Job profitability check for boat service jobs
After a job, put in what you quoted and what really happened: the hours, the travel, the parts. See what the job paid per hour, the margin it made, and what you should have charged to hit your target.
Effective hourly rate
$66.67 / hr
Planned: $107.14 / hr
Gross margin
36.9%
Planned: 56.1%
Price for your target margin
$472.92
$22.92 more than you charged
| Figure | Quoted | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| Hours, including travel | 3.5 h | 5.25 h |
| Labor cost | $122.50 | $183.75 |
| Direct costs | $197.50 | $283.75 |
| Profit | $252.50 | $166.25 |
| Gross margin | 56.1% | 36.9% |
| Effective hourly rate | $107.14 / hr | $66.67 / hr |
The job took 1.75 h longer than quoted and cost $86.25 more.
How this works
These are your numbers, not market prices. The defaults are a worked example so the tool shows something useful; they are not what anyone charges in your area. Replace them with your own rates and costs.
The same sums run for the quote and for what actually happened:
- Hours = hours on the job + travel hours.
- Direct costs = materials and parts + travel costs + hours × labor cost per hour.
- Effective hourly rate = (price − materials − travel costs) ÷ hours. This is what your time earned, whatever you count as labor cost.
- Gross margin = (price − direct costs) ÷ price.
Price for your target margin = actual direct costs ÷ (1 − target margin %), rounded up to the cent. A 40% margin on $283.75 of costs needs $472.92.
The example: a $450 job quoted at 3 hours plus 30 minutes of travel and $60 of materials. It took 4.5 hours plus 45 minutes, and $85 of materials. Counting labor at $35 an hour, the planned margin was 56.1% and the real one 36.9%. The time earned $66.67 an hour instead of the planned $107.14. To make 40% on what it really cost, the price should have been $472.92.
What to do with the answer
- If the same kind of job keeps running long, change the time in your quotes, not just the price of this one.
- Put your minimum rate from the hourly rate calculator in as the labor cost. Then a margin above zero means the job paid more than your floor.
- For work that often grows once you're on the boat, quote a not-to-exceed amount and say how extra work gets approved.