Every electrician remembers the job that looked profitable on paper but wasn’t. The quote was accepted quickly, the work went smoothly, but by the end, the margin had disappeared. Labour took longer than expected, material costs crept up, and what should have been a strong result became a lesson in pricing. This is exactly why having a clear electrical pricing guide matters.
Your pricing guide gives you a structured way to quote work confidently and protect your income. Instead of relying on estimates or instinct, you know your true costs, apply consistent margins, and ensure every job contributes to your business growth. It also shows clients that you operate professionally, with quotes they can trust.
This electrical pricing guide is designed for the Australian market and will help you calculate real costs, choose the right pricing model, and create quotes that protect your margins while keeping you competitive.
Learn the Basics of Electrical Job Pricing
Electrical pricing is the structured process of calculating labour, materials, overhead, tax, and profit in a way that reflects both your costs and the value you provide.
Why Pricing Electrical Services Accurately Matters
Every quote you send shapes your future workload, cashflow, and is a reflection on your business.
Undercharging might win work quickly, but it often leads to long hours, tight margins, and limited capacity to reinvest in tools, vehicles, or staff. Over time, this erodes morale and makes it difficult to grow beyond being owner-operated.
Overpricing without explaining value creates different risks. Clients may perceive you as expensive and choose competitors, even if your workmanship is superior. Trust is harder to build once pricing feels unclear or inconsistent.
Accurate pricing allows you to:
- Cover all direct and indirect costs
- Maintain predictable cash flow
- Reinvest in equipment, apprentices and systems
- Present yourself as a professional contractor rather than a tradesperson, putting your best guess forward
That stability gives you room to focus on quality, service, and acquiring new leads rather than constantly chasing the next job.
Specific Challenges of Pricing Electrical Jobs
Electrical work rarely follows a standard template. A quick fault find may take less than an hour, while a switchboard upgrade or full rewire can involve days of labour, compliance checks, and coordination. Without a structured pricing approach, this variation makes it easy to underestimate true costs.
Common pricing challenges electricians face include:
- Wide range of job types: Reactive callouts, maintenance, installations, and large-scale upgrades all require different pricing approaches
- Compliance obligations: Work must meet AS/NZS 3000 Wiring Rules, including testing, certification, and documentation
- Specialised tools and equipment: Test instruments, safety gear, and ongoing calibration all add operational cost
- Travel and downtime: Time spent driving between sites, especially across large metro or regional areas, reduces productive hours
- Administrative requirements: Compliance certificates, reporting, and customer documentation take time beyond the physical work
- Unpredictable site conditions: Hidden faults, outdated wiring, or access issues can increase labour and material requirements
These factors make electrical pricing more complex than simply estimating time and materials. A structured pricing method helps you break down labour, materials, overheads, and margin consistently. This ensures your quotes remain accurate, professional, and profitable, regardless of the job size or complexity.
Detail Your Electrical Job Costs Correctly
Before calculating profit, you need a clear understanding of your true cost base. It’s easy to focus only on labour and materials, but overlooking overheads, travel, tools, and compliance costs can quickly erode your margins. Accurate pricing starts with accounting for every cost required to deliver the job professionally and safely.
Labour Cost Calculation
Labour is your largest and most important cost, but many electricians underestimate what it truly costs to employ someone. If your real employment cost is A$65 per hour and you charge A$85 per hour, the difference is not pure profit. That gap must also cover vehicles, insurance, tools, software, and business overhead. Without accounting for these, your margin is far smaller than it appears.
To calculate your true labour cost, use this formula:
Hourly Labour Cost = (Annual Wage + Superannuation + Leave + On-costs) ÷ Billable Hours per Year
For example, if a licensed electrician earns A$90,000 per year, including superannuation and entitlements, and you realistically bill 1,600 hours per year after leave, training, and admin time, your base labour cost is A$56.25 per hour, before overhead and profit are added.
Accurate estimating must also include all the time required to deliver the job, not just the time spent on the tools. This includes:
- On-site installation and testing
- Travel time between jobs
- Job preparation and planning
- Certification and compliance documentation
These non-billable tasks are essential to completing the work but are often overlooked in quotes. Failing to account for them is one of the main reasons jobs that appear profitable on paper deliver lower returns in reality.
