Handyman Hourly Rate Calculator
Handyman work has the lowest overhead of the trades on this site and the worst pricing habit: charging by the hour at a number that feels reasonable to the customer. A truck, fuel, a general liability policy, a phone, tools that wear out, and a website is still $20,000 a year before you fix anything. Charge $35 an hour and that $20,000 comes out of your pay.
Billable share is the killer in this trade. Jobs are short, spread across town, and each one needs a quote, a materials run and a drive. Owner-operators who track it land between 50% and 60% billable; many are lower. Customers compare you to the neighbor's kid and to a licensed contractor; you are neither, and your rate should sit between them.
Worked example: $21,500 of overhead, a $65,000 salary target with 20% burden, 48 weeks at 50 hours with 55% billable. That is 1,320 billable hours and a true cost of $75.38 an hour; with 15% margin you need $88.68, rounded up to $90. If that feels high, look at the billable percentage before you look at the rate.
| Overhead | $21,500 |
| Salary target + 20% burden | $78,000 |
| Billable hours (48 wk x 50 h x 55%) | 1,320 |
| True hourly cost | $75.38 |
| With 15% margin | $88.68 |
| Shop rate (rounded up to $5) | $90 |
Want this as a spreadsheet, plus 10 flat-rate examples for your trade?
The spreadsheet version keeps your numbers, and the examples show what common jobs in your trade should cost at your rate. No trial, no sales calls, unsubscribe any time.
Questions handymen ask
Should a handyman charge hourly or per job?
Quote per job from an hourly rate you never show. Customers accept a job price; they argue with an hourly one. The calculator gives you the rate to build the job price from.
What about a minimum charge for small jobs?
Set one and stick to it - $100 to $150 covers the trip and setup that a 20-minute fix never pays for otherwise.
Is there a handyman price book?
Not yet. Use the calculator, leave your email and tell us your trade; the trade with the most requests gets the next book.
Next step
The handyman price book is on the build list. Run the calculator, leave your email above and tell us your trade - the trade with the most requests gets built first.
Other trades: Electrician, HVAC, Plumber, Landscaper, Pressure Washing, Mobile Detailing. Or use the generic rate finder.