Choose the unit that makes your scope clear: square feet for comparable measured surfaces, hours when duration is uncertain, or a fixed price for defined work. Check the job economics first and keep a minimum for small service calls.
Worked examples use illustrative USD inputs, not national averages or recommended market rates. Service prices exclude applicable sales tax.
Four ways to express a contractor’s price
| Format | Useful when | Check before quoting |
|---|---|---|
| Per square foot | Area can be measured and the material, access and treatment are comparable. | A small area still needs setup. Railings, vertical details and spot treatment can make area a weak measure of work. |
| Hourly | Duration is uncertain and the customer understands how time will be billed. | Define whether the rate is per worker or per crew, which activities count, and how extra time is approved. |
| Fixed job price | You can inspect and define the full scope before starting. | Estimate time and costs underneath the fixed price. Specify exclusions and how changes are quoted. |
| Minimum charge | A short job would otherwise fail to cover the service call. | Define the travel area and included work. A minimum is a floor, not a promise to wash every property at that price. |
One $400 job, four different rate labels
Suppose complete job cost is $268, processing is 3% and the target margin is 30%. The required quote is $268 ÷ 0.67 = $400. The scope covers 1,600 sq ft and takes a two-person crew two job hours.
- $0.25 per sq ft: $400 ÷ 1,600. This rate describes the measured scope.
- $200 per crew hour: $400 ÷ 2 elapsed job hours. Both workers are included.
- $100 revenue per labor hour: $400 ÷ 4 worker-hours. This is neither a wage nor profit.
- $400 fixed price: the same revenue, communicated as one price for agreed work.
Processing is $12 and profit after the entered costs is $120. Changing the label does not change those economics. The cost-to-revenue formula explains why the quote is $400; the square-foot tool converts a checked quote into a rate.
Do not scale every small job down by area
At the example $0.25 rate, a 400 sq ft surface would produce only $100. If your verified minimum service charge is $220, that smaller job starts at $220 for work that fits the minimum’s scope. Its effective rate is $0.55 per sq ft. That does not mean the larger job was priced incorrectly: fixed service-call work is spread over less area.
Review the costs and boundaries behind a minimum charge before putting one on a rate sheet.
Write the limits next to the rate
A usable rate sheet names the service, measurement basis, material, normal condition, access assumptions and minimum. Identify stain treatment or restoration separately. When those assumptions change, revisit labor, chemicals and equipment rather than applying an unexplained percentage.
If you have a real job to quote now, follow the job-by-job charging decision. If the uncertainty is time, first distinguish crew hours from worker-hours.