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Remodeling pricing guide: how to price jobs

Price remodeling jobs by costing up from materials, loaded labor, and subs, adding a line for overhead, then applying a 15 to 30 percent margin on top — never by copying a competitor's number you can't see the costs behind. Most healthy remodelers net 10 to 20 percent after overhead. The job that loses money usually looked profitable because overhead was never in the math.

We build websites and lead systems for remodelers, not accounting software — so this is a practical pricing guide, not financial advice. Below is the cost-up method, rough room ranges to sanity-check against, the markup math, and the mistakes that quietly eat margin.

The cost-up method, step by step

🧾 1. Total your hard costs

Materials, fixtures, and subcontractor quotes for the actual scope. Use real numbers from suppliers and subs, not last year's prices. This is the floor under the job.

⏱️ 2. Add your labor at a loaded rate

Estimate hours by phase and multiply by a loaded hourly rate that includes wages, payroll taxes, and workers' comp — not just the wage. Underloading labor is the most common pricing mistake remodelers make.

🏢 3. Cover overhead

Insurance, vehicles, fuel, tools, your office and estimating time, software, advertising. Spread it across jobs as a percentage. A job that ignores overhead can look profitable and still lose money.

📈 4. Apply your margin

Add 15 to 30 percent on top as profit — markup, not margin, so do the math correctly. Marking cost up by 25 percent is not a 25 percent margin. Get this right or you'll undercharge on every bid.

Rough room ranges to sanity-check against

National 2026 ballparks only — always price from your own costed numbers. Use these to catch a bid that's wildly off:

Mid-range bathroom remodel $12,000–$30,000
Mid-range kitchen remodel $25,000–$70,000
Basement finish $30,000–$75,000
Whole-house remodel (per sq ft) $100–$250+

Pricing mistakes that kill margin

When your pricing isn't the problem

Honest take: sometimes the issue isn't your number, it's not having enough good leads to be selective. You don't need us if:

Where we actually help

Pricing protects each job — our part is getting you enough quality leads to bid at your real number instead of chasing every job on price. We build remodeling sites that show your finished kitchens, baths, and additions, your license, and reviews, with an AI assistant that captures project scope and books estimates around the clock. 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: contractor website design, remodeling SEO, remodeling contract template, SEO for contractors, and lead generation.

We don't post stock testimonials. On a 15-minute call we screen-share the real dashboards behind our own businesses — live leads, rankings, and the exact page that produced each one. See the proof →

Common questions

What margin should a remodel carry?

Healthy companies net 10 to 20 percent after overhead, with 25 to 40 percent gross before it. Smaller jobs often carry more; large whole-house remodels often less. Under 10 percent net means your pricing or overhead needs attention.

Should I charge for estimates?

A quick ballpark is usually free, but a detailed designed estimate deserves a fee, often credited toward the job. It filters out price-shoppers who use your numbers to negotiate someone else down.

Can I just price off competitors?

No — you can't see their costs, crew, or overhead. Cost up from your own materials, labor, overhead, and margin. Copying a competitor's number is how you end up working a job at a loss without realizing it.

Enough leads to hold your price

Send your company name and city — we'll confirm your market is open and build a working demo within 48 hours. Free, no card, no commitment.

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