BBidSimp

PRICE BUILDUP

Build your number.
Stupid simple.

Add the material quotes you are carrying, layer in other direct costs, build the labor, choose your markups, and see exactly how the final bid comes together.

INPUT ยท 01

1. MATERIALS

What are you buying?

Each quote you add is included in the material total.

Total Material Cost$0.00

2. OTHER DIRECT COSTS

Add the rest of the job costs.

Use the two quick fields below, then add named costs like permits, delivery, travel, dumpsters, or fees only when you need them.

$
$
Material + Other Direct Cost$0.00

3. MATERIAL / OTHER MARKUP

What are you charging on those costs?

Markup Dollars$0.00
Material / Other Sell$0.00

4. LABOR

Who's doing the work?

Role names are completely open-ended. Use whatever makes sense for your trade.

Total Labor Cost$0.00

5. LABOR MARKUP

What are you charging on labor?

Markup Dollars$0.00
Labor Sell$0.00

BID SUMMARY

Here's the number.

Markup and margin are shown separately because they are not the same thing.
Total Direct Cost$0.00
Total Markup Dollars$0.00
Final Bid Price$0.00
Effective Markup on Cost0.00%
Gross Margin on Sell Price0.00%
Paste a clean estimate recap into email, text, or notes.
PDF / Print Details (Optional)Add estimate information to your saved PDF.

These fields are optional and do not affect the calculation.

CONSTRUCTION PRICING GUIDE

How the construction price buildup calculator works

BidSimp builds a selling price from direct material, equipment, miscellaneous, other direct costs, and labor. Material and other direct costs share one markup selection, labor has its own markup, and the result shows both effective markup on cost and gross margin on the selling price.

DIRECT COSTQuotes, equipment, misc., and labor

Enter the costs you expect to pay before markup.

SELL PRICESeparate material and labor markups

Each markup is calculated on its own direct-cost group.

CHECKMarkup and margin side by side

See why a markup percentage is not the same as gross margin.

Price buildup formulas used by BidSimp

Material and other direct cost
Supplier quotes + equipment / rentals + miscellaneous + custom other-cost lines.
Material / other sell
Material and other direct cost + that cost × material markup percentage.
Labor hours
Workers × days × hours per day for each labor row.
Labor cost
Total labor hours × entered hourly cost rate.
Labor sell
Labor cost + labor cost × labor markup percentage.
Final bid
Material / other sell + labor sell.
Effective markup
Total markup dollars ÷ total direct cost.
Gross margin
Total markup dollars ÷ final bid price.

WORKED EXAMPLE

Material, labor, and two different markups

  1. Material quotes of $10,000 plus $500 equipment, $250 miscellaneous, and $250 other cost create $11,000 of material / other direct cost.
  2. A 15% markup adds $1,650, producing a material / other sell price of $12,650.
  3. Three workers × five days × eight hours = 120 hours. At $50 per hour, direct labor is $6,000.
  4. A 20% labor markup adds $1,200, producing a labor sell price of $7,200.
  5. Total direct cost is $17,000, total markup is $2,850, and the final bid is $19,850.
  6. The effective markup is 16.76%, while gross margin is 14.36%.

Markup is not the same as margin

Markup measures the increase over cost. Margin measures the markup dollars as a percentage of the final selling price. A 20% markup on $100 creates a $120 sell price, but the $20 gross profit is only 16.67% of the sell price. To produce a 20% gross margin on $100 of cost, the sell price would need to be $125, which is a 25% markup.

BidSimp accepts markup percentages and reports the resulting margin. It does not automatically solve for a target margin, so review both numbers before relying on the final bid.

Costs that are not added automatically

The calculator only prices what you enter. It does not automatically add sales or use tax, payroll burden, insurance, small tools, supervision, project management, overhead, contingency, escalation, bonds, permits, freight, unloading, retainage financing, commissions, warranty exposure, or profit. Add those as direct-cost lines when appropriate or make sure they are intentionally covered by your cost rates and markup structure.

A clean total is not a complete bid: verify scope, quantities, exclusions, quote validity, labor productivity, contract terms, and risk before submitting a proposal or entering an agreement.

Common price buildup mistakes

  • Entering an employee wage as the labor cost rate without payroll burden, insurance, or other labor costs.
  • Confusing markup with margin and assuming the displayed percentage means the same thing.
  • Marking up material but forgetting equipment, freight, rentals, or other direct costs.
  • Adding overhead in direct-cost rows and then including the same overhead again in markup.
  • Using expired supplier quotes or leaving exclusions and alternates out of the final proposal.

Review before submitting

  • Quantities, supplier quotes, tax, freight, escalation, alternates, and quote expiration dates.
  • Labor crew, productivity, hours, overtime, travel, supervision, burden, and schedule constraints.
  • Equipment, access, hoisting, protection, cleanup, permits, bonds, insurance, and closeout.
  • Overhead, contingency, profit, payment terms, retainage, warranty, and contract risk.
  • Scope inclusions, exclusions, clarifications, allowances, and proposal qualifications.

Need quantities before pricing? Start with the ACT ceiling, metal framing, drywall, drywall grid, insulation, or blocking calculator. Once the number is built, read how I check whether a construction estimate looks right before I send it.

Help make BidSimp better.Something missing, confusing, or just plain wrong? Tell us.

Estimate responsibly. BidSimp is an estimating aid. Verify all quotes, labor assumptions, rates, markups, taxes, overhead, contract requirements, and project conditions before submitting a bid or entering into an agreement. Terms & Disclaimer