What does a tradesperson's hour cost? How to set your hourly rate in 2026

Ask ten business owners what a tradesperson's hour costs and you will get ten different answers. There is a good reason for that: the right hourly rate depends on your trade, your region, your costs and the value you deliver. But one thing is certain - if you simply copy your competitor's price, you have no idea whether you are making money. This guide is written for you, the owner of a trades business, who wants to set an hourly rate you can both live on and defend to the customer.

There is no single official price, and the ranges are wide. A tradesperson's hour typically sits somewhere between roughly 400 and 700 kroner excluding VAT, but it varies by trade and region. Plumbers and electricians are often at the higher end, partly because authorisation, specialist equipment and regulatory requirements push costs up. Painters' and carpenters' rates vary more and depend heavily on the type of job and local competition. In and around the big cities, prices are generally higher than in rural areas - but so, as a rule, are the costs. Use the ranges as a reference point, not as the answer. Your answer must come from your own accounts.

Many set their hourly rate based on what they would like to earn in wages. But wages are only part of the equation. Your hourly rate must cover everything that keeps the business running:

• Wages for yourself and your staff - including pension and holiday pay
• Vehicles: leasing or depreciation, fuel, insurance, servicing and tyres
• Tools and machinery: purchase, maintenance and ongoing replacement
• Insurance: business liability, workplace injury and any guarantee scheme
• Sickness and holidays: days with no invoicing, while the costs keep running
• Administration: quotes, invoicing, bookkeeping, phone and software
• Call-outs and driving: time behind the wheel the customer rarely sees on the invoice

On top of that comes a reasonable profit for unexpected expenses and future investment. An hourly rate that only just covers wages is a slow road to closure - there is no buffer the day the van is in the workshop, or a customer fails to pay.

Customers often compare hourly rates, but what determines the total bill is the hourly rate times the hours spent, plus materials. An experienced tradesperson at a higher rate, who solves the job correctly first time in fewer hours, often ends up cheaper than a low rate combined with slow work, mistakes and extra trips. The same applies the other way round: if you squeeze your own price to win jobs, you have to run faster to earn the same - and quality is usually the first thing to pay the price. Sell the complete job and the result, not the individual hour.

Here is a concrete example for a sole trader. Swap in your own numbers - the method is the same:

• Desired wages for yourself: 600,000 kr per year
• Fixed costs (vehicle, tools, insurance, administration, software): 150,000 kr per year
• Total to be covered: 600,000 + 150,000 = 750,000 kr
• Working weeks: 52 weeks minus 5 weeks of holiday, 2 weeks for public holidays and 1 week for sickness = 44 weeks
• Working hours: 44 weeks x 37 hours = 1,628 hours
• Billable share: roughly 70 per cent, because quoting, driving and administration also take time = roughly 1,140 billable hours
• Minimum hourly rate: 750,000 kr / 1,140 hours = roughly 658 kr excluding VAT

The 658 kr is your break-even price - the business has not yet earned a single krone. Add, say, 10 per cent for unexpected expenses and investment, and you land at roughly 724 kr excluding VAT. Remember that private customers must see the price including 25 per cent VAT: 724 kr becomes 905 kr including VAT. If that figure is far from what you invoice today, you know where to act.

A good hourly rate is only half the job - you also have to stand by it. Be open about what the price includes: insured work, proper tools, a tradesperson who turns up on time, and a business that still exists when the guarantee is needed. Always state whether prices include VAT, and what you charge for driving and call-outs, before the work begins. And do not apologise for the price - an owner who seems unsure of their own hourly rate invites haggling. In the vast majority of cases, customers accept a fair price explained up front. It is the surprises they do not forgive.

Your costs do not stand still - fuel, insurance, materials and wages change continuously. So set a fixed date, for example at the annual accounts, when you update the calculation above with the year's actual figures. Once your hourly rate is in place, the rest of your pricing becomes easier too: describe the job, and let a tool like Calco turn it into a well-crafted quote built on your own hourly rate instead of gut feeling.