Electrical work is usually priced by the hour with a minimum, at a flat price per task from a price book, or per point on bigger jobs. Whichever way you quote, check it against the real cost of the job.
Start with the full cost of one electrician-hour
Every electrical estimate rests on one number: what one hour of one person really costs you. It is not the wage. It is the wage plus everything you pay because that person is on the payroll.
- Payroll taxes and any benefits you pay.
- Workers' compensation and liability insurance.
- Paid time that no single job covers, such as training and shop time.
Many service crews pair a journeyperson (a fully licensed electrician) with an apprentice. Work out a cost for each, then an average cost for the pair. That is the number you multiply your hours by. If you have never worked it out, the labor burden calculator shows what sits on top of the wage.
Walk the job and count every point
A point is any spot where you install or connect something: an outlet, a switch, a light, a smoke alarm, an appliance hookup. Counting points and parts is called a takeoff. It is the backbone of the estimate.
On a service or small renovation job, do the takeoff on site, room by room. While you walk, note what will change the hours:
- Open framing or finished walls. Fishing wire (pulling it through a closed wall) takes far longer than running it through open studs.
- Attic and crawlspace access, insulation depth, and ceiling height.
- The panel: its age, its brand, free spaces, and whether it can take the new load.
- The age and type of the existing wiring, and anything that is clearly not to code.
- How far the new work is from the panel.
Take photos of the panel and every tricky spot. You will price better at your desk with the pictures in front of you.
Turn the count into labor hours
Give each type of point a time. This is called a labor unit: the hours one item normally takes, such as one pot light in a finished ceiling. Printed labor unit manuals exist, but for service work your own past jobs are the better guide. They reflect your crew, your area and the kind of houses you work in.
- Multiply each item count by its labor unit.
- Raise the time for hard conditions: old plaster, deep insulation, tall ceilings, tight attics.
- Add the time that is not on the list: setup, protecting floors, testing, labelling the panel, and cleanup.
- Add the supply house run and the permit and inspection visits.
- Add drive time both ways for every person on every day.
The last three steps are the easiest ones to forget. For a full method, read how to estimate labor hours for a job.
Price the materials, not just the big items
Fixtures and breakers are easy to remember. The small parts are what slip.
- Wire. Measure the runs, then add for drops, loops and waste. Copper prices move, so check your supplier's price when you quote, not last year's.
- Boxes, connectors, staples, straps and fittings. A simple way to cover them is a set small-parts amount per point, rather than counting every wire nut.
- Breakers, devices and cover plates. Match the panel brand, and price the quality of switch and outlet the customer expects.
- Permit fees. Rules and fees vary by city, province and state. Check them for each job.
- Customer-supplied fixtures. Say in writing that you install them as supplied and do not cover their defects.
Put an expiry date on the quote. If material prices jump, an old quote should not bind you forever.
Hourly, flat rate, price book or per point
Electrical work is priced in four common ways. Each one fits a different kind of job.
- Hourly (time and materials). Fits troubleshooting, where you cannot know the cause until you find it. Always charge a minimum or a service call fee so a short visit still covers the drive and setup.
- Flat rate per task. One price for a known task, such as adding a circuit or swapping a panel. Customers like a firm number.
- A price book. A list of your standard tasks, each with a set price. It lets every electrician on your team quote the same way on site.
- Per point. Used on new houses and bigger rough-ins (the wiring put in before the walls are closed). You set one price for each point, plus separate prices for the panel, the main power line into the house, and special circuits.
A flat price, a price book line and a per-point price are all shortcuts. Build each one from the same math: hours times your full hourly cost, plus materials, vehicle and fuel, then divide by one minus your margin. See flat rate vs hourly pricing for when each one protects you.
Make sure the margin pays your overhead
Overhead is everything that is not one job: the office, the phone, ads, software, licences, the shop and your own pay. In this method, overhead is paid out of your margin, not added as a line item.
Test it once a year. Add up your yearly overhead, then divide by the hours your crews bill in a year. That tells you how much each billable hour must carry before you earn any profit. If a typical job's margin, divided by the hours billed on it, is smaller than that, your prices are too low, no matter how good the takeoff is.
Also watch the difference between margin and markup. Adding 50% to your costs gives you a 33% margin, not 50%. The guide to profit margin vs markup explains why.
