Electrician hourly rate calculator
Wage, overhead, billable hours and margin in. Break-even and book rate out, checked against the 2026 band. The "I make $38 so I'll charge $55" method is how licensed guys lose money with a smile.
Your numbers
The math
Loaded labor = wage × 1.25 (payroll tax, insurance, a little PTO)
Overhead per hour = monthly overhead ÷ billable hours
Break-even = loaded labor + overhead per hour
Book rate = break-even ÷ (1 − margin)
Example: $38 wage → $47.50 loaded. $2,800 overhead ÷ 110 billable hours = $25.45. Break-even $72.95. ÷ 0.8 for 20% net = $91 an hour. Bill under $73 and you are paying to work; the difference between $73 and $91 is the profit that survives a slow month. The published US band for residential work is $75 to $150 with trip fees of $79 to $200, so $91 sits comfortably inside it. Midwest and South run the low half, Northeast and West the high half.
What to do with the rate
Never say it to a customer. Quote flat prices: job hours × book rate + materials × 1.35 + trip fee. An outlet swap, a ceiling fan on an existing box, a 240V circuit, a panel swap, each gets one number. The price book builder turns this rate into flat prices for 35 common residential jobs and flags anything under the 2026 market band, free, no email. The Pricing Kit ($49) is the same method in a spreadsheet you own, with the rate card, price list, quote template and objection scripts.
Three mistakes that keep rates too low
- Dividing overhead by 160 hours. You bill 100 to 125. The other hours are real but unbillable, and your rate has to carry them.
- Wage × 2 as the rate. It ignores your actual overhead, which is why it works for a guy with a paid-off van and fails the guy with a truck payment and ads.
- Matching the cheapest guy in town. His costs are not your costs. If his price is under your break-even, he is either lying to himself or living on volume you do not have.