Project Labor Cost
Free Project Labor Cost calculator with clear step-by-step results.
About Project Labor Cost
Labour is the line item that decides whether a job makes money, and the wage rate alone understates it. Hours × rate × crew size gives the wage bill, overtime is added at time and a half, and payroll burden — taxes, insurance, holiday, tools and supervision — is applied on top. The fully loaded hourly figure is the number to quote against, because it is what an hour of that crew actually costs you.
Formulas
Wage bill
Wages = (hours × rate + overtime × rate × 1.5) × workers
Loaded cost
Total = wages × (1 + burden); loaded rate = total ÷ total crew hours
Worked example
With the default values below, Project Labor Cost returns Total Labour Cost of $5,175.00. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.
Inputs used
- Hours per workerminimum 0 h
- 40 h
- Hourly rateminimum 0 $
- 45 $
- Number of workersminimum 1
- 2
- Payroll burden and overheadaccepts 0–100 %
- 25 %
- Overtime hours per workerminimum 0 h
- 4 h
Results
- Total Labour Cost
- $5,175.00
- Wages (Straight Time + Overtime)
- $4,140.00
- Payroll Burden and Overhead
- $1,035.00
- Fully Loaded Cost per Hour
- $58.81
Step by step
- 1Values used
- 2Wage bill
- 3Loaded cost
- 4Total Labour Cost= $5,175.00
- 5Wages (Straight Time + Overtime)= $4,140.00
- 6Payroll Burden and Overhead= $1,035.00
- 7Fully Loaded Cost per Hour= $58.81
Assumptions and limits
- The result is derived only from the 5 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
- In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
- Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
- Overtime rules, minimum wages and mandatory employer contributions are set by law and vary by jurisdiction. Confirm your obligations with a payroll professional before pricing or paying work.
How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.
Overtime rules, minimum wages and mandatory employer contributions are set by law and vary by jurisdiction. Confirm your obligations with a payroll professional before pricing or paying work.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should payroll burden be set to?
For employees it is commonly 20-40% once statutory contributions, insurance, paid leave, training and small tools are included. Subcontracted labour usually has a much lower burden because the sub carries it.
Why is overtime priced at 1.5×?
Time and a half is the most common premium and the default here. If your jurisdiction or agreement uses double time or a different threshold, enter the equivalent hours to match your actual cost.
Does this include materials or profit?
No. It is labour cost only — material, plant, and your margin are separate lines in a quote.