How to Price Electrical Work: Hourly, Flat Rate and Markup
Work out what an hour really costs, set flat rates for repeatable electrical work with worked examples, keep troubleshooting hourly, and price panel upgrades as custom quotes.
How to price electrical work, in short: work out your cost per billable hour (loaded wage, truck and overhead), price repeatable jobs such as outlets, switches, fans and breakers as flat rates from typical hours plus materials, and bill troubleshooting and old-wiring work by the hour. Divide total cost by one minus your target margin: at 20%, a GFCI swap costing $141 to do sells for about $177.
More on this topic: Pricing, estimates and getting paid, every guide in one place.
Electricians who price by feel tend to make the same two mistakes: an hourly rate copied from a competitor that doesn't cover their own overhead, and flat prices that were right three years ago. This guide shows how to build prices from your own costs, with worked examples for a GFCI, a ceiling fan and a 200-amp panel upgrade, then how to decide what stays hourly. If you haven't settled on a pricing model yet, start with our flat rate vs time and materials guide.
Key takeaways
- Most electrical contractors use a hybrid: flat rates for repeatable work, hourly for troubleshooting and unknowns (Housecall Pro, 2026).
- Published hourly rates look low against real costs. A $90 hour can lose money once truck, overhead and unbillable time are counted.
- Know your cost per billable hour: loaded wage ÷ billable ratio, plus truck and overhead per billable hour.
- Price = cost ÷ (1 − margin). Housecall Pro puts typical electrical profit margins at 10%–20%.
- Price the first item and add-ons differently. The trip and setup are paid once; the second GFCI on the same visit can cost half as much.
- Panel upgrades and rewires are custom quotes, priced from labor hours, materials, permit and utility coordination.
How do electricians price jobs?
Electricians price jobs in one of three ways, and most combine them:
| Model | How it works | Best for | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time and materials | Hourly rate × actual hours, plus materials | Troubleshooting, old houses, remodel unknowns | Customers watch the clock; efficient techs earn you less |
| Flat rate | One price per task from your price book | Outlets, switches, fixtures, fans, breakers, EV chargers on simple runs | A task that runs long eats margin unless hours are realistic |
| Hybrid | Flat rate for repeatable tasks, hourly or custom quote for the rest | Most residential service shops | Needs a clear rule for which jobs are which |
Housecall Pro's 2026 electrical pricing guide says most electrical contractors use the hybrid approach. ServiceTitan's guide argues the most successful shops lean on flat rate and quotes a Mister Sparky owner aiming for an average 60% gross margin across all jobs (gross margin is before overhead, so it isn't comparable with the net margins below).
What do electricians charge in 2026?
| Item (Housecall Pro, updated October 2026) | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Hourly rate | $40–$100+ (apprentice $40–$60, journeyman $60–$90, master $90–$100+) |
| Service call fee | $100–$200 |
| Emergency premium | $100–$200 on top |
| Routine flat-rate jobs | $150–$600 |
| Install or replace an outlet | $200–$300 |
| Ceiling fan install | $140–$350 |
| Dedicated circuit | $570–$1,000 |
| Panel upgrade | $1,200–$2,000 |
Treat these as a market check, not your price. On the wage side, the BLS May 2025 median for electricians was $30.38 an hour before payroll taxes and benefits. The next two sections show why a sold hourly rate at the low end of the table above often doesn't cover what that hour costs a shop with a truck and an office.
How do you work out your cost per billable hour?
Take each cost per hour you can actually bill, not per hour you pay. Example numbers for one electrician and truck; replace them with yours:
| Line | Calculation | Per billable hour |
|---|---|---|
| Wage $31/hr + 30% burden | $40.30 ÷ 0.55 billable ratio | $73.27 |
| Truck, tools, fuel, insurance | Yearly cost ÷ billable hours | $12.00 |
| Overhead share | Office, software, marketing, licensing ÷ billable hours | $30.00 |
| Cost per billable hour | $115.27 |
At a 20% net margin, the sold hourly rate for time and materials work is $115.27 ÷ 0.8 = $144 an hour. Charge $90 on these costs and every billable hour loses about $25. Your numbers may be lower (an owner-operator with no office) or higher (a metro shop), but you need to know them before you copy a rate. Put yours into the free labor rate calculator to get your cost per billable hour and the rate at your target margin.
How do you set a flat rate for an electrical task?
