Locksmith
Door Lock Installation Cost Calculator
Prices fitting a lock where none exists, which is boring and mortising rather than swapping.
Result
A planning estimate, not a quote. Access, the age of the equipment, what is found once it is opened up and local labour rates all move the real figure, sometimes a long way.
Get a Free Business AuditHow the calculation works
Time, hardware and the call-out. Fitting a new lock into an unprepared door is the slowest of the lock jobs, because it means boring the cross bore and edge bore accurately, mortising the latch and strike plates flush, and getting the backset consistent so the lock operates freely. It is done with a jig on a hung door, and the accuracy matters: a bore drilled off centre or a mortise cut too deep is visible permanently and can weaken the door edge.
What moves the number
- Door material, since a steel door, a fibreglass skin and solid timber all need different tooling and care.
- Whether the door is solid or hollow core, because hollow core has limited material at the lock block.
- Backset and bore standard chosen, which has to be consistent with the hardware.
- Whether a deadbolt is being fitted at the same time, which shares the setup.
Where this one goes wrong
A hollow core door has only a small block of timber inside the edge to take a lock, and fitting outside that block gives hardware with nothing to hold it. Locate the block before boring. On a fibreglass or steel door the skin chips and tears if the bore is rushed or the hole saw is blunt, and the damage shows. Fitting a deadbolt at the same time as a latch set is worth suggesting, because the setup is shared and doing it later means going back over the same door. On an exit door, whatever is fitted has to allow egress in a single motion without a key.
Before you quote
- Locate the lock block on a hollow core door before boring.
- Use sharp tooling matched to the door material.
- Suggest fitting the deadbolt on the same visit while the jig is set.
Questions
About this calculator
Can a lock be fitted to any door?
Most doors, but a hollow core door only has a small block of solid material inside the edge to take hardware, and a lock fitted outside it has nothing to hold. Finding that block first is essential, and on some hollow doors it limits where a lock can go.
Why is fitting a new lock more expensive than swapping one?
Because there is no existing preparation. It means accurately boring through the face and into the edge, and mortising for the latch and strike plates, on a door that is already hung. That is careful work with a jig, and errors show permanently.
Should I fit a deadbolt at the same time?
If you want one, yes. The setup and the visit are shared, so doing both together costs meaningfully less than two visits, and a deadbolt contributes more to security than the latch in a handleset does.
The formula
total = hours x people x rate + parts + call-out, then sales tax
Put this calculator on your site
Free to embed. Paste this where you want it to appear. It stays up to date automatically because it loads from BDEVY.
Please keep the attribution line. It is the only thing we ask in return.
How to use this calculator
- Hours on site (h). Enter your own figure; the page starts at 0.8 h.
- People needed. Enter your own figure; the page starts at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $120.
- Parts and materials ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $35.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $95.
- Sales tax (%). Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to estimated total, and change it back. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere or saved.
A worked example
These are the figures the calculator opens with. Every number in the results column below is produced by the same calculation the page runs, so you can follow it through before putting your own figures in.
What goes in
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Hours on site | 0.8 h |
| People needed | 1 |
| Labour rate charged | $120 |
| Parts and materials | $35 |
| Call-out or diagnostic fee | $95 |
| Sales tax | 0% |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Estimated total main result | $226 |
| Labour | $96 |
| Before tax | $226 |
| Sales tax | $0 |
About $226: $96 of labour, $35 of parts and a $95 call-out.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only labour rate charged, this is what happens to estimated total. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Labour rate charged ($) | Estimated total |
|---|---|
| $60 | $178 |
| $90 | $202 |
| $120 example above | $226 |
| $180 | $274 |
| $240 | $322 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Hours on site (h)
- Measured in h, between 0 and 400, starting at 0.8 h.
- People needed
- A number, between 0 and 40, starting at 1.
- Labour rate charged ($)
- A money amount, starting at $120.
- Parts and materials ($)
- A money amount, starting at $35.
- Call-out or diagnostic fee ($)
- A money amount, starting at $95.
- Sales tax (%)
- Leave at zero if you are quoting before tax.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Estimated total | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Labour | A money figure. |
| Before tax | A money figure. |
| Sales tax | A money figure. |
Estimating is the easy part
The jobs you never hear about cost more than the ones you mis-measure. BDEVY builds the marketing, systems and automation that bring them in.