Plumbing
Plumbing Service Call Profit Calculator
See what a single service call returns once the trip, the diagnosis and the van are counted against it.
Result
Gross profit is what is left after the cost of doing the job. Overhead comes out of that: the building, the office wages, the vans, insurance, software and advertising. A healthy gross margin still loses money if overhead is larger.
Get a Free Business AuditWhat moves the number
- Travel each way, paid and usually unbillable.
- Whether the call converted to a repair or ended at diagnosis.
- Whether the right part was on the van.
Where this one goes wrong
Setting a call-out fee that covers the drive but not the diagnosis. Every declined job then loses money, and the ones that decline are frequently the ones that took longest to diagnose.
Questions
About this calculator
What should a call-out fee cover?
Travel both ways, the time to diagnose, and a share of van and overhead. If it only covers fuel, the visit is subsidised by the jobs that convert.
Should the fee be credited against the repair?
It is a common approach that removes the customer's objection while keeping the fee on declined work. What matters is that the fee exists and is stated when booking.
How do I improve service call profitability?
Raise the first visit completion rate. Better information at booking and common parts on the van turn two visits into one, which is the largest single lever.
The formula
gross profit = revenue - direct costs
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How to use this calculator
- Revenue ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $39,000.
- Direct labour ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $16,000.
- Materials and equipment ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $11,000.
- Other direct costs ($). Enter your own figure; the page starts at $2,200.
The result updates as you type, so you can try a figure, see what it does to gross profit, 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 |
|---|---|
| Revenue | $39,000 |
| Direct labour | $16,000 |
| Materials and equipment | $11,000 |
| Other direct costs | $2,200 |
What comes out
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Gross profit main result | $9,800 |
| Gross margin | 25.1% |
| Total direct cost | $29,200 |
| Profit per working day | $445.45 |
That is $9,800 at a 25.1% margin, about $445.45 for every working day. Overhead still has to come out of it.
How sensitive the answer is
Holding everything else steady and changing only revenue, this is what happens to gross profit. It is worth knowing which of your inputs the answer actually hinges on, and which barely move it.
| Revenue ($) | Gross profit |
|---|---|
| $19,500 | -$9,700 |
| $29,250 | $50 |
| $39,000 example above | $9,800 |
| $58,500 | $29,300 |
| $78,000 | $48,800 |
Every other input is held at the example value while this one changes, which is not how a real job behaves. Treat it as a guide to which number matters most, not as five separate quotes.
What each figure means
- Revenue ($)
- A money amount, starting at $39,000.
- Direct labour ($)
- A money amount, starting at $16,000.
- Materials and equipment ($)
- A money amount, starting at $11,000.
- Other direct costs ($)
- A money amount, starting at $2,200.
What the results tell you
| Result | What it is |
|---|---|
| Gross profit | The headline result. A money figure. |
| Gross margin | A percentage. |
| Total direct cost | A money figure. |
| Profit per working day | A money figure. |
Before you rely on this number
Pipe sizing, flow and pressure figures depend on the actual fittings, the run, the material and local code. Code requirements vary by jurisdiction and override any general calculation, so check what applies where the work is happening.
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.