How do you price HVAC jobs?

Start from what an hour of billable time costs your shop: wages plus overhead, divided by the hours your techs can actually bill. Add your profit to get your labor rate. Then price each job from it: the crew-hours the job normally takes times your rate, plus equipment and materials at your markup, plus any permit or disposal fees. For replacements, show two or three system options so the customer chooses.

What should an HVAC company charge per hour?

Enough to cover your wages, overhead and profit over the hours you can really bill, which only your own numbers can tell you. Two shops in the same town can need very different rates because their pay, trucks, insurance, drive times and slow seasons differ. The calculator above works it out from yours.

What is HVAC flat-rate pricing?

A fixed price for a defined job, quoted before the work starts, instead of billing time and materials afterwards. A flat-rate price book lists your common repairs and installs with their prices, each built from the normal time for the task, your labor rate and the parts or equipment with markup. The customer knows the price up front; you carry the risk if a job runs long.

What is the difference between markup and margin?

Markup is added on top of your cost; margin is the share of the selling price you keep. A $1,000 part marked up 50% sells for $1,500, and the $500 is a 33.3% margin of that price. Margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup). Mixing the two up is a common way to price lower than you meant to.

How should I price an HVAC system replacement?

Add the equipment and materials at your markup, the crew-hours for the install at your labor rate, and pass-through costs such as permits and disposal. Price the options you would actually install, each from its own equipment cost and install time, and re-check them whenever your distributor's prices change.

How do I price an HVAC maintenance plan?

Count the visits a plan includes, the time each one takes and the filters or materials used, and price that time at your labor rate. Your break-even cost per billable hour is the floor: a plan priced below it loses money on every visit, before any repair work it brings in.

Should an HVAC company charge a service call fee?

A visit costs you truck time whether or not it turns into a job. Some shops charge a diagnostic fee and credit it against the repair; some build the drive time into every flat price instead. Either works. Doing both charges the customer twice for the same drive.

How often should I update my HVAC price book?

Whenever your costs move: a distributor price change, a raise for your techs, a new truck, an insurance renewal. Re-run your labor rate first, then reprice your common jobs from it.

HVAC pricing

HVAC pricing calculator: your labor rate, install prices and maintenance plans

Price HVAC work from your own costs, not from what another shop charges. First work out what an hour your techs can actually bill costs you, wages and overhead included, and add your profit: that is your labor rate. Then build every price from it: installs from equipment, materials and crew-hours, maintenance plans from the visits they include, service calls from the truck time they use. The numbers in the calculator are examples; replace them with yours.

1. The labor rate your shop needs

A truck can only be on one job at a time, so the rate rests on the hours you can bill, not the hours you’re open.

Techs in the field Tech pay per hourwith payroll taxes and benefits $ Paid hours per tech per week Share of paid hours you billacross the year, slow seasons included % Overhead per monthowner pay, trucks, insurance, office, marketing $ Profit you wantas a share of sales %

$154.25labor rate you need

$131.11break-even per billable hour

4,050billable hours a year

$624,706sales a year at that rate

Based on 50 working weeks: $531,000 a year in wages and overhead over 4,050 billable hours.

2. System replacement: three options

Each option priced from its equipment and materials at your markup, its crew-hours at your labor rate, and your pass-through fees. Rename and re-cost them from your own supplier invoices.

Your labor ratefilled in from step 1, rounded up $ Markup on equipment and materials= 25.9% margin on them % Permit, disposal and other feespassed through at cost $

Good

Equipment $ Materials $

Crew-hours

$9,200

labor $2,480 · equipment and materials $6,548 · fees $150

Better

Equipment $ Materials $

Crew-hours

$11,450

labor $2,790 · equipment and materials $8,505 · fees $150

Best

Equipment $ Materials $

Crew-hours

$15,700

labor $3,100 · equipment and materials $12,420 · fees $150

Round prices up to the nearest $50

3. Maintenance plan price

Price the visits a plan includes at your labor rate. Your break-even cost is the floor.

Visits a year Hours per visitdrive time included Filters and materials per visit $

$36.46a month at your labor rate

$437.50a year at your labor rate

$31.48a month just to break even

Any member discount comes out of the gap between the monthly price at your labor rate and the monthly break-even.

4. What a service call costs you

Every visit uses truck time, whether or not it turns into a job.

Average drive time per call min Time to diagnose and quote min

A call that doesn’t turn into a job uses $142.08 of truck time at $155 an hour. Charge it as a diagnostic fee credited to the repair, or build the drive time into your flat prices; doing both charges the customer twice.

