Are you bidding HVAC jobs below break-even?

Break-even = (labor hours × loaded labor rate) + material cost + (overhead % × those direct costs). Below that number you lose money on the job. This calculator does it instantly and then shows the bid you need to hit your target margin. Most contractors under-cost overhead, which is why a "profitable" job ends the year unprofitable.

Net margin of 10-20% is healthy for residential HVAC; gross margin (after direct labor and materials, before overhead) usually runs 40-50%. Est. industry data shows many contractors run below 8% net because overhead and callbacks are not priced in. The calculator lets you set your target margin and back-solves the bid.

Overhead — truck, fuel, insurance, software, office, your own pay — is real cost that does not show up on the job ticket. If you only bid labor + materials, every job silently eats margin. Loading overhead as a percentage onto direct costs is the single most common fix that turns a busy-but-broke HVAC company into a profitable one.

Est. $15-$45 per organic/local-SEO lead versus $35-$120 per Google Ads lead, depending on market and season. The cheapest leads come from ranking in the local map pack and organic search, which is exactly what I build. If your cost per booked job is climbing, your marketing channel mix is usually the reason.

Est. 30-45% on residential replacement bids is typical for a contractor with strong reviews and fast follow-up; emergency and repair calls close higher. If your close rate is low, the leak is usually speed-to-lead (how fast you respond) and trust signals (reviews, a site that looks credible) — both fixable.

Yes. A diagnostic fee filters tire-kickers and covers the windshield time you are already paying for. The contractors who refuse to charge it are the ones whose techs burn half a day on unpaid "just take a look" calls. Price it to cover the loaded hourly cost of getting a tech to the door.

Price the plan to cover two tune-ups plus a margin, then treat it as a customer-retention and lead-flow engine, not a profit center on its own. The real return is the replacement and repair work the plan keeps in your pipeline. I help HVAC companies build the marketing around the plan so it actually fills.

Marketing fixes lead volume and lead cost, not your bidding math — both matter. If you bid below break-even, more leads just lose money faster. Use this calculator to fix the bid first, then I fix the channel so you get more of the profitable jobs at a lower cost per booked call. They work together.

Mandeep Singh, founder of Sprout Sage Solutions. I build web design, SEO, and local marketing for HVAC and home-service contractors — founder-led, transparent pricing, no contracts. I built this because most HVAC owners I talk to have never run their true loaded job cost.

Book a free 30-minute audit. I review your site and local search presence live, show you where you are losing booked jobs, and tell you the channel mix that lowers your cost per job. No pitch deck, no contract. Local SEO from $1,000/mo, sites from $500.