Markup and profit margin calculator

Figure out what to charge, or check whether a price you quoted actually makes you money. Built for trade contractors.

Include everything: parts, labor, truck time, insurance allocation
Margin is profit as a percentage of selling price, not cost

Your numbers

Enter your numbers on the left to see results

Quick reference: common markup percentages

Based on a $1,000 job cost. Markup is applied on top of cost; margin is the profit percentage of the final price.

Markup % Multiplier Selling price Profit Actual margin
20%1.20x$1,200$20016.7%
30%1.30x$1,300$30023.1%
40%1.40x$1,400$40028.6%
50%1.50x$1,500$50033.3%
75%1.75x$1,750$75042.9%
100%2.00x$2,000$1,00050.0%

Markup vs. margin: they're not the same thing

This trips up a lot of contractors. Here's the difference.

Markup is how much you add on top of your cost. If something costs you $100 and you mark it up 50%, you charge $150.

Margin is what percentage of the selling price is profit. That same $150 job? Your margin is 33.3%, not 50%. The profit ($50) divided by the selling price ($150) = 33.3%.

The formulas:

Selling price = Cost / (1 - margin%/100)

Margin% = (Selling price - Cost) / Selling price x 100

Markup% = (Selling price - Cost) / Cost x 100

A lot of contractors think they're making a 30% margin when they're really marking up 30%, which only gives them a 23% margin. Over a year, that gap adds up to real money left on the table.

Typical markup ranges by trade

These are rough ranges based on industry norms. Your actual numbers depend on your overhead, market, and how much you want to keep.

HVAC contractors

Parts markup tends to run 30-50%. Equipment (furnaces, condensers) is usually 40-70% on top of wholesale cost. Labor gets baked into the flat rate.

30-70% markup on parts/equipment

Plumbers

Materials usually get marked up 25-50%. Big-ticket items like water heaters might be lower (20-30%) since the customer can easily price-check those.

25-50% markup on materials

Electricians

Wire, panels, and fixtures typically get a 30-50% markup. Specialty items and hard-to-source parts can go higher. Commercial work sometimes runs tighter margins on materials.

30-50% markup on materials

Landscaping

Plants and materials often get marked up 50-100%. The labor-heavy nature of the work means your real profit comes from efficient crews more than material margins.

50-100% markup on plants/materials

General contractors

Standard range is 10-20% on top of subcontractor bids and materials. Overhead and profit (O&P) is typically shown as two separate line items: 10% overhead + 10% profit.

10-20% on sub bids and materials

Painting contractors

Paint and materials markup is usually 30-50%. Since labor is the bulk of a painting job (often 75-85% of total cost), the material markup matters less than your hourly labor rate.

30-50% markup on paint/supplies

More tools for your business

Job pricing calculator

Price any job with your actual overhead, labor rates, and target profit built in.

Contractor rates by city

See what contractors earn in your metro area, based on BLS wage data.

Bid template generator

Create professional bid documents for HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and landscaping jobs.

Invoice template generator

Generate clean, professional invoices ready to send to your customers.

Track your margins for real

A calculator gives you a snapshot. Accounting software shows you the full picture across every job.

QuickBooks

Job costing, invoicing, and expense tracking built for small businesses. Most contractors we talk to use it.

Try QuickBooks free

FreshBooks

Simpler interface, solid time tracking, and easy invoicing. Good if you're a one-person operation or small crew.

Try FreshBooks free

Affiliate disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend tools we'd actually use. See our full disclosure policy.

This calculator provides estimates only and is not professional financial or accounting advice. Your actual margins depend on factors this tool can't account for, like warranty callbacks, seasonal fluctuations, and unbilled time. Talk to your accountant for the real numbers.