Hourly rate calculator for workshops

How much you need to charge per hour to cover costs and make money. Adjust the four fields and the result updates itself. No email required, no sign-up, and the calculation runs entirely in your browser.

Why almost every workshop undercharges

The usual mistake isn't in the margin, it's in the hours. If you calculate the rate by dividing your costs by the hours the mechanic is at the workshop, you get a nice-looking but false number, because a big chunk of those hours never ends up on any invoice: diagnosing, waiting for a part, moving cars, answering the phone and cleaning up.

When you split the same costs across the hours you actually bill, the figure goes up, and that's the real one. It's uncomfortable the first time you see it, and it's what explains why a workshop can be full all month and still barely break even.

The second mistake: confusing markup with margin

A 30% markup on cost doesn't leave a 30% margin, it leaves 23%. The correct formula is dividing the cost by one minus the margin, and that's what this calculator does. Over thousands of hours a year, that difference is real money.

What to do with the number

A calculation is of little use if you're eyeballing your billable hours, and most workshops eyeball them because they're not recorded anywhere. With work orders and clock-in in the same system, you stop estimating: you know exactly what went into each job and how much of your month is actually billed.

That's exactly what Tallerio, does, with plans from €29/month and no per-mechanic cost. You can see it running right now with no sign-up.

Frequently asked questions

How do you calculate the hourly rate for an auto repair shop?

Divide your monthly fixed costs by the workshop's actually billable hours that month: that gives you what an hour costs you, your break-even point. Then divide that cost by one minus your target margin. If an hour costs you €33 and you want a 30% margin, the minimum rate is 33 / 0.70, which is €47.62, not €43.

What are billable hours, and why aren't they the same as hours worked?

A full-time mechanic is at the workshop around 160 hours a month and bills quite a bit less than that. Diagnostics, waiting for parts, moving cars, cleaning and answering the phone don't go on any invoice. Calculating as if all 160 were billable is exactly how you end up working at a loss while the workshop looks full. If you don't track the real figure, 70% or 80% is a sensible starting point.

What fixed costs should I include?

Everything you pay even if not a single car comes in: rent or mortgage on the premises, salaries and social security, insurance, utilities, self-employment contributions, accounting, software, equipment financing and depreciation. Don't include parts or consumables you pass on to the client, since those are billed separately.

Is a 30% margin a lot or a little for a workshop?

It depends on the type of workshop and the area, so treat it as your own decision rather than a standard. The useful part of this calculation isn't nailing the exact percentage, it's seeing the break-even point: below that figure, every hour you sell costs you money, and volume alone won't fix that.

Do you store the data I enter here?

No. The calculation happens entirely in your browser. Nothing is sent to any server, there's no sign-up, and we don't ask for an email to see the result.