Material Cost Estimation
Material costs fluctuate constantly in the Australian market and must reflect current supplier pricing rather than last year’s assumptions or rough memory from similar jobs.
Electrical components such as cabling, switchgear, RCDs, consumer mains, distribution boards, EV chargers and smart devices are all affected by global supply chains, copper pricing, freight costs and exchange rates.
Typical components include:
- Cabling
- Switches and outlets
- Switchboards and RCDs
- Light fittings
- EV chargers
- Smart automation devices
Always allow for:
- Wastage and part loss
- On-site extras
- Specification upgrades
- GST at 10%
Consistent, accurate material costing ensures your quote reflects the true scope of the job and prevents avoidable profit loss.
Understanding GST in Electrical Pricing
GST (Goods and Services Tax) is a 10% tax applied to most electrical work in Australia and must be included in your pricing if your business is GST-registered. GST represents one eleventh of the total price charged, and registration is required once your business reaches A$75,000 in annual turnover, according to the Australian Taxation Office.
If your business is registered for GST, you must:
- Add 10% GST to your quoted price
- Clearly state whether quotes are GST-inclusive or GST-exclusive
- Show the GST amount separately on tax invoices
- Report and remit GST to the ATO through your BAS (Business Activity Statement)
Displaying GST-inclusive pricing often makes quotes clearer for residential customers. However, GST-exclusive pricing is common when quoting commercial clients who are also GST-registered, as they can claim GST credits.
It’s also important to recognise that competing against non-GST-registered electricians can create pricing pressure. However, GST registration reflects a professional, compliant business operating at scale. Your pricing should reflect the value, reliability, and accountability that clients expect from a properly registered contractor.
Accurately applying GST and using current supplier pricing ensures your quotes remain compliant, transparent, and financially sustainable.
Overhead Allocation
Overhead includes every cost required to keep your business operating beyond direct job expenses. These are the fixed and semi-fixed costs that exist whether you complete one job this week or ten..
Common overheads:
- Public liability insurance
- Vehicle finance and fuel
- Tools and test equipment
- Software subscriptions
- Accounting and bookkeeping
- Mobile phones and the internet
- Licensing and compliance fees
A practical method:
- Calculate total annual overhead.
- Divide by total billable hours.
- Add this overhead cost per hour to your labour cost.
These costs do not appear on a single job invoice, but they must be recovered across all jobs. If overhead is not deliberately allocated into your hourly rate or project pricing, it quietly eats into profit. When calculated properly and distributed consistently, overhead recovery ensures that each job contributes to keeping the business viable, not just covering wages and materials.
Understanding Profit Margins and Calculating Final Price
Profit margin is the percentage of the final sale price that remains as profit after all costs have been covered. It is often confused with markup, but they are not the same.
- Markup is added to the cost.
- Margin is the percentage of the final price that is profit.
Because margin is based on the final price, you must calculate it correctly to avoid underpricing.
For example, if your total job cost is A$2,000 and you want a 20% profit margin, your final price must be A$2,500, not A$2,400.
Here’s why:
- Total cost: A$2,000
- Desired margin: 20%
- Required sale price: A$2,500
- Profit: A$500 (which is 20% of A$2,500)
If you only added a 20% markup to A$2,000, your price would be A$2,400 — resulting in a margin of just 16.7%, not 20%.
Once labour, materials, overhead, and GST are calculated accurately, applying a consistent profit margin ensures every job contributes to your business. This allows you to reinvest in tools, vehicles, training, and growth, rather than simply covering costs.
Choose the Right Pricing Model for Electrical Work
The pricing model you choose affects both your profitability and your risk. Some jobs have clearly defined scope, while others involve uncertainty. Using the right pricing structure ensures you are fairly compensated while giving clients confidence in your quote.
Hourly Rate Pricing
Hourly rate pricing involves charging the client based on the time spent completing the work, plus the cost of materials. This model is commonly used when the full scope of the job cannot be confirmed in advance.
It is best suited for:
- Fault finding and diagnostics
- Small repairs and minor installations
- Reactive maintenance and service callouts
- Work where conditions or duration are uncertain
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, average earnings data for electricians provides a baseline for understanding labour costs.
To use hourly pricing effectively, make sure you:
- Clearly communicate your hourly rate
- Set a minimum call-out fee (e.g. one-hour minimum)
- Explain how travel time is charged
- Define how part-hours are billed (e.g. 15-minute or 30-minute increments)
- Track time accurately using job management software
This prevents confusion and protects your revenue.
