Guides · Updated 2026-10-15
How to price a job: a step-by-step guide for UK trades
Pricing a job is a separate skill from doing it. Underprice and you work for nothing; overprice by guesswork and you lose jobs you should have won. This guide breaks a price into parts you can check: labour, materials, extras, contingency and tax. Each step links to a free calculator. Rules were checked on GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk on 15 October 2026.
Step 1: know your day rate
Everything starts with what an hour or day of your time costs the business, including the hours you can't bill. If you haven't worked it out, read how much to charge per hour and use the day-rate calculator. Without that number, every other step is a guess.
Step 2: estimate the labour time
Break the job into stages and estimate each one: strip-out, first fix, making good, clean-up. Include time for:
- travel and parking, if it's not already in your day rate
- collecting materials
- waiting time you can predict, such as drying or curing
- the final visit to finish snags
Compare with the actual time on similar jobs. A job app that records time on each job makes this far easier next time.
Step 3: price the materials
List the materials with quantities and current prices, plus allowance for waste and offcuts. Then decide your markup: it covers the time spent ordering and collecting, and the risk of returns. Markup and margin aren't the same thing: a 20% markup on cost is a 16.7% margin on the selling price. The markup and margin calculator converts between them.
If material prices are likely to move before you order, say how you'll handle it. The price-change clause generator writes a fair clause. For homeowners it includes a right to cancel, which the Consumer Rights Act 2015 lists as important for any price increase term.
Step 4: add hire, waste and other costs
Skips, scaffold, plant hire, parking permits and waste disposal are easy to forget. If you take waste away in England, you need to register as a waste carrier (GOV.UK).
Step 5: allow for the unknowns
Older properties hide things. Either add a contingency to your price, or list the risks and say how extra work will be priced. Be careful what you promise: for consumers, anything you say or write about the service that the customer relies on becomes part of the contract (Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 50). If there's no fixed price, the customer only has to pay a reasonable price (section 51).
Step 6: VAT and CIS
- VAT-registered? Add VAT at the right rate. Most work is 20%; installing energy-saving materials such as insulation, solar panels and heat pumps in homes is 0% until 31 March 2027 (HMRC). For work for other construction businesses, the domestic reverse charge may apply. See should I register for VAT?.
- CIS subcontractor? The contractor deducts CIS from the labour part, not materials, so show them separately. The CIS calculator shows what you'll actually receive.
A worked example
A sole trader with a day rate of £301.45 prices a job (illustrative figures):
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Labour: 2.5 days at £301.45 | £753.63 |
| Materials: £420 at cost, plus 20% markup | £504.00 |
| Contingency: 10% of labour | £75.36 |
| Subtotal | £1,332.99 |
| VAT at 20% (if registered) | £266.60 |
| Total | £1,599.59 |
The quote and VAT calculator does this sum with your own figures, including 5%, 0% and the reverse charge.
Step 7: write it up
A good price is wasted on a vague quote. Say what's included and excluded, how long the price is valid, payment terms and what happens if the job changes. See how to write a quote that wins and payment terms for trades. Quoting apps can turn a price into a professional quote from your phone; compare them on AI quoting tools for builders and Tradify vs Jobber.
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FAQ
How do I work out how much to charge for a job?
Labour time at your day or hourly rate, plus materials with your markup, plus hire and waste costs, plus a contingency, then VAT if you're registered.
What markup should I put on materials?
There's no set figure. Your markup should cover ordering, collecting and the risk on returns. Remember a 20% markup is a 16.7% margin.
Should I give a fixed price or an estimate?
A fixed price is clearer for the customer. If you can't fix it, explain how the final price will be worked out: without a fixed price, a consumer only has to pay a reasonable price.
Can I change the price after the customer accepts?
Only if the contract allows it. Agree a clear price-change clause up front, with a right to cancel for homeowners.
Is this financial or legal advice?
No. It's a method and an illustrative example, based on GOV.UK and the Consumer Rights Act 2015, checked 15 October 2026.