True Rate is a one-time spreadsheet kit that works out what an hour of your time actually costs, then prices the job — trip charge, minimum and materials included — before you text the customer a number.
One-time purchase. Google Sheets or Excel. Works on your phone.
True-Rate-Price-This-Job — Price This Job
A
B
C
D
1
Task
Hrs
Materials
Price
2
Hang & adjust interior door
1.50
$0
$117.00
3
Swap ceiling fan (existing box)
1.25
$12
$111.30
4
Patch drywall, fist-size
0.75
$18
$79.20
5
Trip charge
$45.00
6
Job total (min. met)
3.50
$30
$352.50
SetupPrice BookPrice This JobMarkup↔MarginWas I Right?Estimate
Illustration only — made-up numbers at an example $78/hr with 15% materials markup. Your kit prices from your own rate.
The problem
You're good at the work. The number is the hard part.
Most solo tradespeople price off gut feel, what the last guy charged, or whatever won't scare the customer. It feels fine until you add up the drive time, the supply-house runs, the estimate visits that went nowhere, and the truck payment.
Your hourly rate covers the hours you bill — not the hours you work.
You add "30%" and think you made 30%. You didn't.
You never go back and check what a job really took.
Scope creeps over text, and the extra work never gets paid.
What contractors say online — phrases from public forums and comment threads, lightly edited. These are not testimonials or customers.
Pulling numbers out of my behind.
6 years in and still under-bidding.
Made 8% on a job I thought was 25%.
30% markup is NOT 30% margin.
Ate a $900 change order because I couldn't prove what was agreed to over text.
What's inside
Six tabs. One honest number.
Fill in the Setup tab once. Everything else prices off it.
Tab 1
Setup: your loaded hourly rate
Truck, insurance, phone, tools, software, what you want to take home, and how many hours you can actually bill. Out comes your break-even rate and your target rate.
Tab 2
Price Book: ~80 flat-rate tasks
About 80 common handyman and small-remodel tasks already listed and priced off your rate. Edit the times, delete what you don't do, add your own.
Tab 3
Price This Job
Pick tasks, add materials and your markup. The trip charge and minimum charge are built in, so a small job never goes out below what it costs you to show up.
Tab 4
Markup ↔ Margin converter
Type the margin you want, get the markup you need (and back). Ends the "I added 30%, why didn't I make 30%?" problem for good.
Tab 5
"Was I Right?" tracker
Estimated hours and materials next to what the job really took. After a few jobs you'll know which tasks you under-bid, and by how much.
Tab 6
Client estimate
A clean, printable or PDF-able estimate that pulls from Price This Job. It shows the customer a price, not your math.
Bonus
Get Paid Texts
Copy-paste wording for the awkward stuff, written to leave a clear record in your messages:
Change-order text — confirms the extra work and the added price before you do it.
Deposit & payment-schedule wording — what's due, when, and how.
Final-payment reminders — friendly, firmer, and final versions.
Templates, not legal advice. Contract and lien rules vary by state — check yours.
A look inside
Plain spreadsheets. No login.
Setup — your loaded ratePrice Book — ~80 tasksWas I Right? — estimate vs actual
Built with a working general contractor — from the way real small jobs get priced, texted and paid, not from a software company's feature list.
Why a spreadsheet?
Not another monthly bill.
Pay once
One payment of $39. No subscription, no seats, no renewal.
Your data stays yours
It's a file in your Google Drive or on your computer. Nobody can lock you out of your own prices.
Works on your phone
Open it in the free Google Sheets app and price a job from the driveway.
Running a crew with scheduling and dispatch? Field-service software may fit you better — we lay out the honest trade-offs on the comparison page.
True Rate — Price This Job kit
$39one time
Loaded hourly rate setup
Price book of ~80 flat-rate tasks
Price This Job calculator with trip & minimum charge
Instant download after checkout. 14-day refund: if it's not useful, email us for a full refund. Secure checkout by Stripe.
FAQ
Straight answers
Google Sheets or Excel?
Both. You get an .xlsx file for Excel and a one-click "make a copy" link for Google Sheets. Google Sheets is free and runs in the phone app, so that's what we recommend if you want to price jobs on site.
Is it specific to my state?
No. It works from your costs, your pay goal and your hours, so it fits anywhere. Sales tax, licensing and contract rules vary by state and city — the kit doesn't handle those for you.
Are the prices in the price book "right" for my area?
The price book prices every task from the rate you set in Setup, and you can change any task's time. It's a starting list, not a market survey — you know your area better than a spreadsheet does.
What if it's not for me?
Email us within 14 days of purchase for a full refund. Support: our support inbox.
Is this accounting, tax or legal advice?
No. It's a pricing tool and a set of templates. It doesn't replace a bookkeeper, accountant or attorney, and it doesn't guarantee any result.
I already use Jobber / Housecall Pro. Do I need this?
Maybe not. Those tools handle scheduling, invoicing and payments. True Rate is about working out the right number in the first place — some people use it to set their rate, then put that rate into their software. See the comparison.
Can I try the math first?
Yes — the free Am I Underpriced? calculator uses the same loaded-rate formula as the Setup tab. No email required.
