Trade practice
Production rates by operation
How long each operation takes one person, in person-hours per unit of work. Read the units before the numbers: every figure here is PERSON-hours, not crew-hours, so a two-person crew hanging fifty sheets in a day is 16 person-hours for 50 sheets rather than 8. Reading a crew-day as a person-day is the commonest way a labour figure comes out wrong, and it comes out wrong by the size of the crew.
- 68Rows, each with its source
- 156Calculators compute with it
- CC BY 4.0Free to reuse, with credit
Bands, not numbers
Every rate is a band rather than a number, and the bands are wide on purpose — the high end is at least 1.6 times the low on every row, because a production rate quoted to within a few percent is a claim about precision nobody in the trade can support. The figure in brackets is where the work usually lands, not where it will land on your job. What actually moves a job from the fast end to the slow end is in the line under each row, and it is nearly always access, repetition and ceiling height rather than the material.
Why none of it is cited
None of these carry a citation, and that is stated rather than papered over: they are ranges widely quoted in the trade, and attaching a reference nobody can check would make them look better sourced than they are. Treat any row here as a starting point to be replaced by your own crew's figures, which is the only number that will ever be right for your work.
How the calculators use it
The site itself never turns these into an answer. On a calculator they appear as a suggestion you can accept or edit, exactly the way material prices do, and the estimate reads your number rather than this table — because an invented labour line is the number people are most often held to.
The table
Every row, and where it comes from
Every row is trade practice — widely quoted, and not cited.
| Source | Copy | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hanging plasterboard | 0.18–0.6 (0.32) | sheet | 1 drywaller + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice6 calculators | |
| Ceilings are far slower than walls. Small rooms, service penetrations and a lot of cutting push it to the high end; long flat walls with a board lift and two experienced hands reach the low end. | ||||||
| Taping and finishing to a paint-ready level | 0.09–0.32 (0.16) | m² | 1 taper + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Three passes with drying between each, so the finish level decides it: a level-3 wall behind tile is quick, a level-5 wall under a wash of low-angle light is several times the work. | ||||||
| Skim coat plaster | 0.1–0.35 (0.17) | m² | 1 plasterer | 1 | Trade practice12 calculators | |
| Background matters more than area: a flat new board skims fast, an old wall that needs bonding, dubbing out or a second float coat does not. Working time is fixed by the mix, so a plasterer cannot simply go faster. | ||||||
| Laying sand-cement screed by hand | 0.12–0.45 (0.22) | m² | 1 plasterer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice4 calculators | |
| Getting the material to the bay is most of it. A ground floor with a mixer at the door is the low end; upper floors, long barrow runs and small isolated bays are the high end. Pumped screed is a different operation entirely and this rate does not describe it. | ||||||
| Wall tiling | 0.7–2.2 (1.1) | m² | 1 tiler | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. No page separates wall tiling from floor tiling, and the two rates differ about twofold, so nothing attaches on a calculator's own page. Since R101 a takeoff's row that tiles a wall says so, and reaches it. | ||||||
| Cuts, not area. A plain rectangle of large-format tile is quick; mosaic, a pattern that has to be set out, niches, and every edge trimmed around a window can double or treble it. Grouting is included; a substrate that needs levelling first is not. | ||||||
| Floor tiling | 0.35–1.2 (0.6) | m² | 1 tiler | 1 | Trade practice7 calculators | |
| Faster than a wall because gravity helps and the runs are longer. Small rooms, diagonal or herringbone setting out, and a floor that has to be levelled or uncoupled first move it to the high end. Mixing the adhesive and grouting are included; sealing natural stone adds a little. | ||||||
| Painting walls and ceilings, two coats by roller | 0.1–0.4 (0.18) | m² | 1 painter | 1 | Trade practice19 calculators | |
