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Service pricing calculator

See what to charge for a job based on your real costs, and how much of that price you keep.

How to price a service

  1. Add up your time. Count everything the job takes, including travel, setup, and admin.
  2. Put a cost on that time. Use what an hour needs to cover: pay for you or your team, plus a fair share of rent, tools, and software.
  3. Add direct costs. Materials, subcontractors, rentals, and card fees for this job.
  4. Choose a margin. Decide what share of the price you want to keep.
  5. Compare the result with your market. The calculator shows the price your costs call for. You decide whether to charge it, go higher, or change the scope.

How margin and markup connect

Margin is profit as a share of the price. Markup is profit as a share of your cost. The same job has both numbers, and they're easy to mix up.

That's why this calculator divides your cost by (1 minus your margin) instead of adding a percentage on top. The margin you choose is the margin you get.

How to work out the cost of one hour

Add what you want to pay yourself and your team for the year to your running costs, then divide by the hours you can actually charge for. Hours spent on quotes, driving, and admin don't count, because customers don't pay for them directly.

What to include in your costs

  • Unpaid time around the job: quotes, messages, driving, and cleanup.
  • Costs you only notice later: card fees, consumables, and redo time.
  • Your own hours, even if you don't pay yourself by the hour.

Check the price from other angles

Thinking about a discount? The discount margin calculator shows what it would do to your profit. If your prices haven't changed in a while, the underpricing risk assessment is a good next step. And once the quote is out, the quote follow-up email generator helps you keep the conversation going.

FAQ

How do I calculate the price of a service?

Add up the cost of your time, materials, and other job costs, then divide the total by (1 minus your target margin). For example, a $300 job at a 40% margin comes to $500.

What is the difference between margin and markup?

Margin is profit as a share of the price, and markup is profit as a share of the cost. A $300 job sold for $500 has a 40% margin and a 66.7% markup.

What profit margin should a service business aim for?

It depends on your trade, your costs, and what your market will pay. Start with the margin you need to cover slow periods and still pay yourself, then use the comparison table to see what a different margin would change.

Should I charge by the hour or a flat price?

A flat price works well when you can predict the job and want customers to pay for the result. Hourly pricing suits work with an uncertain scope. Either way, this calculator shows what the job needs to bring in.

How do I include my own time in the price?

Give your hour a cost, even if you own the business. Add your yearly pay to your running costs and divide by the hours you can charge for. The calculator has a helper that does this and fills in the result.