Carpentry estimating software that wins more jobs

A trim price is built from five pieces:

1. Tear-out and prep: removing the old base and casing, and protecting the floors.
2. Running trim: base, shoe, crown and chair rail, priced by the foot.
3. Openings and pieces: doors, casings, windows, mantels and stair parts, priced by the piece.
4. Wall treatments: wainscot, beadboard and shiplap, priced by the square foot.
5. Finish: filling, caulking and paint, if it's in your scope.

Measure the run, then add waste

Measure each room's perimeter:

• Base and shoe: take out the door openings.
• Crown: take the full perimeter.

Then add waste for cuts, copes and short pieces. A room with many corners wastes more than a long hallway. Enter the feet after waste, so what you price is what you buy.

Common line items and how each is measured

These are the common lines on a trim carpentry estimate. Each is measured one of three ways:

• By the linear foot: running trim and handrail.
• By the square foot: wall treatments.
• By the each: doors, casing sets, stair treads and built-ins.

The hours and prices are yours to set. You know your own pace, and every line's hours are editable.

Crown eats a third of a room's hours

Example: Here's a 12 by 14 foot living room with about 50 feet of base after the door opening, 52 feet of crown, two windows and one door to case. The hours below are example figures; say your own records show you need:

Work	Your hours
Remove old base and shoe, 50 feet	2.5
New MDF baseboard, 50 feet	4
Shoe molding, 50 feet	2
Crown, 52 feet	7
Window casing with stool and apron, 2	4
Door casing, 1 set	1.5
Total	21

Crown is a third of the room's hours on its own.

That's why a single per-foot trim rate loses money in rooms with crown.

Your labor rate is more than the wage

What you pay a carpenter isn't your labor rate. Your rate has to cover:

• the wage
• payroll taxes plus your workers' comp and liability premiums
• the miter saw, the compressor, the nailers and the truck
• the unpaid hours: measuring, bidding, picking up material and coming back for the punch list

Then it needs a profit.

How BuildWell sets each line's rate

In BuildWell, every line's hourly rate comes from three numbers:

1. Wage: the metro median for that line's trade: carpenter, carpenter helper or painter.
2. Overhead: your labor overhead, set at 100% to begin with, so the wage doubles.
3. Markup: your labor markup, set at 20% to begin with.

Example: Say your carpenter costs you $30 an hour. Use your real number. The 21 hours in that living room work out like this:

• Wages: 21 × $30 = $630
• With 100% overhead: $1,260
• With 20% markup: $1,512 for labor

In BuildWell, the tear-out line starts from the carpenter helper wage instead, so your real number will differ a little. Painting the new trim comes on top.

Paint grade and stain grade are different jobs

Paint-grade and stain-grade trim go up at different speeds:

• Paint grade: MDF and finger-jointed pine go up fast, take caulk and get painted.
• Stain grade: oak or poplar needs tighter joints, more time per cut and no filler showing.

Price the material at what it costs near the job this week. If you're installing stain-grade, raise the hours to match.

BuildWell asks about material quality, starts material markup at 20%, and lets you change it per estimate.

List client-bought doors without charging

When the client buys the doors or the mantel, mark them client-supplied. They're listed so the scope is clear, but they aren't charged.

Plan for lead, crooked walls and rot

• Homes built before 1978: pulling old base and casing disturbs paint. The EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule requires lead-safe work practices by a certified renovator. Price the setup and cleanup as their own line; in BuildWell, ticking a pre-1978 home adds it.
• Out-of-square walls and floors: old houses mean scribing, shimming and more caulk. Add time, or say in your terms how you'll handle it.
• Rot: a window stool or a door jamb can hide water damage. State what's included and how you'll price a repair.

Pay depends on your market and your counts

What carpenters earn depends on the market and the work. Wages vary between metro areas and between rough and finish carpenters. Owners earn the margin between what they charge and what the work costs.

For trim carpenters that margin lives in how accurately you count feet and openings. It also lives in how well you price crown, stairs and stain-grade work.

Self-employment tax is 15.3%

As a sole proprietor or single-member LLC, you pay self-employment tax on your net earnings: 15.3% in total.

• Social Security, 12.4%: applies to net earnings up to the Social Security wage base, which is $184,500 for 2026.
• Medicare, 2.9%: applies to all of it.
• Deduction: you can deduct half of the self-employment tax on your income tax return.

You'll owe federal and state income tax as well, so hold back part of every payment you receive.

Pay estimated taxes every quarter

Nobody withholds tax from what clients pay you, so the IRS expects payments during the year on Form 1040-ES. They're usually due in mid-April, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January.

Track these deductions as you go

Carpentry businesses commonly deduct:

• saws, nailers, compressors and hand tools
• blades, bits and consumables
• the business share of your truck
• fuel
• insurance and license fees
• lead-safe training and certification
• phone and software

Keep receipts and log mileage as you go.

Send a 1099-NEC to subs you pay

If you pay an unincorporated subcontractor for services, you'll generally need to send them a Form 1099-NEC. For payments made in 2026 and later, that applies once you've paid them $2,000 or more in a year, up from $600 before 2026.

Get a Form W-9 before the first payment, whether it's a helper or a painter you sub to.

Sales tax on materials depends on your state

States treat carpentry contractors differently:

• Some have you pay sales tax when you buy materials.
• Others have you charge it to the client, on materials or on the whole job.

Check your state's revenue department. In BuildWell, sales tax applies to materials only, not labor, at the rate you set.

This is general information, not tax or legal advice. A tax professional who works with contractors can tell you what applies to your state and business.