Free hourly rate calculator for auto repair shops: Calculate your optimal hourly rate now!

Free Hourly Rate Calculator for Auto Repair Shops

The right hourly rate is the foundation of any profitable auto repair shop. If it’s too low, you’re giving away valuable profit and won’t be able to cover your costs. If it’s too high, you’ll scare customers away and lose out to the competition. But how do you find the right balance?

Many auto shop owners rely on their gut instinct or base their decisions on what the competition is doing. However, a sustainably successful business is built on hard data. With our free hourly rate calculator for auto shops, you can quickly and easily determine the minimum hourly rate you need to charge to cover all your costs and achieve your desired profit margin.

With our free calculator, you can quickly and easily determine the minimum net hourly rate you need to charge to cover all your costs and achieve your desired profit.

Your Custom Hourly Rate Calculator

1. Enter your information

After deducting all expenses, how much would you like to earn as profit and salary for yourself?

Include only those employees who work directly on the vehicle (e.g., mechatronics technicians, mechanics). Office staff are not included.

What percentage of paid working hours is actually billed to clients? Realistic figures often range between 70% and 85%.

On average, what percentage markup do you add to the purchase price of replacement parts? This profit from parts sales reduces the amount you need to earn through labor.

Total of all monthly expenses, such as rent, salaries (excluding your own salary), insurance, marketing, software (e.g., CATAMA), electricity, etc.

2. Your result (net)

Minimum income from work

This revenue must be generated each month through your employees' work.

Calculating…

 

Minimum hourly rate (net)

This amount must be billed net per productive hour.

Calculating…

Understanding and Using the Results

The calculated minimum hourly rate is the net amount you must earn per billable hour. Remember to add the applicable sales tax to this amount to arrive at your gross billing rate for the client.

Important: This is the absolute minimum you need to achieve your goals. It’s always a good idea to set aside a buffer for unexpected expenses or investments.

The next step: From calculation to optimization

A computer is an excellent tool for planning. In day-to-day workshop operations, however, what really matters is actually achieving those calculated goals. The biggest challenge is often capacity utilization: unproductive downtime caused by waiting for parts, inefficient scheduling, or missing information can dramatically reduce your profits.

This is exactly where modern workshop software like CATAMAcomes in. It helps you:

  • Maximize your employees' productivity with a digital planning board.
  • Accurately track working hours and assign them directly.
  • Keep track of all costs and revenue in real time.
  • Create professional invoices with accurately reported labor and parts costs.

Stop guessing and start taking control. Discover how CATAMA can make your workshop more profitable.

Discover Catama now & request a demo

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