Handyman estimating software that wins more jobs

Every handyman price is built from four pieces:

1. Labor: the hours each repair takes, times a rate that covers your costs.
2. Parts and supplies: what you'll pay near the job, plus a markup.
3. The visit: your trip charge or minimum, so a small call still pays.
4. The unknowns: what you'll find behind the wall or under the sink.

Line items: start from your own hours

Start from how long each repair actually takes you. These are common handyman lines and what each is measured in: most repairs by the each, and caulk, trim and repaint work by the foot or square foot.

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

A "few little things" can fill a day

Example: Small jobs add up. Here's a typical visit's list. The hours are example figures; say your own records show:

Repair	Your hours
Two shutoff valves	2.5
Two GFCI receptacles	1.5
Three small drywall patches	3
Rehang a sagging door	1.5
Re-caulk 14 feet of tub and shower joint	1.5
One smoke and carbon monoxide alarm	0.5
Total	10.5

That's more than a full day on site, for a list most homeowners would call "a few little things."

Your labor rate covers more than wages

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

• the wage, or what you pay yourself
• liability insurance, and workers' comp once you hire
• the van, fuel and a stocked parts bin
• the unpaid hours: driving between small jobs, picking up parts, quoting

Then it needs a profit.

How BuildWell prices each hour

BuildWell works out each hour's price in three steps:

1. Wage: the median wage in your metro for the trade on each line.
2. Overhead: labor overhead, 100% to start, which doubles the wage.
3. Markup: labor markup, 20% to start.

Set both percentages once in Pricing settings.

What that visit's labor comes to

Example: Say your time is worth $30 an hour in wages. Use your real number. At one rate, that visit's 10.5 hours work out like this:

• Wages: 10.5 × $30 = $315
• With 100% overhead: $630
• With 20% markup: $756 for labor

In BuildWell, the plumbing and electrical lines start at those trades' local wages instead, so your real total will differ.

If that number looks high next to what you've charged, look at the hours you've been giving away.

Price parts near the job, then mark up

Price each part at what it costs near the job this week. Then add a markup that covers the store runs, the returns, and the screws, anchors and wire nuts that never make it onto a receipt.

Material markup starts at 20% in BuildWell; adjust it per estimate.

List parts the homeowner already bought

When the homeowner has already bought the fixture, the faucet or the fan, mark it client-supplied. It's listed so the scope is clear, but not charged.

Charge for the trip or set a minimum

A one-switch call costs you the same drive as an eight-item list. Most handymen handle that with either:

• a trip or service charge on every visit, or
• a minimum, like a two-hour minimum, that covers the visit whatever the list.

Pick one, write it in your terms, and put it on every estimate as its own line. In BuildWell, add it as a custom line item.

Say how you'll price the unknowns

Small repairs hide small surprises:

• a shutoff that won't close
• rot under the toilet flange
• an outlet box with no ground

For anything behind a wall or under a fixture, say what's included and how you'll price what you find. "Includes reset with new wax ring; flange repair if needed is $X" reads as fair, and saves an awkward conversation.

Pay depends on how you price the visit

What handymen earn depends on how they price the visit. Pay ranges widely between metro areas, and between handymen who stick to minor repairs and those licensed for bigger work.

Billing every hour on site, plus a fair trip charge, matters more than any wage table.

Self-employment tax is 15.3% of net earnings

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.

That's on top of federal and state income tax, so move a share of every payment into a separate account.

Pay quarterly estimated taxes

No one withholds tax from what homeowners 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.

Late or missed payments add penalties.

Track these deductions

Handyman businesses commonly deduct:

• tools, ladders and the parts bin
• the business share of your van or truck
• fuel
• insurance and license or registration fees
• phone and software

Save receipts the day you buy, and log mileage as you drive. A handyman's mileage between small jobs adds up faster than most.

Send a 1099-NEC to helpers and subcontractors

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.

Collect a Form W-9 from anyone you pay, including the licensed electrician you bring in for a panel question.

Sales tax on parts depends on your state

States treat repair work differently. Some have you pay sales tax when you buy parts; others have you charge it to the client, on parts 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 small contractors can tell you what applies in your state.