Total monthly overhead
$12,500.00
Combined monthly fixed and variable indirect operating costs.
Free contractor calculator
Overhead Cost Calculator
Calculate monthly and annual overhead, overhead per billable hour, overhead per job, overhead as a percentage of revenue, and required monthly revenue.
Operating-cost planning
Calculate business overhead costs
Enter monthly operating expenses, billable hours, completed jobs, revenue, and your target profit margin.
USD/month
Recurring expenses such as rent, insurance, office payroll, software, licenses, and vehicle payments.
USD/month
Indirect operating costs that change with activity, including fuel, utilities, supplies, marketing, and repairs.
hours/month
The total technician or crew hours that can realistically be charged to customers each month.
jobs/month
The number of customer jobs completed during a typical month.
USD/month
Current or projected gross revenue before operating expenses, taxes, and owner distributions.
%
The desired profit margin after overhead is covered.
Results update automatically.
Overhead cost results
Planning estimates based on operating expenses, workload, revenue, and target margin.
Calculation ready
Required monthly revenue
$15,625.00
Estimated monthly revenue needed to cover overhead and achieve the selected margin.
Annual overhead
$150,000.00
Projected yearly overhead based on the entered monthly expenses.
Overhead per billable hour
$25.00
Monthly overhead allocated across the entered billable hours.
Overhead per job
$156.25
Average overhead allocation for each completed customer job.
Overhead percentage
25%
The share of monthly revenue consumed by overhead expenses.
Break-even revenue
$12,500.00
Revenue required to cover the entered overhead before profit.
Monthly revenue gap
$0.00
Additional monthly revenue needed to reach the selected target margin.
Calculation summary
Monthly overhead totals $12,500.00. This equals $25.00 per billable hour and $156.25 per completed job. At a 20% target margin, estimated required monthly revenue is $15,625.00.
Operating volume
- Billable hours
- 500
- Jobs completed
- 80
- Monthly revenue
- $50,000.00
What is an overhead cost calculator?
An overhead cost calculator helps a contractor or home service business estimate the indirect operating costs that must be recovered through customer revenue. It combines fixed and variable monthly expenses and allocates them across billable hours, completed jobs, and revenue.
Understanding overhead prevents a business from pricing work based only on direct labor and materials. Even profitable-looking jobs can produce losses when office payroll, vehicles, insurance, software, marketing, and administration are excluded.
Overhead cost formulas
Total monthly overhead=Fixed overhead+Variable overhead
Overhead per billable hour=Monthly overhead÷Monthly billable hours
Required revenue=Monthly overhead÷(1 − target margin)
Required revenue uses profit margin rather than markup. A 20% target margin means overhead should represent no more than 80% of the required revenue in this simplified calculation.
How to use the overhead cost calculator
1. Enter fixed overhead
Add recurring indirect expenses that remain relatively stable regardless of monthly job volume.
2. Enter variable overhead
Add indirect costs that increase or decrease with operations, seasonality, or marketing activity.
3. Add operating volume
Enter realistic billable hours and completed jobs for the same monthly period.
4. Add current revenue
Use monthly gross revenue to measure how much of current sales is consumed by overhead.
5. Select a target margin
Choose the desired profit margin to estimate the minimum monthly revenue required after overhead is covered.
Common overhead cost categories
Facilities and occupancy
Include office rent, warehouse costs, utilities, property insurance, security, maintenance, and storage.
Vehicles and equipment
Include vehicle payments, commercial insurance, registrations, maintenance, fuel not billed directly, and shared equipment.
Administrative payroll
Include office managers, dispatchers, estimators, bookkeepers, customer service staff, and nonbillable management compensation.
Technology and software
Include field-service software, phones, internet, accounting systems, scheduling tools, cloud storage, and subscriptions.
Marketing and sales
Include advertising, SEO, website costs, lead platforms, commissions, promotional materials, and sales support.
Professional and compliance costs
Include licenses, permits, legal services, accounting, training, certifications, banking fees, and professional insurance.
How to interpret the results
Total monthly overhead is the combined amount of fixed and variable indirect operating costs. Annual overhead projects that monthly total across twelve months.
Overhead per billable hour and overhead per job show how much indirect cost should be recovered through each unit of productive work. These metrics can support labor-rate and service-price decisions.
Overhead percentage of revenue shows how much current revenue is absorbed before direct job costs, taxes, debt payments, and owner distributions. Required revenue estimates the sales level needed to cover overhead at the selected margin.
Important financial limitations
This calculator provides planning estimates and does not replace a complete income statement or professional accounting analysis. The simplified required-revenue calculation focuses on overhead and target margin. It does not automatically include direct labor, materials, subcontractors, sales tax, income tax, financing costs, bad debt, depreciation, or every business-specific expense.
Overhead cost calculator FAQs
What is business overhead?
Business overhead includes indirect operating expenses that support the company but cannot be assigned directly to one specific customer job. Examples include rent, office payroll, software, insurance, marketing, vehicles, and administration.
What is the difference between fixed and variable overhead?
Fixed overhead remains relatively stable each month, such as rent or software subscriptions. Variable overhead changes with activity, such as fuel, utilities, repairs, marketing spend, and shared supplies.
Should technician wages be included in overhead?
Direct technician wages are normally treated as direct labor rather than overhead. Administrative payroll, management time, and nonbillable labor may be included in overhead depending on the company's accounting method.
How do I calculate overhead per job?
Divide total monthly overhead by the number of completed jobs during the same month. This gives an average overhead allocation per job, but individual jobs may consume different levels of administrative and operational support.
How do I calculate overhead per billable hour?
Divide total monthly overhead by realistic monthly billable hours. Use productive hours that customers can actually be charged for rather than all paid employee hours.
What is a good overhead percentage?
There is no universal target because business models, service types, regions, staffing levels, and growth stages differ. Compare the result with historical performance, industry benchmarks, and the margin required for financial stability.
About Overhead Cost Calculator
Overhead Cost Calculator helps home service businesses improve planning, marketing performance, and operational decisions.
Who should use this tool?
- Use Overhead Cost Calculator to analyze business opportunities and improve decision making.
- Support marketing workflows with practical insights.
- Create more consistent growth processes.
Benefits
- Save time with a structured workflow.
- Improve accuracy when making business decisions.
- Build repeatable marketing and growth systems.
How it works
- 1. Enter your business information.
- 2. Review the generated results.
- 3. Apply recommendations to improve performance.
Frequently asked questions
What is Overhead Cost Calculator?
Overhead Cost Calculator is a practical tool designed to help service businesses analyze information and improve growth decisions.
Who should use Overhead Cost Calculator?
Home service businesses, contractors, and marketers can use this tool to improve workflows and decision making.
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