Trade Job Quote Margin Calculator

Most underpriced jobs are not caused by bad math. They are caused by quoting from a gut number that covers materials and wages but forgets overhead, then treating whatever is left as profit. When the truck, insurance, software, phone and office time come out of that leftover, the job that looked like a winner on site quietly turns into a break-even day. Contractors who quote from a photo in the driveway are especially exposed, because the number has to come out fast and there is no spreadsheet open.

This calculator does the same arithmetic a careful estimator does on paper. It adds materials, labor hours times your fully loaded hourly labor cost and any other direct costs, then applies your overhead percentage to get a break-even price. It then divides that break-even figure by one minus your target gross margin, which is the correct way to price for margin. Marking up by the margin percentage instead of dividing is a common mistake, and the tool shows the equivalent markup so you can see the difference. Every constant is an input, so nothing is hidden.