Plumbing estimating software that wins more jobs

Every plumbing price comes down to the same three pieces:

1. Labor: hours times a rate that covers your real costs.
2. Materials: what the parts cost you, plus a markup.
3. Extras: permits, disposal, trip charges, and the cost of getting it wrong.

Start from your own hours on each line

Start with how long each part of the job actually takes you. These are common plumbing lines and what each is measured in:

• Each: fixtures, valves, heaters and repairs.
• Linear foot: supply and drain runs.

The hours and prices are yours to set. Your crew may be faster or slower than the next one, and every line's hours are editable.

Price removal and install as separate lines

Notice that removal and installation are separate lines. A water heater replacement isn't one task.

Draining down, disconnecting and hauling the old unit takes its own time before the new one goes in. Pricing them separately keeps you from absorbing the removal on every job.

Your labor rate covers more than the wage

A plumber's wage isn't your labor rate. Your rate has to cover:

• the wage
• payroll taxes, workers' comp and liability insurance
• the truck, fuel and tools
• the hours nobody pays for: driving, quoting, picking up parts, callbacks

Then it needs a profit.

BuildWell builds the rate in three steps

1. Wage: the median plumber wage for your metro.
2. Overhead: your labor overhead, which starts at 100%, doubling the wage.
3. Markup: your labor markup, which starts at 20%.

Both percentages live in Pricing settings, and you set them once.

Example: Say your plumber costs you $30 an hour in wages. Use your real number. Say your records show a water heater swap takes your crew 7.5 hours (2.5 to drain and remove, 5 to install); those hours are example figures. It works out like this:

• Wages: 7.5 hours × $30 = $225
• With 100% overhead: $450
• With 20% markup: $540 for labor

If labor looks high, check your overhead

If that number looks high next to what you've been charging, check your overhead. Most small shops undercharge because they price the wage and forget the rest.

Mark up parts to cover trips and returns

Price parts at what you'll actually pay for them this week, near this job. Then add a markup that covers:

• the trip to pick them up
• the returns
• the fitting you didn't need but bought anyway
• your warranty on what you install

BuildWell starts material markup at 20%, and you can change it per estimate.

List client-supplied fixtures at no charge

If the client supplies a fixture, mark it as client-supplied. It stays listed on the estimate, so the scope is clear, but it isn't charged.

Put permits, disposal and surprises on paper

• Permits: many jurisdictions require one for water heater replacements, new fixtures and anything that changes the drain or supply lines. Add your permit fee as its own line. In BuildWell, a flat permit fee is added automatically when the estimate includes permits.
• Disposal: hauling an old water heater, a toilet or a section of cast iron costs time and a dump fee. Put it on the estimate.
• The unexpected: for work behind walls or under slabs, say in writing what's included and how you'll price what you find. "Includes replacing up to 10 feet of supply line; additional pipe at $X per foot" protects you and reads as fair to the client.

Flat rate for routine work, hourly for unknowns

Use flat rates for the jobs you do every week, like faucets, toilets, disposals and shutoff valves, where the work rarely changes. Use time and materials for remodels, repipes and anything you can't see.

Either way, build the number from the same three pieces, so you know what's inside your price.

What plumbers earn depends on where they work

Wages vary widely between metro areas and between apprentices, journeymen and masters.

Owners who run their own jobs earn the margin between what they charge and what the work costs. That's why your labor rate 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.

This is on top of federal and state income tax, so set money aside from every payment you receive.

Pay estimated taxes every quarter

Nobody withholds tax from your jobs, so the IRS expects you to pay during the year. Use Form 1040-ES. The four payments are usually due in:

• mid-April
• mid-June
• mid-September
• mid-January

Missing them adds penalties.

Track your deductions as you go

Plumbing businesses commonly deduct:

• tools and equipment
• the business share of your truck
• fuel
• insurance and license fees
• continuing education
• phone and software

Keep receipts and log your mileage as you go. Reconstructing a year of it in April costs deductions.

Subs paid $2,000 or more get a 1099-NEC

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 every subcontractor before you pay them.

Check your state's sales tax on materials

States treat plumbing 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 advice. A tax professional who works with contractors can tell you what applies in your state and to your business structure.