Estimate the task's typical hours including setup and testing, multiply by your cost per billable hour, add materials at cost, and divide by one minus your target margin (a 25% markup gives only a 20% margin; the free markup vs margin calculator converts either way). Give the first task on a visit the trip and setup time, and price add-ons on the same visit without it:
| Task (example) | Hours | Materials | Cost | Price at 20% margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Replace receptacle with GFCI, first on the visit | 1.0 (incl. trip and setup) | $26 | $141.27 | $177 |
| Each additional GFCI, same visit | 0.4 | $26 | $72.11 | $90 |
| Install customer-supplied ceiling fan on a fan-rated box | 1.5 | $10 | $182.91 | $229 |
Put every task in your price book with a description that says what's included (for the fan: assemble, mount on an existing fan-rated box, connect, test; new box or wiring extra). Our guide to building a price book walks through the same method for plumbing, and it carries straight over to electrical work.
When should electricians bill by the hour instead?
Bill by the hour when you can't see the scope: tracing an intermittent fault, a breaker that trips for no obvious reason, aluminum or knob-and-tube wiring, or remodel work behind finished walls. Quote the hourly rate, a first-hour or diagnostic minimum, and a not-to-exceed figure the customer approves before you go further. Once you've found the problem, switch to a flat price for the repair. Our guide on service call and diagnostic fees covers the fee itself.
How do you price bigger jobs like a panel upgrade?
Price bigger jobs as custom quotes from the same cost per hour. A worked example for a 200-amp service upgrade with a new panel, meter base and service cable:
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| Labor: 2 electricians × 8 hours = 16 hours × $115.27 | $1,844.36 |
| Panel and breakers | $650 |
| Meter base, service cable, grounding, fittings | $400 |
| Permit (example; varies by city) | $200 |
| Total cost | $3,094.36 |
| Price at 20% margin | $3,867.95, round to $3,870 |
That's well above the $1,200–$2,000 panel-upgrade range in Housecall Pro's guide, which shows why a published range can't stand in for your own numbers: scope (panel swap only, or a full service upgrade), utility coordination and permit costs change the job completely. Offer options where they're real, such as a standard panel versus one with whole-home surge protection; see good, better, best pricing.
What should go on an electrical estimate?
- Your license number where your state requires it; Texas's licensing agency, for example, requires the electrical contractor's license number on proposals, invoices and written contracts.
- Scope in plain English, with what isn't included (drywall repair, utility fees, code upgrades found on inspection).
- Permit and inspection and who pulls them.
- Price per option, deposit and payment terms, warranty, and an expiry date.
Mistakes that cost electricians money
- An hourly rate set from a competitor's, not your cost per billable hour.
- Flat rates with no trip time on the first task of the visit.
- Flat-rating troubleshooting. Price the fix, not the hunt.
- Confusing gross and net margin. A 60% gross margin and a 20% net margin can describe the same healthy job.
- Never comparing estimated with actual hours. Our job costing guide shows how.
Where CrewRobin fits
CrewRobin's price book and maintenance plans holds your labor, parts and flat-rate tasks on every plan and drops them into good, better, best quotes the customer signs online. When someone calls and asks “how much to put in a fan?”, the AI receptionist only quotes the price range you set for that job type, says the electrician confirms on site, and books the visit. See how it works for electricians.
Frequently asked questions
How much should an electrician charge per hour?
Start from your own cost per billable hour (loaded wage divided by the share of hours you bill, plus truck and overhead) and divide by one minus your target margin. Housecall Pro's 2026 guide lists $40 to $100+ an hour, but many shops' real costs mean they need more to make a profit.
Is flat rate or hourly better for electricians?
Most electrical contractors use both: flat rates for repeatable tasks like outlets, switches, fixtures and fans, and hourly billing for troubleshooting and work where the scope can't be seen.
What profit margin should an electrical contractor make?
Housecall Pro puts typical electrical profit margins at 10% to 20% net. Gross margins per job are much higher, around 60% as an average target in one ServiceTitan example, because overhead hasn't been taken out yet.
How do you price a ceiling fan installation?
Estimate the hours including trip and setup (our example uses 1.5 for a fan on an existing fan-rated box), multiply by your cost per billable hour, add materials and divide by one minus your margin. Price new boxes or wiring as extras.
Should electricians charge a service call fee?
Many do; Housecall Pro lists $100 to $200. Either charge it separately and credit it toward the repair, or build trip time into the first flat-rate task on the visit.
Put it to work this week
Put your electrical price book behind every quote and every phone answer. 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.
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How to Collect Unpaid Invoices as a Contractor
How to Sell HVAC Maintenance Agreements: Scripts That Work
