Ask ten owners how they set their prices and at least seven will shrug. "Gut feel." "What the last guy charged." "Whatever I think they'll pay." It works, until the month you're busy every day and still can't pay yourself.
Pricing isn't a talent. It's a small sum you can do on the back of an envelope. Here's that sum, in four steps.
Step 1: Know what an hour of your time really costs.#
Not what you'd like to earn, but what it costs to keep the doors open. Add up a normal month: van or car, insurance, phone, software, tools you replace, accountant, rent if you have it, and the salary you want to take home. Then count the hours you can actually bill. Not the hours you work. The hours a customer pays for. Travel, quoting, admin and invoicing don't count.
Example (made up for illustration): Lisa runs a one-woman cleaning business. Her monthly costs plus the salary she wants come to €4,200. She works about 160 hours a month, but after travel and admin only around 105 are billable. So her real cost is €4,200 ÷ 105 = €40 an hour. She'd been charging €30. Every "busy" week was quietly losing her money.
Step 2: Estimate the job in hours, then add the hours you forget.
Write down how long the job takes. Then add what always gets left out: driving there and back, picking up materials, the phone call the day before, the extra half hour because the customer wanted to "show you one more thing". For most small jobs that's 20–30% on top.
Step 3: Add materials, and a margin on them.
If you buy the materials, you carry the risk: breakage, returns, the trip to the shop. A markup of 10–20% on materials is normal in most trades. It isn't greedy. It's payment for that risk and that trip.
Step 4: Add profit on purpose.
Your hourly cost covers your life. Profit is what lets the business survive a quiet month, a broken van or a customer who never pays. Many owners add 10–15% on top of everything. If that feels uncomfortable, remember the alternative is paying for a bad month out of your own pocket.
Example, continued (made up): A deep clean for a 3-bedroom house. Lisa estimates 4 hours of work + 1 hour travel and setup = 5 hours × €40 = €200. Cleaning supplies €15 + 15% = €17.25. Subtotal €217.25, plus 12% profit = about €243. She used to quote €120.
"But nobody will pay that."
Some won't. That's fine. Losing the customers who only buy on price is how you get room for the ones who value good work. Three things help:
- Quote in writing, with the work spelled out. "Deep clean incl. inside oven, fridge and windows" sounds worth more than "cleaning, €243".
- Offer a smaller option rather than a discount. "I can do the kitchen and bathrooms only for €150" keeps your hourly rate intact.
- Raise prices for new customers first. Then tell existing ones a month in advance. Most of them stay.
Check yourself every three months.
Costs creep up. Fuel, insurance and materials don't ask permission. Put a reminder in your calendar once a quarter to redo Step 1. It takes twenty minutes.
Where an assistant helps (if you want one).
You don't need any software for this. A notebook works. But if you have a chat assistant on your phone, it's handy for the boring parts. Paste in your monthly costs and ask it to add them up and divide by your billable hours. Or describe the job and ask it to turn your numbers into a tidy written quote you can send. Always check the figures yourself. It's your name on the quote.
Your turn.
Post a job you're pricing this week in the "Price this job" thread. Say what it is, your estimate in hours and your number. Other owners will tell you honestly whether you're leaving money on the table.