Free tool · Accounting
Project Cost Quote Calculator
Build a project quote from labour hours, materials, overhead and your profit margin.
Add up what a project actually costs before you quote it: hours at your rate, materials, an overhead allowance and a contingency, then apply the profit margin you need. Shows the total cost, the recommended quote and the profit at that price, so you can see whether a number you were about to give away is viable.
- Files never leave your device
- Runs entirely in your browser
- Free, no account needed
How to use Project Cost Quote Calculator
Four steps, and nothing to install.
Enter labour
Add the estimated hours and your billable hourly rate.
Add materials and overhead
Include direct materials and an overhead percentage to cover your fixed costs.
Set contingency and margin
Add a contingency for scope movement, then the profit margin you need.
Read the recommended quote
Check the profit at that price before you send it.
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Open ToolHow do you price a project quote?
Add labour and materials to get direct cost, apply overhead and contingency to reach true cost, then divide by one minus your target margin. Dividing rather than adding the margin is the step that matters: adding it back leaves you short of the margin you intended.
Project Cost Quote Calculator formula
Cost = (Hours x Rate + Materials) x (1 + Overhead%) x (1 + Contingency%) Quote = Cost / (1 - Margin%)
Worked example: 40 hours at 60 plus 500 of materials is 2,900. With 20% overhead and 10% contingency the cost is 3,828, and at a 20% margin the quote is 4,785.
How this works in your browser
Labour is hours times rate, materials are added directly, and overhead is applied as a percentage of that direct cost. Contingency is then applied to the running total, and the profit margin is applied last as a margin on the selling price rather than a markup on cost, which is the correct order: applying a target margin as though it were a markup consistently produces a price that misses the margin you asked for. All arithmetic runs in your browser with nothing transmitted.
Who uses Project Cost Quote Calculator
Freelance and agency quoting
Price a project with overhead and profit accounted for rather than guessed.
Trade and construction jobs
Build a quote from labour and materials with a contingency for the unexpected.
Checking an existing quote
Work backwards to see what margin a price you already gave actually leaves.
Deciding whether to bid
See quickly whether a client budget can support the work at a viable price.
Frequently asked questions
What it can and cannot do, and what happens to your files.
Why include overhead in a project quote?
Because rent, software, insurance and admin time are paid whether or not this project happens, and if no project covers them they come out of your profit. Spreading a share across each job is what turns a quote that looks profitable into one that actually is.
How much contingency should I add?
Ten to twenty percent is common for work you have done before, and more for anything genuinely novel. It is not padding: it is the acknowledgement that scope moves and something always takes longer than planned. Quoting with no contingency means every surprise comes out of your margin.
What hourly rate should I use?
Not your salary divided by 2,080. Bill only the hours you can actually sell, which after admin, sales and downtime is typically half to two thirds of your working hours, then load overhead and the profit you need on top. Rates set by dividing a target salary by total hours are the classic route to underpricing.
Should I show this breakdown to the client?
Usually not in full. Clients rarely respond well to seeing your margin itemised, and it invites line-by-line negotiation. Use the breakdown to set the number, then present a clear total with what is included.
Are my rates and costs stored?
No. Everything is calculated in your browser and nothing is transmitted.
Price a project properly - free.
Files never leave your device. No upload, no account, and free for unlimited use.