Build a cost floor without an area rate.
Sum on-site, travel and setup elapsed hours, multiply by workers and cost per worker-hour, then add other job costs. Include owner labour if you want it treated as a cost; profit is then the amount above the costs you entered.
Do not divide annual overhead by all calendar hours if your chosen allocation is based on billable work. Enter your own per-job overhead total and document how you allocated it.
Use the denominator that matches the question.
Break-even price = (operating costs + fixed payment fee) ÷ (1 − payment fee percentage). Target price = the same numerator ÷ (1 − payment fee percentage − target margin).
Fee and margin percentages are entered as parts of customer revenue, not additions to cost. The sum must be below 100%. Target and break-even prices round upward to the next cent to avoid rounding below the calculated floor.
Check the short-job scenario.
The example below uses only 0.5 on-site hour, but 1 travel hour and 0.5 setup hour. Those two extra time entries are why the floor does not shrink in direct proportion to the gutter length or patio area.
This is a cost-led planning model, not a recommended minimum charge for any region. It ignores unentered costs and excludes taxes.
Use the cost worksheet without scripts.
Enter your own GBP costs and work through the two denominator formulas when scripts are disabled. For USD, apply the same ratios to your own USD cost totals; there is no currency conversion or market-price preset.
Illustrative arithmetic / not market rates
A short job with travel and setup
0.5 on-site +1 travel +0.5 setup hour; one worker at £25/hour; £30 other costs; fixed fee£1; payment fee2%; target margin 20%.
Declared scenario
EXAMPLE ONLY- Labour:2 ×1 ×£25
- £50.00
- Operating costs
- £80.00
- Costs plus fixed payment fee
- £81.00
- Break-even:£81 ÷0.98, round up
- £82.66
- 20% target:£81 ÷0.78, round up
- £103.85
Adding20% to £80 would give £96, which is not the same as a 20% margin after the declared fees. Keep the cost basis, fee percentage and desired margin visible.
Scenario record checked . Read the formula and scenario register.
Review the assumptions
A checklist for this page
- Include the travel and setup time you actually expect.
- State whether owner labour is included as cost.
- Avoid re-entering a cost already in another allocation.
- Keep fee plus target margin below 100%.
Minimum job charge: questions
Is the break-even result the same as my desired minimum?
No. Break-even covers the entered costs and fees. A target margin asks for an additional amount above those costs within the defined model.
Why does100% margin fail?
The target denominator becomes zero or negative after any fee. No finite positive price can meet that ratio in this model.
Does this tell me what nearby cleaners charge?
No. It is a cost-led calculation with your own inputs, not competitor pricing research.
Where should I use the chosen floor?
Review it and then enter your chosen minimum in the gutter, pressure or driveway pricing tool. It is not silently imposed on other tools.
Sources and evidence limits
- WashTally formula and scenario register v1.0.0
Declared arithmetic and explicitly hypothetical scenarios checked by automated tests. No trade certification or representative market rates.
Record checked:
A source record or passing arithmetic test does not establish a universal rate, professional review, property assessment or guaranteed outcome.