| Preparation is the variable and it is usually most of the job: new board needs a mist coat and little else, an occupied room needs masking, filling, sanding and cutting in around everything already there. A strong colour change adds a coat. | ||||||
| Laying click-fit laminate or luxury vinyl plank | 0.15–0.55 (0.28) | m² | 1 floor layer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| A rectangular room with one doorway is the low end. Multiple doorways, a staircase, scribing to a stone hearth, and an underlay that has to be taped all push it up. Levelling the subfloor first is a separate operation. | ||||||
| Laying stretch-in carpet over underlay | 0.15–0.5 (0.25) | m² | 1 floor layer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice4 calculators | |
| Seams. One room off a single roll width is fast; a landing, stairs, and a run that needs seaming down the middle are not. Gripper, door bars and lifting the old floor covering are included. | ||||||
| Fixing skirting or baseboard | 0.1–0.4 (0.18) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| Corners, not metres. A long straight run is quick; a room full of returns, external mitres and scribes to an out-of-true wall is several times the rate. Painting is a separate operation. | ||||||
| Framing stud partitions | 0.3–1.1 (0.55) | m of wall | 2 carpenters | 2 | Trade practice4 calculators | |
| Openings. A blank partition goes up fast; every door, every service void and every junction with an existing structure adds work that does not scale with length. Load-bearing work with engineered lintels is a different job. | ||||||
| Laying facing brick | 0.02–0.07 (0.03) | brick | 1 mason + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice5 calculators | |
| A straight run of stretcher bond at ground level is the low end. Corners, reveals, arches, a bond that has to be set out, and every lift of scaffold above the first slow it down. Weather stops the job entirely. | ||||||
| Laying concrete block | 0.06–0.16 (0.09) | block | 1 mason + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice3 calculators | |
| Block weight above all. A lightweight 100 mm block is quick; a dense 215 mm block is a two-handed lift every time and the day count roughly doubles. Reinforced and filled cells are extra operations. | ||||||
| Placing and finishing concrete | 1.2–5 (2.4) | m³ | 2 labourers + 1 mason + 1 plant operator | 4 | Trade practice10 calculators | |
| How the concrete gets there. Direct discharge from the truck into a slab is the low end; a pump doubles the crew but places far more per hour; barrowing to a back garden through a house is several times the rate. The finish specified — tamped, floated, power-floated — changes the tail of the job. Formwork, reinforcement and the cure are not in this figure. | ||||||
| Laying asphalt shingles | 0.07–0.28 (0.12) | m² | 2 roofers | 2 | Trade practice5 calculators | |
| Roof geometry and pitch. A simple gable is the low end; hips, valleys, dormers and penetrations mean cutting every course, and above roughly 8:12 the crew needs staging and slows markedly. Stripping the old covering is a separate operation. | ||||||
| Hanging siding or cladding boards | 0.3–1.1 (0.55) | m² | 2 carpenters | 2 | Trade practice6 calculators | |
| Openings and height. Every window and door needs trimming out, and above the first lift everything goes through scaffold. Battened rainscreen work is slower than fixing straight to a sheathed wall. | ||||||
| Fitting insulation batts between studs or joists | 0.05–0.22 (0.1) | m² | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice4 calculators | |
| Friction-fitting a regular stud bay is quick. A loft with irregular joist spacing, services to cut around, and a low eaves you have to crawl into is the high end. Blown and sprayed insulation are different operations and this rate does not describe them. | ||||||
| Bulk excavation by machine | 0.08–0.6 (0.2) | m³ | 1 plant operator + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice4 calculators | |
| Ground and access. Soft ground with room to swing and a lorry alongside is the low end; clay, rock, a mini-digger that has to come through a side gate, and muck that has to be barrowed to a skip are the high end. Anything within striking distance of a live service is hand-dug and priced at the hand rate below. | ||||||
| Hand excavation, trenches and pits | 2.5–10 (4.5) | m³ | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. Its matcher excludes every trench and post-hole calculator the catalogue has, so nothing attaches on a calculator's own page. Since R101 the takeoffs' trench rows that dig by hand name it, and reach it. | ||||||
