Hobby Cost Per Hour Calculator

Work out hobby cost per hour instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Hobby Cost Per Hour Calculator

Total cost is the one off setup plus consumables across all the hours, and dividing by those hours gives the effective hourly cost. Setup cost per hour falls sharply with use, which is why an expensive kit is cheap entertainment if you actually do the hobby weekly.

Formula

Cost per hour

cost per hour = (setup cost + consumables per hour x total hours) / total hours

Worked example

With the default values below, Hobby Cost Per Hour Calculator returns Cost per hour of the hobby of $4.778. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

One off setup and equipment costminimum 0: 800
Consumables per hourminimum 0: 3
Hours per yearminimum 0.1 h: 150 h
Years you expect to continueminimum 0.1: 3

Results

Cost per hour of the hobby: $4.778
Total cost over the period: $2,150.00
Cost per year: $716.67
Share that is one off setup: 37.21%

Step by step

1Values used
2Cost per hour
3Cost per hour of the hobby= 4.778
4Total cost over the period= 2,150.00
5Cost per year= 716.67
6Share that is one off setup= 37.21

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation or tax into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 3 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the Hobby Cost Per Hour figure worked out?

cost per hour = (setup cost + consumables per hour x total hours) / total hours. Total cost is the one off setup plus consumables across all the hours, and dividing by those hours gives the effective hourly cost.

Why does this matter?

Setup cost per hour falls sharply with use, which is why an expensive kit is cheap entertainment if you actually do the hobby weekly.

What do I need to enter?

Enter one off setup and equipment cost, consumables per hour, hours per year, years you expect to continue. The defaults shown are a realistic worked example — swap in your own figures to get a result you can use.