Bid handyman jobs by estimating the hours, multiplying by a true hourly rate that covers wage plus overhead, adding materials with a 15 to 30 percent markup, then checking against a minimum charge — usually one to two hours of your rate. The mistake that kills handyman profit is pricing only the wrench-turning and forgetting the drive, setup, and cleanup that the visit really costs.
We build websites and lead systems for handymen, not estimating software — so this is a practical pricing guide. Below is how to choose hourly vs flat rate, why a minimum charge matters, the materials-markup math, and the lowball trap that traps so many handymen into working for free.
Count the whole visit: drive time, setup, the actual work, and cleanup. A "20-minute" faucet swap is really an hour once you add travel and packing the van. Price the visit, not the task.
Your rate has to cover wage, insurance, fuel, tools, the van, and your office time — not just what you'd want to earn per hour. A rate that only reflects take-home pay is a slow way to go broke.
Mark materials up 15 to 30 percent to cover sourcing, pickup, fronting the cost, and returns. Standard across the trades. If the customer supplies their own parts, you're not on the hook when the wrong one fails.
Set a floor — often one to two hours of your rate. The drive and setup cost the same whether the job is 20 minutes or two hours, so a minimum keeps tiny jobs from losing money.
The fastest way to stay broke as a handyman is to win every bid on price. The jobs you win by being cheapest are the ones with the most haggling, the most scope creep, and the least loyalty. Bid your real number, lose the price-shoppers, and keep the customers who value reliability. A full schedule of fairly priced work beats a packed schedule of jobs that barely cover gas — and the way out of the price race is having enough leads that you don't need every one.
Honest take: pricing right comes before chasing more leads. You don't need us if:
Good bidding protects each job — our part is getting you enough of the right jobs to bid your real number instead of the lowball. We build handyman sites that show your work, reviews, and a clear service menu, with an AI assistant that captures the task list and books the visit around the clock. More good jobs, fewer price-shoppers. We run this stack on our own home-service companies first.
Plans: $249/mo (site, AI lead capture, hosting), $597/mo (adds the SEO content engine and lead attribution), and from $1,750/mo (adds a custom CRM and reputation automation). Month-to-month, you own everything, free working demo in 48 hours.
Related: handyman SEO, handyman invoice template, handyman business names, SEO for home services, and lead generation.
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Flat rate for predictable jobs like TV mounts and faucet swaps — customers like a known price and you keep the upside. Hourly for open-ended "fix this list" work you can't scope. Most established handymen offer both.
Often one to two hours of your rate. The drive, setup, and cleanup cost the same whether the task is 20 minutes or two hours, so a minimum keeps small jobs from losing money.
Commonly 15 to 30 percent, to cover sourcing, pickup, fronting the cost, and returns. It's standard across the trades. If the customer supplies parts, you're not responsible when the wrong one fails.
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