| Soil above all — ordinary soil against clay against anything with stone in it spans the whole band on its own. Depth compounds it: below about a metre every shovelful is lifted twice and the trench needs support. | ||||||
| Laying paving on a prepared base | 0.8–2.8 (1.4) | m² | 1 landscaper + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice7 calculators | |
| Cuts and falls. A rectangular patio in one size of slab is the low end; a circular feature, a pattern with several sizes, edge restraints and a fall that has to be held to a gully are the high end. Excavating and laying the sub-base is separate and usually larger. | ||||||
| Setting fence posts in concrete | 0.6–2.5 (1.1) | post | 1 landscaper + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice5 calculators | |
| Digging the hole is the job, so ground conditions decide it exactly as they do for hand excavation. Removing an old fence, working to a boundary that is not straight, and a slope that needs each post set individually all add to it. | ||||||
| Laying turf on a prepared bed | 0.05–0.22 (0.1) | m² | 1 landscaper + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Barrow distance and shape. An open rectangle you can drop the pallet onto is the low end; a back garden reached through a house, and a lawn full of curved beds to cut around, is the high end. Preparing and levelling the bed is a separate operation and usually the larger one. | ||||||
| Battening and tiling or slating a pitched roof | 0.3–2.5 (0.6) | m² | 1 roofer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice3 calculators | |
| The size of the tile above all: large interlocking concrete tiles go on several times faster than small plain tiles or natural slate, of which there are three or four times as many to set out and fix. Hips, valleys, verges, dormers and every cut at an abutment push it to the high end. Stripping the old covering, the underlay and the ridge are separate operations. | ||||||
| Laying roof underlay | 0.03–0.1 (0.05) | m² | 2 roofers | 2 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| A plain gable roof unrolls in a few hours. Hips, valleys, dormers and roof windows mean cutting and lapping round each one, and an airtight membrane whose every lap and penetration is taped is slower again. | ||||||
| Fixing profiled roof sheeting | 0.15–0.6 (0.3) | m² | 2 roofers | 2 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| Long sheets on a simple pitch, on a large roof, go on fast. A small roof, short sheets with end laps, cutting round penetrations and roof lights, standing-seam clips at close centres, staging over a fragile roof and a windy day on an exposed one all slow it down. | ||||||
| Laying an EPDM rubber roof membrane | 0.1–0.4 (0.2) | m² | 2 roofers | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| One sheet bonded over a plain rectangle is the low end. Seams, outlets, many penetrations and a cold or damp day, when the adhesive will not flash off, are the high end. The upstands and the trims are separate operations. | ||||||
| Forming roof upstands and kerbs | 0.2–0.7 (0.35) | m | 1 roofer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Corners and kerbs, not metres. A straight upstand against a wall is quick; a roof-light kerb, internal and external corners, and a cover flashing chased into the wall above it are slow. | ||||||
| Fitting abutment flashings | 0.3–1.8 (0.9) | m | 1 roofer | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. The flashing-sheet page measures trims and abutment flashings alike, so only a takeoff's row that names the work reaches it. | ||||||
| Lead dressed and stepped into a chase down a pitched abutment is the slow case; a straight horizontal cover flashing, or a formed metal flashing fixed to the face, is quick. Cutting the chase in hard brick or stone adds to it. | ||||||
| Weathering a pipe or vent through the roof | 0.25–2 (1) | unit | 1 roofer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| A rubber pipe boot on a new shingle roof takes minutes. A lead slate dressed round a soil pipe through tiles, or a flue that needs a collar and a cover, takes an hour or two, and more when the tiles round it have to be cut. | ||||||
| Fitting eaves and ridge ventilation | 0.1–0.4 (0.2) | m | 1 roofer | 1 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| Over-fascia vents and baffles fitted while the roof is being re-covered are quick. Fitting rafter trays from inside a cramped loft, or cutting a slot for a ridge vent into a roof that is staying, is slow. | ||||||
