Pricing & pricebooks
Plumbing Labor-Burden Calculator: Paid vs Billable Hours
Calculate loaded labor cost by adding annual wages and included employer costs, then dividing by the relevant hours. Cost per paid hour and cost per billable hour answer different questions; neither is automatically the rate you should charge a customer.
In this guide
Enter your own annual inputs
The starting values are illustrative, not plumbing-industry benchmarks. Use the same time period for all inputs. The calculator runs in your browser and does not send the entered values to GoPlumber.
Understand the two denominators
Cost per paid hour spreads the included labor costs over all paid hours. Cost per billable hour spreads the same included costs over the hours you define as billable. Those amounts differ when paid time includes travel, meetings, training, or other nonbillable activity.
Be consistent about what belongs in each category. A billable-hour definition should match your job records and pricing model. Do not compare a figure based on field-service hours with one based on all clocked hours and treat them as the same metric.
Follow the formulas
Loaded annual labor cost = annual wages + included employer costs.
Loaded cost per paid hour = loaded annual labor cost ÷ paid hours.
Allocated labor cost per billable hour = loaded annual labor cost ÷ billable hours.
For a fictional example, $60,000 in wages plus $15,000 in included employer costs equals $75,000. Dividing by 2,000 paid hours gives $37.50 per paid hour. Dividing by 1,400 billable hours gives approximately $53.57 per billable hour.
The $16.07 difference is not a new expense. It reflects spreading the same annual cost across fewer hours. Adding that allocation again as a separate nonbillable-time expense would double count it.
Choose the cost inputs carefully
| Input | What to verify |
|---|---|
| Wages | Same reporting period as the hours |
| Employer costs | Included payroll-related costs and benefits, consistently classified |
| Paid hours | Hours corresponding to the annual cost period |
| Billable hours | A documented subset using your chosen definition |
| Excluded overhead | Costs that still need treatment elsewhere in the model |
Do not insert a generic payroll-tax percentage and assume it applies to your business. Use actual records or reviewed planning assumptions. Have your accountant or payroll professional check the classifications.
If overtime, bonuses, owner labor, subcontractors, or changing headcount are material, build the inputs so they represent the relevant period and workforce. An average based on one technician should not silently be applied to a different staffing mix.
Do not mistake cost for selling price
This calculator does not include every possible business expense or decide an appropriate profit target. Vehicle expenses, office overhead, materials, equipment, and other costs may be outside the inputs depending on your method.
Your customer-facing price also depends on scope, pricing structure, and the business's cost-recovery decisions. The calculator provides a transparent labor input, not a recommended hourly charge.
Test the sensitivity
Keep annual loaded cost fixed at the illustrative $75,000. At 1,250 billable hours, the allocated labor cost is $60 per billable hour. At 1,500 hours, it is $50. That comparison shows the effect of the denominator without claiming that every paid hour can realistically become billable.
Use a reasonable planning range and compare it with actual records over time. A precise spreadsheet result is only as useful as the definition and quality of the hours behind it.
Sources and editorial notes
Product and documentation references checked September 29, 2026. GoPlumber publishes this guide about its own product category. Examples and templates are original illustrative material, not customer case studies or market benchmarks. Confirm current vendor terms before acting.