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Medium Free 20 minutes

How to Track Job Costs and Improve Profitability

Know exactly what each job costs you so you can price accurately and boost profits.

What You'll Need

Steps

1

Understand what job costing means

Job costing compares what you quoted versus what it actually cost you.

  • What you charged: Your invoice total
  • What it cost: Materials + labor + equipment + overhead
  • Profit: The difference (hopefully positive!)
  • Goal: Know your real costs so you can price better
Tip: Most contractors price based on gut feeling. Data beats intuition.
2

Create a simple tracking spreadsheet

Start with Google Sheets — free and accessible anywhere.

  • Go to sheets.google.com and create a new sheet
  • Create columns: Job Name | Date | Quoted Price | Material Cost | Labor Hours | Labor Cost | Equipment | Total Cost | Profit
  • This is your job costing tracker
3

Track materials for each job

Record what you actually spent on materials.

  • Save receipts for every job
  • Note which materials go to which job
  • Include supplies like tape, caulk, small parts
  • Add delivery fees if applicable
Tip: Take a photo of receipts and write the job name on them.
4

Track your time accurately

Labor is usually your biggest cost.

  • Track hours on each job (use your phone timer)
  • Include drive time to/from the job
  • Include setup and cleanup time
  • Multiply hours by your true hourly cost (wages + taxes + benefits)
Tip: Your time has a cost even if you don't pay yourself hourly. Calculate your target hourly rate.
5

Calculate and review

After each job, fill in the actual costs.

  • Total cost = Materials + Labor + Equipment
  • Profit = What you charged - Total cost
  • Profit margin = Profit ÷ What you charged × 100
  • Look for patterns: Which jobs are most profitable?
6

Adjust your pricing

Use the data to price future jobs better.

  • If profit margin is under 30%, you may be undercharging
  • Look at unprofitable jobs — what went wrong?
  • Raise prices on services where costs surprised you
  • Get better at estimating the time needed

You're Done!

You now know what your jobs actually cost! Use this data to price more accurately.

Pro Tips

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