Agreement posted at commonpaper.com/standards/pilot-agreement/1.1

Cover Page

Cover Page &
Standard Terms

Optional info sheet

Current version: 1.1  See full version history ->