How to Price Drain Cleaning (Flat-Rate Price List)

How to price drain cleaning, in short: for each drain task, multiply the usual hours by your cost per billable hour, add consumables and a per-use charge for the jetter or camera, then divide by one minus your target margin. At $174.20 an hour and a 30% margin, a 1.5-hour main line clear from a cleanout comes to about $425.

More on this topic: Pricing, estimates and getting paid, every guide in one place.

Drain cleaning is a job customers price-shop, and one where many shops still guess. A flat price per task, built from your own costs, lets every tech quote the same number and still make money on the toilet that took ten minutes and the main line that took two hours. This guide uses the same cost per billable hour and margin formula as our plumbing price book guide, which shows how to work out your own hourly cost, and applies it to drains, including the equipment most shops forget to charge for.

Key takeaways

• Price from cost: (hours × cost per billable hour + consumables + equipment) ÷ (1 − margin).
• Charge for the machine: a jetter or camera has to pay for itself through a per-use amount in the price.
• Price by access, not just by drain: no cleanout, a roof vent or a toilet pull adds real time.
• Write the warranty into the price: a 90-day guarantee costs you the re-clears it triggers.
• Offer the camera every time on main lines, as the middle option, with the video as proof.
• Check against the market: Fixr's October 2026 guide puts a typical drain cleaning at $150 to $300.

What does a drain cleaning job really cost you?

A drain cleaning job costs you the tech's time at your cost per billable hour, plus consumables and wear on the machine. The examples below use $174.20 per billable hour, built in our price book guide from a $32 wage with 30% burden, a 50% billable ratio, a truck and an overhead share. For comparison, the BLS May 2025 median wage for plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters was $30.67 an hour. Replace both with your own numbers.

Then add an equipment charge for anything expensive that wears out. Example: a jetter that costs you $40,000 and is used about 150 times a year for five years works out at about $53 per use before repairs, so the examples use $70. A $15,000 camera used 200 times a year for five years is $15 per use; the examples use $25. Use your own purchase price and usage.

How do you set a flat rate for each drain task?

Set each flat rate with the margin divisor: add labor, consumables and equipment, then divide by one minus your target margin (0.70 for 30%). Round up to the nearest $5. Example price list:

Time each task from your own invoices: pull last year's drain jobs, note start and finish times, and use the typical time, not the best one. A sanity check against what homeowners read: Fixr's guide, published October 14, 2026, puts snaking at $100 to $300, a camera inspection at around $280 to $300, and hydro jetting at $300 to $700 for interior drains and $500 to $1,800 for main lines. If your prices sit far outside those ranges, check your hours and costs before you change the margin. To compare three versions of one drain job side by side, the free flat-rate price calculator prices each from hours, parts and your markup, with an optional trip fee.

What adders should a drain cleaning price list have?

Adders cover the conditions that turn a standard clear into a long one, so the base price can stay competitive. Price each one with the same formula and list it in the book so techs don't make it up at the door:

Our guides to after-hours calls and service call fees cover how to set the after-hours number and whether the trip charge is credited to the job.

Should plumbers warranty drain cleaning?

Yes, but price the warranty in and write down what it excludes. A guarantee costs you the re-clears it triggers: if 1 in 10 main line clears comes back within 90 days and a re-clear costs you $296, the warranty costs about $30 per job, which the price above should cover. Track your actual return rate and adjust, and put the terms in writing with our workmanship warranty template. Common exclusions:

• Roots, broken, offset or bellied pipe found on camera (offer the repair instead).
• Wipes, grease or objects put down the drain after the visit.
• Drains the customer declined to have camera-inspected, if the warranty depends on it.

Longer warranties make a natural good, better, best ladder. Example for a main line: Good clear from cleanout, 30-day guarantee ($425); Better clear plus camera inspection, 90-day guarantee ($425 + $285 = $710); Best hydro jetting plus camera, one-year guarantee ($865 + $285 = $1,150). See our good, better, best pricing guide for building the tiers.

When should you offer a camera inspection?

Offer a camera inspection on every main line clear and on any drain cleared more than once in a year. The camera shows whether the cause is roots, a belly, a break or grease, which tells the customer whether cleaning will hold or whether they need jetting or a repair. Show the customer the screen or the recording, note the footage and depth of each defect, and quote the fix while you're still there. Fixr's homeowner guide warns readers to be wary of expensive repairs suggested without camera evidence, so the footage helps you as much as the customer.

Mistakes that make drain pricing lose money

• One price for every drain: a tub and a main line with no cleanout aren't the same job.
• No equipment charge: the jetter ends up paid for out of profit.
• Free warranties: re-clears you didn't price come straight off the margin.
• Discounting to match coupons without checking whether the job still covers your cost per billable hour.

Where CrewRobin fits

CrewRobin's price book holds each drain task as a flat-rate service on every plan, and you add them to good, better, best quotes the customer picks and signs online. The AI receptionist quotes only the price range you set for each job type and says the technician confirms on site, so a caller with a slow tub hears the same range as your book. Technicians can take photos of what the camera shows and mark them up with arrows and circles; CrewRobin stores photos, not video, so keep the recording on the camera. See how it works for plumbers.

Frequently asked questions

How much should a plumber charge for drain cleaning?

Work it out from your own costs: task hours times your cost per billable hour, plus consumables and equipment, divided by one minus your target margin. At $174.20 an hour and a 30% margin, that gives about $205 for a tub drain and $425 for a main line from a cleanout. Fixr's October 2026 guide puts a typical drain cleaning at $150 to $300.

Should drain cleaning be flat rate or hourly?

Flat rate suits routine drain work because the customer knows the price before you start and fast jobs aren't punished. Keep hourly or custom quotes for unusual jobs you can't scope until the camera is in the line.

How do you price hydro jetting?

Price it like any task, but include a per-use equipment charge that pays back the jetter over its life. With 3 hours, $80 of equipment and consumables and $174.20 an hour, a main line jetting costs $602.60 and prices at about $865 at a 30% margin.

Should I charge separately for a camera inspection?

Usually yes, as its own task, and offer it with every main line clear as the middle option. You can also build it into a premium package instead. Either way, its cost needs to be in a price somewhere.

What warranty should plumbers give on drain cleaning?

There's no standard. One approach is to tie the length to the method, such as 30 days for a cable clear and longer with a camera inspection or jetting. Price the expected re-clears into the job and list the exclusions, such as roots, broken pipe and wipes.

Put it to work this week

Load your drain price list into one price book so the phone, the quote and the tech all give the same number. CrewRobin is free until your first 10 booked jobs, no card up front. Start free or see pricing.

Sources

Figures from outside CrewRobin were checked against these pages in October 2026. Most industry benchmarks come from vendors and agencies, so treat them as ranges, not rules.

• Fixr: Drain cleaning costs and emergency services (published October 14, 2026)
• BLS: Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2025, Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters (47-2152)