# How to price a job as a tradesman (step by step)

> A simple way to price trade work from your costs, so every job pays for your time, the van, insurance and a fair profit. Worked through step by step.

Source: https://roughfigure.com/blog/how-to-price-a-job (updated 2026-05-08)

Knowing how to price a job is one of the hardest parts of running a trade business. Plenty of trades price by feel: what the last job went for, what the competition charges, what seems fair. That works until it doesn’t, and you have a busy month that somehow doesn’t leave much in the bank.

Pricing from your costs is a simple check that every job pays its way. Here’s the method, step by step.

## Step 1: work out your labour cost

Hours on site × people on the job × what each person costs you an hour.

- For **employees**, that’s their wage plus the employer’s taxes on wages (in the UK, National Insurance), pension and holiday pay.
- For **yourself**, use what you want to pay yourself, not what’s left over at the end.

Include time setting up, clearing up and loading the van, not just the time spent on the work itself.

## Step 2: add materials and disposal

Everything you buy for the job, plus tip fees, skip hire or green waste charges. Add a small margin to materials you supply. You’re paying for them up front and taking the risk if something’s wrong.

## Step 3: add travel

Miles there and back × a rate per mile that covers fuel and wear on the van. For jobs that take several days, count every day’s travel.

## Step 4: add overheads

Overheads are the costs that don’t belong to one job: van finance, insurance, tools, phone, software, accountant, advertising. Add up a year of them and divide by your working days to see what each day has to cover. Many small firms find it easiest to add overheads as a percentage of each job’s costs.

## Step 5: add profit

On top of all your costs, add profit. This isn’t greed: it’s what pays for quiet weeks, new kit, training and growing the business. A business that only covers its costs is one bad month away from trouble.

## Step 6: add tax if you’re registered

If you’re registered for VAT, GST or sales tax, and it applies to your work, add it to the total. Where homeowners expect prices that include tax (the UK, Europe, Australia and New Zealand), show them the full price; where tax is usually added at the end (the US and Canada), say clearly that it will be. See [should prices include tax?](https://roughfigure.com/blog/should-prices-include-vat) for how to show it clearly.

## Worked through

Here’s a two-person job. The figures are only for illustration, so use your own. Worked out in pounds with UK VAT at 20%. The method is the same in any currency: use your own rates, mileage and tax.

| Item                                     | Cost        |
| ---------------------------------------- | ----------- |
| Labour: 6 hours × 2 people × £18 an hour | £216        |
| Materials and tip fees                   | £60         |
| Travel: 20 miles × 45p                   | £9          |
| Overheads at 15%                         | £42.75      |
| Profit at 20%                            | £65.55      |
| **Price before VAT**                     | **£393.30** |
| VAT at 20%                               | £78.66      |
| **Price including VAT**                  | **£471.96** |

You can do this calculation in seconds with our free [pricing calculator](https://roughfigure.com/tools/pricing-calculator), which also suggests a sensible range to quote.

## Turn the price into a range

Before you’ve seen a job, a range is more honest than a single figure. Something like 10% below to 15% above your calculated price covers jobs that turn out a little easier or harder than they looked. Our guide to [giving a ballpark price](https://roughfigure.com/blog/how-to-give-a-ballpark-price) explains how to set ranges customers trust.

## Common pricing mistakes

- **Forgetting your own time.** Paying yourself “whatever’s left” is how busy businesses stay poor.
- **Leaving out travel and setup.** Short jobs far away can lose you money.
- **No minimum charge.** Small jobs still cost you travel and setup. See [call-out charges and minimum charges](https://roughfigure.com/blog/call-out-charges-and-minimum-charges).
- **Never putting prices up.** Your costs rise every year, so your prices should too.
- **Matching the cheapest competitor.** You don’t know their costs, or whether they’ll still be trading next year.

## Questions

### Should I price by the hour or by the job?

Most homeowners prefer a price for the job, because they know what they’ll pay. You can still work it out from hours, as above, then quote a job price.

### How much profit should I add?

It depends on your trade, your area and how busy you are. The important thing is to add profit on purpose, as a separate line, rather than hoping it’s in there somewhere.

### How often should I review my prices?

At least once a year, and whenever your costs change noticeably, such as fuel, insurance or wages.