Electrical Estimating and Bidding Guides
Plain-language guides to the business side of electrical contracting: building an estimate, pricing labor, setting margin and finding work worth bidding. Each guide works through real numbers you can check.
Estimating and bidding
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| How to bid electrical jobs | Scope review, takeoff, labor, overhead, margin and exclusions, start to finish |
| How to estimate residential electrical work | Square-foot, per-device and labor-unit methods, with a whole-house example |
| NECA labor units explained | How the Manual of Labor Units columns work and how to adjust them |
| How to find electrical jobs to bid | GC bid lists, public portals, plan rooms and a bid/no-bid scorecard |
Pricing and profit
| Guide | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Electrical contractor profit margin | Gross vs. net margin, margin-to-markup, and where profit leaks |
| Electrician hourly rate | What to charge per hour, built up from wage, burden, overhead and margin |
Careers
- How to become an electrical estimator: the job, the pay and the path in.
Put the numbers to work
Run a price with the free electrical bid calculator, start from an estimate or proposal template, or see how electrical estimating software handles the takeoff.