Change Order Calculator
Price a construction change order with overhead, profit, and bond markup. Add labor, material, equipment, and subcontractor costs to get the total price, the markup added, and the true margin vs markup. Free, no sign-up.
What to calculate next
Tools commonly used alongside this calculation
Labor Burden Calculator
Calculate the fully burdened labor rate for construction. Add payroll taxes (FICA, FUTA, SUTA), workers' comp, insurance, and benefits to a base wage to get the labor burden % and the true cost per productive hour for accurate bids. Free, no sign-up.
Man-Hours Calculator
Estimate construction labor man-hours, crew duration, and cost. Enter a quantity and a production rate or labor unit, your crew size, and a productivity factor to get total man-hours, work days, and labor cost. Free, no sign-up.
Retainage Calculator
Calculate construction retainage and your net progress payment. Enter the contract amount, percent complete, and retainage rate — with optional tiered reduction — to get the amount withheld, the net payment due this period, and the cumulative retainage held. Free, no sign-up.
Explanation
A change order calculator prices added or revised work and applies the overhead and profit markup so the change is not done at a loss. A change order is a written amendment to the contract that adjusts the scope, price, and often the schedule. The price is built from the direct cost of the work — labor, material, equipment, and any subcontractor — plus a markup that covers your overhead and the profit the change should earn.
How a change order is priced
Start with the direct cost, then add overhead as a percent of that cost and profit on the running subtotal. Bond and insurance, if your contract carries them, go on top of the marked-up price. Use a realistic burdened labor rate for the labor line — the labor burden calculator turns a base wage into the fully loaded cost per hour, and the man-hours calculator estimates the added work behind it.
overhead = direct × OH% ÷ 100
profit = (direct + overhead) × profit% ÷ 100
total = direct + overhead + profit + bond
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| direct | Direct cost to perform the changed work |
| overhead | Home-office and field overhead, as a percent of direct cost |
| profit | Earnings on the change, applied to the overhead subtotal |
| bond | Bond premium and insurance on the marked-up price (optional) |
Markup vs. margin
Markup and margin are the most common change-order mistake. Markup is a percent of your cost; margin is a percent of the price you charge. Marking up a $1,000 cost by 20% gives a $1,200 price, but the profit is only $200 — a 16.7% margin, not 20%. To actually earn a target margin you have to mark up by more, using the conversion below. The Target margin mode does this back-calculation for you.
| Target margin | Required markup |
|---|---|
| 10% | 11.1% |
| 15% | 17.6% |
| 20% | 25.0% |
| 25% | 33.3% |
Typical overhead, profit, and bond rates
Most change orders carry a combined overhead-and-profit markup of 15% to 25%. The low 10% overhead / 5% profit figure many contracts assume rarely covers the true cost of a change, because small added jobs disrupt the schedule and carry coordination cost out of proportion to their size.
| Component | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Overhead | 8–15% | Of direct cost; supervision and home office |
| Profit | 5–15% | Depends on project risk and market |
| Combined OH&P | 15–25% | Most healthy change-order markups |
| Subcontractor markup | 5–15% | Often capped by the contract on sub work |
| Bond & insurance | 1–3% | Of the marked-up price, when required |
Notes and limitations
Allowable markup is set by your contract — many spell out the exact overhead and profit percentages and cap the markup a general contractor may add on subcontractor work. Under AIA documents, a deductive (credit) change order usually returns the direct cost without profit, and net change orders net the adds against the deducts before markup. Always get the change order signed before performing the work, and remember that change orders are billed and held back like base-contract work — the retainage calculator shows how retention applies to the added amount.