How to calculate a contractor hourly rate
Not every working hour is billable. Administration, travel, estimates, marketing and callbacks consume time too, so use realistic annual billable hours rather than every hour you expect to work.
What should your hourly rate cover?
Include the owner income target, annual business overhead and a reserve for taxes, benefits or profit. Divide the required annual revenue by realistic billable hours to get a minimum working rate.
Use the result as a starting point
Review the calculation against your actual costs, scope and local requirements before sending it to a customer. The free satellite tool is designed for one calculation at a time; the full Clousit PWA is for saved customers, reusable services, job history and ongoing workflows.
One estimate is free. Your whole workflow belongs in Clousit.
Install the Clousit PWA to save clients, reuse service presets, track jobs, keep full history and use Pro workflows — without starting from scratch every time.
Open Clousit →Frequently asked questions
Is this estimate generator really free?
Yes. You can build, preview and print an estimate from this page with no account and no payment required.
How do I save the estimate as a PDF?
Click Print / Save PDF. In the print dialog that opens, change the destination to Save as PDF. This works on Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge — desktop and mobile.
Does this tool save or store my data?
No. Everything you type stays in your browser's memory for this session only. Close the tab and it clears. Nothing is sent to any server.
Can I add a logo to the estimate?
This free tool keeps it simple — it shows your business name in the document header. For a full branded estimate with logo, use the Clousit PWA.
What is the difference between this free tool and Clousit?
This page solves one task: create a single estimate. Clousit is the full field service workflow app — save clients, jobs, service presets, history, send follow-ups and use AI-powered features.