Grounds ToolkitLabor and Crews
What Does One Paid Labor Hour Really Cost?
Enter a base wage. This calculates the fully loaded hourly cost once payroll taxes, workers compensation, and paid time off are added, the number every other cost and pricing engine in this toolkit builds on.
How this is calculated
Loaded rate equals base wage times one plus the burden percentage. The 30% default represents a typical small landscaping crew's payroll taxes, workers comp, and paid time off, sourced ranges and rationale are on the Methodologypage.
Worked example
A $22 base wage with a 30% burden: $22 × 1.30 = $28.60 per hour. That is the real cost of one paid hour, before any job-specific labor cost is calculated.
Frequently asked questions
What is included in labor burden?
Payroll taxes (Social Security, Medicare, unemployment), workers compensation insurance, and paid time off for year-round employees. Health benefits, where offered, add more on top.
Why is the default burden 30%?
Industry sources put labor burden in a 28-45% range for landscaping. 30% sits at the lower-middle of that range, appropriate for a small crew without full benefit packages. Always editable.
Should I use this instead of my raw wage when pricing jobs?
Yes. Pricing off raw wage understates true labor cost by the burden percentage, commonly 20 to 45 percent, which erodes margin without being visible in the math.
Next decision
Ready to price a specific job? Use Job Labor Costto apply this rate to actual crew-hours.