What a sample electrical bid should include
A clear bid causes fewer arguments later. A good one has these parts:
- The scope, room by room. For example: kitchen, six pot lights on one new switch; island, two outlets on a new circuit.
- What is included. Permit, materials, testing, cleanup.
- What is not included. Drywall patching, painting, moving furniture, upgrading the panel if it turns out to be full.
- Your assumptions. Clear access to the attic and panel, and existing wiring in usable shape.
- The change rule. Any added work gets a written price and the customer's okay before you do it.
- One total price, with options listed separately so the customer can add or drop them.
- Payment terms and the date the quote expires.
Show the customer the total and the scope. You do not need to show your hours or your margin. For tips on layout and follow-up, read how to quote a job professionally.
Mistakes to avoid and jobs to walk away from
- Pricing from the wage. The wage leaves out taxes, insurance and unpaid time.
- Counting the points but not the access. Ten outlets in open framing and ten in finished plaster are different jobs.
- Forgetting the return trips. Rough-in, inspection and finish can mean three visits, each with its own drive.
- Assuming the panel can take it. A full or tired panel can turn a small job into a big one. Price the upgrade as an option up front.
- No minimum on service calls. A 20-minute fix still costs you the drive and the setup.
Walk away, or raise the price, when the customer wants the work done without a permit, when the existing wiring is unsafe and they will not fix it, or when they want a firm price on a job you cannot see into. A higher price covers that risk. A lower price just pays you to take it.
After each job, compare the hours you planned with the hours your crew logged. CrewBrain tracks crew hours by job, so you can see which kinds of work earn their price and fix the labor units that do not.
A worked example: a kitchen update with six new pot lights on a new switch and one new 20-amp counter circuit in a finished house
| Item | How it is worked out | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Labor | 2 people × 8 hours (including drive time) × $52 per hour | $832 |
| Materials | Supplies used on the job | $420 |
| Vehicle and fuel | Truck time and fuel for this job | $40 |
| Job costs | $1,292 | |
| Price at a 50% margin | $1,292 ÷ 0.50 | $2,584 |
| Left after job costs | $2,584 − $1,292 | $1,292 |
Where the price goes in this example
Every dollar of the price, split into the costs it covers and what is left over.
- Labor $832 (32%)
- Materials $420 (16%)
- Vehicle and fuel $40 (2%)
- Left after job costs $1,292 (50%)
The whole bar is the price the customer pays: $2,584. Illustrative numbers, built from the table above.
The hourly cost is a blended full cost for a journeyperson and an apprentice, including payroll taxes, insurance and workers' compensation, not just the wage. Drive time is counted for both people, both ways, as paid time. These numbers are an illustrative example of the method. They are not a price list, and not a promise of what your jobs will earn.
Try it with your own numbers
Job costs means crew time (with drive time), materials, vehicle and fuel. Hourly cost per person is the full cost of an hour, including payroll taxes and insurance, not just the wage. This is a simple calculator, not a quote.
Keep going
- CrewBrain for electrical contractors: how the software handles quoting, scheduling and crew time for this trade.
- How to price plumbing jobs so every call pays
- How to price handyman jobs so every visit pays
- trip-charge.html
- How to price a service job: the five-step method behind every page in this series.
- Job price calculator: the same calculator as above, on its own page.
- What is a good profit margin for a service business?
- How to estimate labor hours for a job
- All pricing guides by trade
Questions owners ask
How do you estimate electrical work for a house?
Walk the house and count every point: outlets, switches, lights and appliance hookups. Give each one a time based on your past jobs, add setup, inspections and drive time, then multiply by your full hourly cost and add materials before applying your margin.
How do I calculate labor for an electrical job?
Multiply the count of each item by the hours it normally takes, then raise the time for hard access such as finished walls or old plaster. Add setup, cleanup, permit visits and drive time for every person on the crew.
How much should an electrician charge per hour?
Work it out from your own costs. Take the full cost of one electrician-hour, including taxes, insurance and unpaid time, and divide it by one minus the margin you need to cover overhead and profit.
Should electricians charge flat rate or hourly?
Use flat rates or a price book for tasks you do often and can see clearly. Use hourly with a minimum for troubleshooting and any work where the cause or scope is hidden.
What should an electrical bid include?
A room-by-room scope, what is and is not included, your assumptions, a rule for added work, one total price with options listed separately, payment terms and an expiry date.