Bid the job. Know your margin before you send it.
Enter the labor, materials and markup for an install, cleanup or one-off job. See the bid, the profit and how long it takes.
Bid$2,110
Profit$35516.8% margin
Your cost$1,755incl. $229 overhead
Days on site1
How this is worked out
- Labor cost = person-hours × what an hour of labor costs you.
- Direct cost = labor + materials + other costs such as rentals and dump fees.
- Overhead = direct cost × your overhead percent.
- Bid = (direct cost + overhead) × (1 + markup), rounded up to the nearest $10.
- Margin = profit ÷ bid. Days on site = person-hours ÷ (crew size × hours a day), rounded up to a half day.
What it assumes
- Markup is on cost, so a 20% markup is a margin of about 17%, not 20%.
- Labor cost should include payroll taxes and workers’ comp, not just the wage.
- Materials are at your cost. If you mark materials up separately, add it to the markup.
- The starting numbers are placeholders. Put in your own crew, rates and materials.
Send it as a quote customers can accept
Lawnly turns your services, materials and add-ons into a quote, tracks when it’s opened, and lets the customer accept online.
Questions
What’s the difference between markup and margin?
Markup is added to your cost. Margin is the share of the price that’s profit. A 25% markup gives a 20% margin.
What should go in overhead?
Costs that aren’t tied to one job: insurance, trucks, the shop, phones, software and the office. Divide a year of overhead by a year of direct costs to get your percent.
Should I round my bids?
Yes. Round up, never down. The estimator rounds up to the nearest $10.
Does this work for snow or cleanups?
Yes. Any job you can put in hours, materials and other costs works the same way.