How to price small jobs and call-outs

Why small jobs and call-outs need a minimum charge

A small job often takes more of your day than the time on site suggests. You travel there and back, load and unload, set up, talk to the customer and write the invoice. If you price only the hour on site, the rest comes out of your own pocket. A minimum call-out charge pays for it.

Start by adding up the time that is not on site:

• Travel there and back.
• Loading, unloading and fetching a part.
• Setup and cleanup.
• Messages with the customer before and after.
• Writing the invoice and logging the job.

Worked example: a one-hour call-out (made-up figures)

Example time: 1 hour on site, 1 hour of travel in total, and half an hour for setup, messages and the invoice. That is 2.5 hours for 1 hour of work on site.

Say the hourly rate calculator gives you $60 per hour as the rate you need (an example, not a suggestion). The time costs 2.5 × $60 = $150.

Add $20 for the vehicle and fuel, and $10 for small parts at cost. Your costs are $180.

You want a 20% margin in the price. In the price, margin and markup calculator, $180 in costs at a 20% margin gives a price of $225, because 180 ÷ (1 − 0.20) = 225. Check: 20% of $225 is $45, and $225 − $45 = $180.

So the example minimum charge is $225, before Tax A and Tax B. Type the name and rate of each tax from the official source, never from memory.

Set your minimum and say it before you go

Decide the smallest job you will take and what the minimum covers. For example: "Minimum charge $225 covers travel and the first hour on site. Extra time is charged at my hourly rate." Put that sentence in your reply to the first message and on the invoice, so nothing surprises the customer.

Your own figures will differ from the example. Work out your hourly rate first, then price the call-out from your real costs. Review the minimum when your costs change.

Next, read how to write a clear quote for a bigger job, and keep the two prices separate: a call-out minimum for small visits, a written quote for larger work.