How to price a job as a UK tradesperson

A cheap quote feels like you won the job.

Then the van still needs fuel. The merchant still wants paying. Tax still lands. You did the work. You just did not get paid enough for it.

This is how to build a price that covers you. Any trade. Your numbers. Not a figure you copied on site.

You are not on a wage. You are the business.

Every day on site has to cover:

• The money you need to live on
• The van, tools, insurance, phone, accountant
• Days you do not bill (holiday, quoting, chasing, being sick)
• Tax

Finance for Tradesmen (March 2026) says most tradespeople set a rate by copying someone on site. Many of those people have not worked out their own costs either.

Busy all year and still short is the usual result.

Labour. Materials with a markup. VAT if you are registered.

Miss one and you are paying for the job yourself.

Part	What it covers
1. Your day rate is your labour	(Target income + overheads + tax buffer) ÷ billable days = day rate
2. Materials, plus a markup	A markup of 15–25% on what you paid is common for most trades
3. VAT, if you are registered	The standard rate is 20% for most goods and services

1. Your day rate is your labour

Do not start with what jobs "go for" round here.

Start with what you need. Turn that into a day rate. Then multiply by how long this job will take.

Finance for Tradesmen's formula:

(Target income + overheads + tax buffer) ÷ billable days = day rate

What to Charge (2026) uses the same idea.

Use your numbers.

• Income. What you need to take home. Put tax in the sum. Finance for Tradesmen allows a 25–30% tax buffer on profit. What to Charge works backwards from take-home to the gross you must invoice. Either way, HMRC is not optional.
• Overheads. Van, fuel, insurance, tools, accountant, phone, memberships, PPE. Use last year's actual spend. Do not guess low.
• Billable days. Not 260. What to Charge says most sole traders land around 200–215 after holiday, quoting and admin. Finance for Tradesmen says many realistically bill 180–200. Count yours.

Finance for Tradesmen's illustration (their example, not a Tradehand rate): £50,000 income + £11,000 overheads + an £11,000 tax buffer, divided by 200 days.

That day rate is your labour. For a small job, split it into hours if you need to. For a bigger job: days × day rate.

Be honest about time. Older houses, waiting on other trades, and "I'll just absorb it" are how a decent day rate still loses money.

If you can see the whole job, put labour as a fixed figure. If you cannot, say you are on a day rate until the scope is clear.

You can work out a day rate once. The next job still needs a number. Your assistant prices it from those rates and puts it on the quote.

2. Materials, plus a markup

Do not supply materials at cost.

You chose them, ordered them, collected them, and carry the risk if the price moves or a pack is short. That is work.

What to Charge's job-pricing guide (2026) says a markup of 15–25% on what you paid is common for most trades. They say it covers sourcing time, price risk and wastage. That range is theirs, not a Tradehand going rate.

Pick a markup that covers your actual time and risk. Use it every time.

On the quote, show materials as a line. Markup already in, or shown separately. Never as a favour. A favour is unpaid labour.

3. VAT, if you are registered

You only add VAT if you are VAT-registered.

You must register if either:

• your total taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or
• you expect your taxable turnover to go over £90,000 in the next 30 days

You can register below that if you choose. Same figures on VAT thresholds.

Once you are registered, you must charge VAT on what you sell unless it is exempt. The standard rate is 20% for most goods and services.

Do not absorb it. Add it on top of labour and materials. Show it as its own line.

If you are not registered, write that no VAT applies. Customers often assume it is already in.

VAT you collect is not yours. It goes to HMRC.

The customer should see the price without ringing you.

Say if this is a quote (fixed, if the scope stays the same) or an estimate (likely cost, can move).

Put:

• What you will do, and what you will not
• Labour (days or hours at your rate, or a fixed labour total)
• Materials (markup already in, or shown separately)
• VAT as its own line if you are registered, or a clear "no VAT" if you are not
• The total they will pay
• How long the price stands (30 days is common)
• Payment: deposit, staged, or on finish

If you gave a number on the drive, send the same number in writing. A verbal price is easy to argue about later.

Once you have the number, put it on a job quote if the scope is clear, or a job estimate if it is not.

That is the bit the customer can read, keep, and accept. The method above is how you got there.

The method is your numbers. Time is why the next job still goes out as a guess. That is why the assistant exists.