Fixed or Flat-Rate Pricing
Fixed or flat-rate pricing is where you provide a single set price for a clearly defined job, regardless of how long it takes to complete. Instead of billing by the hour, the client agrees upfront to pay a total amount based on your estimate of labour, materials and overhead.
This model works well for repeatable tasks such as installing power points, light fittings or EV chargers, where time requirements are predictable. Clients often prefer it because they know the total cost in advance.
Ideal jobs for flat-rate pricing include:
- Power point installations
- Light fitting replacements or upgrades
- EV charger installations
- Switchboard upgrades with defined scope
- Standard residential installations
Clients often prefer fixed pricing because it provides certainty. They know the total cost upfront, which makes it easier to approve the work.
Flat-rate pricing is most effective when based on real job costing data. Tracking previous projects helps you understand actual labour time and material usage, allowing you to refine your pricing and quote future work with greater accuracy and confidence.
Cost-Plus Pricing
Cost-plus pricing is a model where you calculate the total direct cost of a job first, including labour and materials, and then add a predetermined percentage on top to generate profit. The final price is based on actual costs plus your agreed markup.
This approach is commonly used for larger or more complex electrical projects where the scope can vary, such as switchboard upgrades, rewires or commercial fit-outs. It provides transparency and ensures that rising material or labour costs are reflected in the final price.
Example:
- A$900 materials
- A$960 labour (8 hours at A$120 per hour)
- Subtotal: A$1,860
- 25 % markup applied
- Final price: A$2,325
This method provides clarity and ensures materials and labour increases are reflected fairly.
Cost-plus pricing works best when combined with accurate cost tracking and clear communication, ensuring both you and the client understand how the final price is calculated.
Value-Based Pricing (Advanced)
Value-based pricing sets your price based on the outcome and value delivered to the client, rather than strictly on your labour and material costs. Instead of pricing purely on time spent, you consider what the solution is worth to the customer in terms of reliability, convenience, and long-term benefit.
This model is most effective for specialist or premium electrical services where expertise and quality are key decision factors, such as:
- Smart home automation systems
- Energy-efficient upgrades and EV charging solutions
- Commercial installations with strict deadlines
- Integrated lighting and control systems
- High-end residential electrical projects
In these cases, clients are not just paying for installation, they are paying for expertise, design, reliability, and ongoing performance.
Value-based pricing reflects factors such as:
- Technical expertise and specialised knowledge
- System design and integration quality
- Faster delivery or reduced disruption
- Reliability and reduced risk of future issues
- Ongoing support and aftercare
Clients investing in advanced systems often prioritise long-term performance and peace of mind over the lowest upfront price.
Value-based pricing is most effective when combined with clear communication, proven experience, and a professional quoting process that demonstrates the value you deliver.
Build an Accurate Electrical Job Quote
An accurate quote begins well before numbers are entered into software. It starts with understanding exactly what is being delivered, under what conditions, and with what constraints. Pricing is only as reliable as the information behind it. If the scope is vague, assumptions are unclear, or site conditions are not fully understood, the quote becomes a guess rather than a calculation.
Gather Job Scope Details Upfront
Strong pricing starts with detailed scope capture because the quality of your quote depends entirely on the clarity of the information gathered at the beginning. Before calculating labour or materials, you need a precise understanding of what is being installed, altered or tested, along with the physical and regulatory conditions surrounding the job.
- Review drawings and specifications
- Conduct on-site walkthroughs
- Identify ceiling heights and access constraints
- Confirm finishes and client expectations
Using digital forms and quoting tools, such as AroFlo’s job estimating and quoting software for electricians, helps standardise scope capture and ensures critical details are not missed. Mobile forms, site photos, and structured data capture mean you collect complete job information and build accurate estimates directly from the field.
Thorough scoping improves quote accuracy, reduces costly variations, and protects your margins throughout the project.
Create an Itemised Estimate
Creating an itemised estimate means breaking the total price into clear, structured components rather than presenting a single lump sum. Instead of simply stating “Total: A$4,850”, you separate the quote into each detail. This breakdown shows clients exactly what they are paying for and demonstrates that the price is calculated, not guessed.
