YOUR NUMBERS. YOUR NEXT STEP.
Busy is good.
Getting paid properly is better.
Start with the real cost of doing the work, including your own time. Then see what you need to charge for the margin you want.
Pricing & profit margin
01 / PUT YOUR NUMBERS IN
Let’s see what the numbers say.
Sample numbers are already filled in. Change them to fit your business; the results update as you go.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Your time belongs in the price.
Being busy does not automatically mean you are making money. You can sell a job, pay for the materials, put in a full day of work, and discover there is almost nothing left. That is especially easy to do when you leave your own time out of the price. This calculator starts with the cost of delivering one product, service, or job and works backward from the margin you want.
02 / HOW TO USE IT
Start here. Change one number at a time.
01
Pick one product, service, or typical job. Enter its materials or product cost.
02
Add the hours needed and the hourly labor cost. Include your own time and applicable payroll costs. If a supplier cost already includes the labor, do not count it again.
03
Add other costs that happen because you made this sale: subcontractors, delivery, transaction fees, or similar direct costs.
04
Enter the margin you want and your current price. Compare the suggested price with what you charge today.
AN EXAMPLE, NOT A PROMISE
A $200 job is not a $200 price.
$200
DIRECT COST
$333.34
PRICE FOR A 40% MARGIN
That leaves $133.34 per sale to help cover overhead and profit.
03 / WHAT THE RESULT MEANS
A number is useful when you know what to do with it.
The amount left per sale still has to cover monthly overhead and income tax before it becomes take-home profit. A 40% margin is not the same as a 40% markup. With $200 in direct costs, a 40% target margin needs a selling price of $333.34; adding 40% to cost would give you $280 and a much smaller margin.
Use the break-even calculator next to see whether enough sales at this price will cover your monthly bills.
THE NUMBERS WORK TOGETHER
One answer usually leads to the next question.
KEEP GOING
Break-even & sales goals
Work out how many sales you need to cover your monthly costs and leave the profit you actually want. Then see what a price change could do.
KEEP GOING
Cash flow & runway
Materials and wages go out now. The customer pays later. See the gap, plan your reserve, and know what you need before you take on the work.
KEEP GOING
Leads & marketing budget
Turn a new-customer revenue goal into a lead target and an estimated marketing budget. Then see what happens when you close more of those leads.
KEEP LEARNING
The calculator gives you a number.
The lessons help you use it.
Build the business, understand the money, then put your marketing to work.