How Do You Keep an RFI Log?

By Wyatt Cooper · Published October 22, 2026 · 7 min read

Key takeaways

The RFI log is one numbered list of every RFI on the job, showing who each one is waiting on, when it was sent, when the answer is due and how long it has been open.
Ball in court is the most useful column: it says whose move it is, so the weekly meeting can chase the right person.
Count days open in calendar days from the day the RFI was sent to the day it closed, or to today if it is still open; overdue means today is past the due date with no answer.
Mark cost and schedule impact on every line, so the log shows at a glance which open questions could become change orders or delays.

To keep an RFI log, list every RFI in one numbered sequence with its subject, who sent it, who it is waiting on, the date sent, the date the answer is due, the date answered and closed, its status, days open, and any cost or schedule impact. Update it the day anything changes, sort the open ones oldest first, flag the overdue ones, and review it at every weekly meeting.

What the log is for

An RFI form asks one question. The log answers a different one: across every question on the job, what is waiting on whom, and for how long? The form is covered in how to write an RFI, with a free RFI template. This post is the list that tracks them.

Public owners build the log into their procedures. The City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering's RFI procedure has RFIs "sequentially numbered starting with the number one" and tracked in the city's document control system. Its meetings procedure has the construction manager "establish the time limit for all unanswered RFIs" at the weekly meeting, and its minutes procedure attaches the updated RFI log to each week's minutes. Connecticut's construction administration manual tells its construction administrator to emphasize the RFI contract provisions at the preconstruction conference.

The columns of an RFI log

The columns of an RFI log and what each one tells you
Column	What goes in it	What it tells you
RFI number	One project-wide sequence, never reused	That nothing is missing from the sequence
Subject	The element and the problem in a few words	What it is, without opening it
From	The company that raised it (a sub's RFI comes through the GC)	Which trade is waiting
Ball in court	The person or company who must act next	Who to chase
Sent	The date it went to the person who answers	Where days open starts
Due	The date the answer is needed, per the contract or the RFI	When it becomes overdue
Answered and closed	The date the answer came back, and the date the GC closed it	Whether the answer has reached the field
Status	Draft, open, answered, closed	Where it is in its life
Days open	Calendar days from sent to closed, or to today	How long the question has cost
Cost and schedule impact	No, possible or yes, for each	Which ones could become a change order or a delay

A filled-in RFI log, with days open counted

Here are the five most recent RFIs on a made-up job, as of Tuesday, April 7, the morning of the OAC meeting. Days open count calendar days from the sent date: RFI 019 was sent March 27, so March 28 to 31 is 4 days and April 1 to 7 is 7 more, 11 in all. Its answer was due April 3, so on April 7 it is 4 days overdue.

An RFI log on a fictional job, as of April 7. Every subject, name and date is made up.
RFI	Subject	Ball in court	Sent	Due	Answered	Status	Days open	Cost / schedule
019	Roof drain sizing at the east roof	MEP engineer	Mar 27	Apr 3	—	Open, overdue	11	Possible / yes
020	Stair 2 handrail extension at the landing	Architect	Mar 30	Apr 9	—	Open	8	No / no
021	Conduit routing through shear wall line 4	—	Apr 1	Apr 8	Apr 3	Closed Apr 4	3	No / no
022	Storefront sill height at the finish floor	GC (to close)	Apr 2	Apr 9	Apr 6	Answered	5	No / possible
023	IT room conduit sizes	Owner	Apr 3	Apr 10	—	Open	4	Possible / no

Check the arithmetic the same way for each line. RFI 020: March 31 is 1 day, plus April 1 to 7 is 8. RFI 021 closed on April 4, so it stopped counting there: April 2, 3 and 4 make 3. RFI 022 is answered but not closed, so it is still counting: April 3 to 7 is 5. RFI 023: April 4 to 7 is 4.

Read the log the way the meeting will. One RFI is overdue, and it is the one marked yes for schedule: it goes first. RFI 022 has an answer sitting with the GC; until it is closed and sent to the storefront sub, the answer hasn't reached the field. And two open RFIs say "possible" for cost, so the PM knows where change orders may come from.

Keeping it current

1GC project managerNumbers the RFI, logs it as sent, sets the due date
2Architect or engineerBall in court until the answer goes back
3GC project managerLogs the answer, sends it to the field and the trades
4GC project managerCloses it, and starts a change order if the answer adds cost or time

One RFI's life on the log

Update the log the day anything happens, not before the meeting.
Sort open RFIs oldest first, overdue at the top.
Move the ball when it moves. An RFI sent back to you for clarification is in your court again.
Don't close an RFI until the answer is in the field. The trades build from the answer, not from the log.
Send the log with the OAC meeting agenda, and attach it to the minutes.
Keep the log after the job. If a delay is disputed later, its dates show who was waiting on whom.

The design team's side of the log, turning answers around on time, is in how to respond to an RFI.

How it works in Conflo

In Conflo's RFI tool, the log is built from the RFIs themselves, so there is nothing to retype. Each row shows the RFI's number, subject, who it is waiting on, status, days open and due date, and an overdue RFI is marked as overdue. Tabs split the log into all, waiting on you, open, overdue, drafts and closed, and you can search it.

The log exports as a PDF of every RFI matching the tab and search: number, subject, who it is from, status, who it is waiting on, the sent, due, answered and closed dates, days open, and cost and schedule impact, with counts of open, overdue and closed RFIs.

The RFI log in Conflo: each RFI's number, subject, who it is waiting on, status, days open and due date, with tabs for RFIs waiting on you, open, overdue, drafts and closed. — The RFI log in Conflo: each RFI's number, subject, who it is waiting on, status, days open and due date.

The bottom line

An RFI log is one numbered list with the columns that drive action: ball in court, sent, due, answered, days open and impact. Update it the day anything changes, put the overdue ones first, and review it at every weekly meeting.

If your log is a spreadsheet someone retypes before each meeting, build it from the RFIs instead.

See how RFIs work in Conflo

Sources

Project Delivery Manual, 16.2 Request for Information — City of Los Angeles, Bureau of Engineering. Read October 22, 2026.
Project Delivery Manual, 16.6 Meetings — City of Los Angeles, Bureau of Engineering. Read October 22, 2026.
Project Delivery Manual, 16.7 Meeting Minutes — City of Los Angeles, Bureau of Engineering. Read October 22, 2026.
0600 Construction Administration Procedures Manual, §2.4.1 Pre-Construction Conference — State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services. Read October 22, 2026.

Questions

What should an RFI log include?

For each RFI: its number, subject, who sent it, who it is waiting on, the dates sent, due, answered and closed, its status, days open, and cost and schedule impact. Keep one project-wide sequence, and sort the open ones oldest first.

What does ball in court mean on an RFI log?

The person or company who must act next: the architect or engineer while they are answering, the GC once the answer is back and needs closing, the owner if the question is theirs to decide.

How do you count days open on an RFI?

Count calendar days from the day it was sent to the day it was closed, or to today if it is still open. An RFI sent March 27 and still open on April 7 has been open 11 days.

Who keeps the RFI log?

Usually the general contractor's project manager, since RFIs go through the GC. On some public jobs the owner's construction manager tracks them in its own system as well.

What is the difference between an RFI template and an RFI log?

The template is the form for one RFI: the question, references, proposed answer and impact. The log is the list of every RFI on the job and where each one stands.