Break quotes into:
- Labour
- Materials
- Overhead
- GST
- Call-out fees
- Contingency buffer of 5 to 10 %
Clearly state exclusions such as redecoration or waste removal.
Itemisation builds trust. Clients understand what they are paying for, and comparisons become fairer.
Include Key Pricing Assumptions
Including key pricing assumptions in your quote means clearly stating the conditions under which your price is valid. Every estimate is based on certain expectations about access, scope, materials and timing. If those expectations are not written down, misunderstandings can quickly arise once work begins.
Make sure to clearly document:
- Labour rates
- Material specifications
- Site access conditions
- Dependencies on other trades
- Power isolation requirements
Clear boundaries prevent disputes and preserve profit when circumstances change.
Pricing Best Practices for AU Electricians
Good pricing is not static. It evolves as your business grows. What worked when you were a sole operator with one vehicle rarely holds up once you employ apprentices, add service vans or take on larger commercial contracts. As overhead increases and responsibility expands, your pricing structure must mature with it.
Regularly Review Your Rates and Margins
Review job costing reports quarterly. Compare estimated versus actual labour and materials. Adjust rates to reflect inflation, supplier changes and market demand.
Contractors who track performance data gain confidence in quoting. Those who do not often rely on instinct. It is best to use a costing retrospective so that you can validate your assumptions.
Use Tools to Automate Estimating and Invoicing
Manual spreadsheets make it difficult to maintain accuracy as your business grows. Small errors in labour calculations, material pricing, or GST can quickly affect profitability. Digital job management systems connect quoting, scheduling, and invoicing, giving you full visibility and control over your pricing.
With AroFlo’s electrical job management software, electricians can:
- Build consistent quote templates using real cost data
- Track labour, materials, and actual job costs in real time
- Convert approved quotes into invoices without re-entering data
- Maintain accurate GST calculations and financial records
- Standardise documentation using structured invoice templates
This reduces admin time and ensures your pricing remains accurate and consistent.
Five Star Electrical, an Australian contractor that needed better control over quoting accuracy as its workload expanded. Manual processes made it difficult to compare estimated costs with actual job performance, limiting visibility over profitability.
After implementing AroFlo, Five Star Electrical gained real-time insight into labour tracking, material usage, and job costing. This allowed the business to compare quotes against actual costs, refine pricing assumptions, and identify which types of work delivered the strongest margins. With accurate data and connected workflows, the team could quote with greater confidence and maintain stronger financial control as they grew.
👉Download our free electrician invoice template to help standardise your documentation.
Stay Compliant With Industry Standards
Compliance is a core part of electrical pricing in Australia. Electrical work is tightly regulated, and meeting legal and safety requirements takes time, administration, and ongoing investment. These obligations must be reflected in your pricing to ensure your business remains both compliant and profitable.
Electrical contractors are required to:
- Hold valid state or territory electrical licences
- Complete work in accordance with AS/NZS 3000 Wiring Rules
- Issue Certificates of Compliance for Electrical Work where required
- Maintain proper testing, documentation, and safety procedures
These tasks add labour time beyond installation, including inspection, testing, and certification.
Many electricians also maintain membership with organisations such as Master Electricians Australia or National Electrical and Communications Association. These memberships strengthen credibility and provide training and support, but they also involve fees and ongoing professional development costs.
In some states, compliance certificates must be lodged through approved digital portals, adding further administrative time. This work is essential and should be included in your labour calculations.
Proper compliance protects public safety, strengthens client trust, and reinforces the value of professional electrical services. Your pricing should reflect the expertise, responsibility, and regulatory standards required to operate legally and safely.
Take Control of Your Electrical Pricing
Your electrical pricing guide is one of the most powerful tools in your business. When you understand your true costs and apply consistent margins, you stop reacting to jobs and start choosing the work that supports your profitability and growth.
Accurate pricing gives you confidence. Confidence to quote without hesitation. Confidence to negotiate without unnecessary discounting, and confidence that every job contributes to your long-term stability.
With connected systems like AroFlo, you gain full visibility over labour, materials, and job profitability. This allows you to build quotes using real cost data, track performance, and continuously refine your pricing.
If you could quote every electrical job knowing your margins were protected and your costs fully covered, what would that mean for your business growth?
Book a demo to see how AroFlo can help you price work accurately and stay in control.
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