Service Level Agreement (SLA) Template

A Service Level Agreement (SLA) is a contract between a service provider and a customer that defines the expected level of service, performance metrics, response and resolution times, and remedies if service levels are not met. SLAs are critical for managed IT services, SaaS platforms, cloud hosting, and professional services.

This SLA template includes comprehensive sections for: service scope and description, availability and uptime commitments (e.g., 99.9% uptime), performance benchmarks and targets, incident response times by severity level, escalation procedures and contact points, scheduled maintenance windows, service credits or penalties for SLA breaches, and monitoring and reporting mechanisms.

The template uses industry-standard severity classifications (Critical, High, Medium, Low) with corresponding response time commitments. For example, Critical issues affecting all users might require a 1-hour response time, while Low-severity issues could have a 2-business-day response commitment.

The service credit section specifies how customers will be compensated for SLA violations — typically as account credits or service extensions. This creates accountability and demonstrates the service provider's commitment to reliability.