Estimate the whole job
A job that takes two hours to complete may also need a discovery call, setup, travel, invoicing, and revisions. Write down every step before naming a price. If you ignore these hours, the hourly return you expect can be very different from what you actually earn.
For a fixed-price job, define the result first: the number of items, format, turnaround, assumptions, and included revisions. Describe what would require a new quote. Clear scope protects both you and the customer from different expectations.
Build a simple cost floor
For planning, add your estimated time multiplied by a chosen labor rate, direct job costs, and a reasonable share of overhead. Your labor rate is an assumption to test, not a salary guarantee. Think about unpaid marketing and administrative time when setting it. Do not count the same overhead twice.
Here is a fictional USD example: 2.5 total hours at $28 equals $70. Add $12 of direct costs and $8 of allocated overhead. The resulting planning cost is $90. None of those figures represents a recommended rate for your location or trade.
Leave room beyond the cost floor
If you want a 15% margin over these modeled costs, divide $90 by 0.85. The result is $105.88. At that price, about $15.88 remains after the modeled costs. Multiplying $90 by 1.15 gives a 15% markup instead, which is a different calculation.
This is an estimating model, not an accounting or tax calculation. It excludes taxes and any costs you have not entered, such as payment fees or unexpected rework. Your labor allowance is not necessarily treated as an expense in your accounts. Confirm tax treatment and required customer disclosures locally. A calculator cannot tell you what buyers will pay.
Compare, quote, and measure
Compare genuinely similar services rather than copying the cheapest advertised price. If the market will not support your estimate, consider narrowing the deliverable, improving the process, or choosing another customer group. Lowering the price without understanding the gap can make every new booking a problem.
Send a written quote with the scope, price, payment timing, and what happens if the work changes. After delivery, record actual hours, expenses, and rework. Use that evidence to improve the next estimate. The SBA startup-cost guidance can help you spot expense categories you missed.
Sources & further reading
- SBA: Startup costs and business planning →
Background on identifying expenses. The calculation is an original illustrative planning example, not an SBA quote or recommendation.
Sources checked 5 November 2026. These are original, AI-assisted educational guides, not professional legal, tax, or financial advice. Examples are fictional. Government guidance is U.S.-specific; check local requirements. No affiliation with the linked organizations is implied.