Small Jobs Add Up. Price Every One Correctly — Or They'll Drain You.

The Handyman Pricing Problem — and Why Flat Rate Fixes It

Handyman work is uniquely difficult to price because jobs are small, varied, and customers have strong preconceptions about what they "should" cost. Quoting hourly puts you in a race to the bottom — every customer with a phone thinks they can compare your rate to someone else's. Flat rate ends that comparison and prices the job, not your time.

The Hidden Cost of Small Jobs

A 1-hour job is never 1 hour. There's 30–60 minutes of travel, 10–15 minutes of setup and cleanup, and 20 minutes of scope discovery before you even start work. A job that takes 1 productive hour costs 2–2.5 hours of your day. Your flat rate must price the full window, not the task.

The Minimum Charge Rule

Set a minimum job charge and enforce it. A $150 minimum means you never dispatch for less than $150, period. Without a minimum, you'll spend an hour of your day — including travel — earning $60 to hang a picture. With a minimum, the customer either accepts the floor price or books a larger job to make the visit worthwhile. Either outcome is good for you.

Materials: Always Mark Them Up

Customers who supply their own materials are taking a risk (wrong spec, returns, waste) and passing it to you. When you supply materials, you carry the knowledge, the account, and the warranty. A 35–40% markup on materials is standard and defensible — you're not a delivery service, you're a professional who sources the right part the first time.