Delivery and disposal
Dump fees, haul-away, delivery, and equipment transport can sit outside material pricing.
Project planning
Home project cost estimator
Use the prices and labor assumptions you actually have. The calculator adds the pieces together and makes contingency visible.
Project cost estimator
Build the estimate from the parts you actually know.
Enter your own local material and labor assumptions instead of relying on a national-average price.
Planning estimate$3,005
Contingency included$273
Materials tax$72
Labor$1,360
Known costs before contingency$2,732
Why include contingency?
Home projects often expose small unknowns after work begins. Contingency is not a prediction that something will go wrong; it is a planning allowance applied to the known-cost subtotal after materials tax, labor, permits, and miscellaneous costs. Straightforward, well-scoped work may need less. Renovation, demolition, hidden conditions, or old construction may justify more. This tool caps the entered tax rate at 20% and contingency at 50% to prevent accidental extreme entries.
Better than a single national average
Local inputs beat false precision.
Labor rates, material choices, taxes, delivery, disposal, and permit costs can differ dramatically. A single national average may be useful for orientation, but it can be a poor budget. This tool starts with the numbers you can verify locally.
If you only have a contractor quote and are deciding whether the work is worth doing yourself, use the DIY vs. hire calculator.
Example
How the estimate builds up
With $1,200 of materials, 6% material sales tax, 16 labor hours at $85/hour, $100 of delivery or disposal, and a 10% contingency, the planning estimate is about $3,005. The important part is not that number itself; it is seeing exactly where the total came from so you can replace any assumption with a local quote or known cost.
The calculator applies contingency after the known-cost subtotal. It does not automatically add financing costs, contractor markup, insurance deductibles, or project-specific permit fees unless you enter them.
Estimate checklist
Common costs people forget to budget.
Permits and inspections
Requirements vary by project and jurisdiction. Verify them locally rather than guessing.
Consumables
Fasteners, blades, adhesives, tape, protection, and cleanup supplies add up.
Contingency
A planning allowance helps prevent a small surprise from breaking the entire budget.