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Hiring calculator

Taking someone on is the biggest cost most trades businesses commit to. Check whether the next hire pays for themselves before you place the ad.

The hire

What they’ll cost you, and what they’ll bill.

Hourly pay rate

The gross wage you’d pay them per hour.Paid hours per week

hrs

Ordinary paid hours — usually 38 for full-time.On-costs

Super, workers comp, leave loading, PPE, training and vehicle share on top of the wage — usually 20–40%.Charge-out rate

What you bill customers per hour for their work.Billable hours per week

hrs

Hours you’ll actually invoice — not paid hours. Travel, pickups and admin aren’t billable, so this is often 28–32, not 38.Weeks worked per year

wks

52 minus their annual leave, public holidays and expected downtime — usually 44–47.

Annual profit from this hire

$23,210

They bill about $131,100 and cost $107,890 fully loaded — a gain of $23,210 a year. They cover their cost at 24.7 billable hours a week.

Base annual wage$82,992

Fully loaded cost (+30%)$107,890

Revenue they generate$131,100

Annual profit$23,210

Gross margin on their work17.7%

Break-even billable hours/week24.7 hrs

Revenue per $1 of cost1.22×

Once they’re on, traqR shows the billable hours and margin each worker actually delivers — so you know the hire paid off, not just hope it did.

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How it works

Load the full cost

A wage is only the start. Super, workers comp, leave, PPE and a vehicle push the real cost 20–40% above the pay rate — that’s what they have to earn back.

Estimate what they’ll bill

Charge-out rate times realistic billable hours times the weeks they’ll actually work. Billable hours are always less than paid hours, and that gap decides everything.

Find the break-even

Divide the fully loaded cost by what an hour bills to get the billable hours a week they must hit to cover themselves. Anything above that is profit.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know if I can afford to hire?

Compare the fully loaded annual cost of the hire with the revenue their billable hours will bring in. If the revenue comfortably beats the cost — and you have the work to keep them busy — the hire pays for itself. The break-even billable hours figure tells you the minimum they need to bill each week to cover their cost.

Why use billable hours instead of paid hours?

Because only billable hours earn revenue. A full-timer paid 38 hours a week might only bill 28–32 once travel, pickups, quoting and admin are taken out. Basing the revenue on paid hours flatters the numbers and is how businesses end up hiring someone who never quite pays their way.

What on-cost percentage should I use?

For most trades employees, 20–40% on top of the base wage covers super (12%), workers comp, leave loading, PPE, training and a share of vehicle and tool costs. If you’re giving them a fully kitted vehicle and lots of gear, use the higher end. Our employee cost calculator breaks this down in detail.

When is overtime better than hiring?

For short-term or occasional extra work, paying overtime is usually cheaper than taking on a permanent wage plus all its on-costs and downtime risk. Hiring wins when the extra work is steady and ongoing, and when constant overtime is burning out your existing crew. Our overtime cost calculator helps you compare.

This calculator is a general guide, not financial or employment advice. It uses steady averages and doesn’t include recruitment cost, ramp-up time, or award and leave specifics. Check pay rates against the relevant Fair Work award and your own utilisation before hiring.

Know if the hire paid off

traqR shows the billable hours and margin each worker actually delivers — proof the hire worked, not just hope. Try it free for 14 days.

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