Project Overhead Percentage Calculator

Work out project overhead percentage instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Project Overhead Percentage Calculator

Overhead splits into site preliminaries, which are project specific, and an allocated share of head office cost. Expressing the total as a percentage of direct cost gives the mark-up to apply when pricing new work, and profit is then added on the full cost rather than only the direct element.

Formulas

Overhead percentage

Overhead % = (site overhead + head office overhead) / direct cost x 100

Tender price

Price = (direct cost + overhead) x (1 + profit rate)

Worked example

With the default values below, Project Overhead Percentage Calculator returns Overhead as share of direct cost of 17.50%. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Direct cost of worksminimum 0.01: 8,000,000
Site overheadminimum 0: 900,000
Head office overhead allocatedminimum 0: 500,000
Target profit on costaccepts 0–40 %: 8 %

Results

Overhead as share of direct cost: 17.50% %
Total overhead: $1,400,000.00
Tender price: $10,152,000.00
Profit included: $752,000.00

Step by step

1Values used
2Overhead percentage
3Tender price
4Overhead as share of direct cost= 17.50 %
5Total overhead= 1,400,000.00
6Tender price= 10,152,000.00
7Profit included= 752,000.00

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, tax 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.

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 Project Overhead Percentage figure worked out?

Overhead % = (site overhead + head office overhead) / direct cost x 100. Overhead splits into site preliminaries, which are project specific, and an allocated share of head office cost.

Is profit on cost the same as margin on price?

No. Eight percent profit on cost is only 7.4 percent margin on price. Confusing the two systematically understates the mark-up needed to hit a margin target.

What values do I need to enter?

This calculator takes 4 inputs: Direct cost of works, Site overhead, Head office overhead allocated, Target profit on cost. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic worked example — replace them with your own site or project figures.