How to price HVAC jobs, step by step

Find your real billable hours, across the whole year. Paid hours minus driving, parts runs, estimates that don’t close, callbacks and the quiet weeks between heating and cooling season.
Add up a year of costs. Tech wages with payroll taxes and benefits, plus every overhead line: your own pay, trucks and fuel, insurance, licenses, tools and gauges, office, software, marketing.
Divide, then add profit. Costs ÷ billable hours is break-even. Divide again by (1 − your profit share) for the labor rate you need.
Price equipment on purpose. Decide your markup on equipment and materials and know the margin it gives you; they are not the same number.
Price the job, not the clock. Crew-hours × your rate, plus equipment and materials at your markup, plus pass-through fees. Keep install times honest.
Offer a choice. Two or three systems you would actually install, each priced from its own costs.
Re-run it when costs change. A distributor price change, a raise or a new truck moves your numbers; your price book should move with them.

Markup vs. margin

Markup is added to your cost; margin is the share of the selling price you keep. Margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup), so a 50% markup is a 33.3% margin and a 100% markup is a 50% margin. If you set a margin target and then apply it as a markup, you price lower than you meant to on every job.

Your prices come from your costs. Your calls come from the HVAC shops around you.

MyIntelBrief watches the heating and cooling companies near you — the services, specials and plans they post, their new reviews, the techs they’re hiring, new shops opening — and emails you a short brief on what changed. Type your company name and pick it from the dropdown for a free look at who you’re competing with. Here’s a sample brief for an HVAC company.

Step 1 of 2to get 4 weeks free: your business name

Your company’s name

Step 2 of 2 where should we send your 4 free briefs? Just email today’s demo, no weekly briefs

Just looking? Leave the email off to see your demo, no commitment. Add it for the 4 free weeks.

Free, no card. We’ll email you this brief, then a fresh one each week for 4 weeks, before you commit to anything. Unsubscribe anytime.

Works with the AI assistant you already use.

How?

Paste or forward a brief to any AI assistant you use and ask, for example, “what are my top 3 moves this week?” No setup. Briefs about your own business also attach a small data file made for it. Details for developers

Frequently asked questions

How do you price HVAC jobs?: Start from what an hour of billable time costs your shop: wages plus overhead, divided by the hours your techs can actually bill. Add your profit to get your labor rate. Then price each job from it: the crew-hours the job normally takes times your rate, plus equipment and materials at your markup, plus any permit or disposal fees. For replacements, show two or three system options so the customer chooses.
What should an HVAC company charge per hour?: Enough to cover your wages, overhead and profit over the hours you can really bill, which only your own numbers can tell you. Two shops in the same town can need very different rates because their pay, trucks, insurance, drive times and slow seasons differ. The calculator above works it out from yours.
What is HVAC flat-rate pricing?: A fixed price for a defined job, quoted before the work starts, instead of billing time and materials afterwards. A flat-rate price book lists your common repairs and installs with their prices, each built from the normal time for the task, your labor rate and the parts or equipment with markup. The customer knows the price up front; you carry the risk if a job runs long.
What is the difference between markup and margin?: Markup is added on top of your cost; margin is the share of the selling price you keep. A $1,000 part marked up 50% sells for $1,500, and the $500 is a 33.3% margin of that price. Margin = markup ÷ (1 + markup). Mixing the two up is a common way to price lower than you meant to.
How should I price an HVAC system replacement?: Add the equipment and materials at your markup, the crew-hours for the install at your labor rate, and pass-through costs such as permits and disposal. Price the options you would actually install, each from its own equipment cost and install time, and re-check them whenever your distributor's prices change.
How do I price an HVAC maintenance plan?: Count the visits a plan includes, the time each one takes and the filters or materials used, and price that time at your labor rate. Your break-even cost per billable hour is the floor: a plan priced below it loses money on every visit, before any repair work it brings in.
Should an HVAC company charge a service call fee?: A visit costs you truck time whether or not it turns into a job. Some shops charge a diagnostic fee and credit it against the repair; some build the drive time into every flat price instead. Either works. Doing both charges the customer twice for the same drive.
How often should I update my HVAC price book?: Whenever your costs move: a distributor price change, a raise for your techs, a new truck, an insurance renewal. Re-run your labor rate first, then reprice your common jobs from it.

More pricing calculators for service businesses: plumbing, auto repair, lawn care, cleaning, pest control, roofing, electrical and landscaping. See how MyIntelBrief works for home services, or what to check when the phone goes quiet.