| Fixing fascia and soffit boards | 0.4–2 (0.8) | m | 1 carpenter + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Whether the old boards come off. Capping sound timber is the low end; stripping rotten boards, making good the rafter feet, boxed ends, corners and vent strips are the high end. The gutter is a separate operation. | ||||||
| Fitting gutters and downpipes | 0.2–0.8 (0.4) | m | 1 roofer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Access and material. Plastic gutter clipped onto brackets from a scaffold that is already up is the low end; working off ladders, cast iron or aluminium sections that have to be jointed, many corners and outlets, and long downpipe runs are the high end. Taking the old gutter down is extra. | ||||||
| Fixing a breather membrane or house wrap | 0.02–0.08 (0.04) | m² | 1 carpenter + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Openings. A blank wall is wrapped in minutes; taping round every window and door, and working from a ladder on an upper storey, take most of the time. | ||||||
| Fixing cladding battens or rails | 0.04–0.14 (0.07) | m | 1 carpenter + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Counter-battening for vertical boards doubles the runs. Fixing into masonry with plugs is slower than nailing into a timber frame, and aluminium rails on brackets take longer again. | ||||||
| Fitting cladding trims and closers | 0.2–0.7 (0.35) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. The flashing-sheet page measures trims and abutment flashings alike, so only a takeoff's row that names the work reaches it. | ||||||
| Every opening needs head, sill and reveal trims mitred or lapped round it; long corner runs are quick by comparison. Metal trims folded on site are slower than factory-made ones. | ||||||
| Sealing frames with mastic | 0.06–0.25 (0.12) | m | 1 glazier | 1 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| Raking out the old mastic and cleaning the joint takes longer than running the new bead. A deep gap needs a backing rod first, and work off a ladder or at height slows everything. | ||||||
| Fitting window and door frames | 1–8 (4) | unit | 2 glaziers | 2 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. Only a takeoff's row reaches it: a flashing tape page counts openings for an order, which on the page alone does not mean the windows are being fitted. | ||||||
| Size and what comes out. A frame set into a new opening as the walls go up, or a casement replacing one of the same size in sound reveals, is the low end; a large door set, a bay, cutting out an old frame bedded in mortar, making good the reveals and upper-floor work off a ladder are the high end. | ||||||
| Rendering an outside wall, two coats | 0.5–1.6 (0.8) | m² | 1 plasterer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. The render mix page belongs to the plastering rate on its own; only a takeoff's row that renders an outside wall reaches this one. | ||||||
| Beads and reveals, and the weather. A plain gable from a scaffold is the low end; window reveals, corners, a textured finish and work stopped by rain, frost or strong sun are the high end. Each coat must cure before the next. | ||||||
| Fixing external wall insulation boards | 0.4–1.8 (0.7) | m² | 1 plasterer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| A plain elevation goes up quickly. Every window reveal, the starter track at the base, mechanical fixings drilled into hard masonry, and moving between scaffold lifts are the high end. | ||||||
| Applying basecoat and reinforcing mesh | 0.25–0.8 (0.4) | m² | 1 plasterer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| The beads and the corners of openings, where the mesh is patched, take longer than the field. A second basecoat pass, or an impact-resistant double mesh at ground floor, moves it to the high end. | ||||||
| Applying a thin-coat render finish | 0.15–0.6 (0.25) | m² | 1 plasterer + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Each elevation is finished in one go, corner to corner, so the size of the biggest wall sets the crew more than the total area does. Textured finishes, colour bands and many reveals are slower. | ||||||
| Cutting and fitting rigid insulation board | 0.1–0.5 (0.18) | m² | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Boards laid flat across a floor or a roof deck are quick. Cutting them tight between rafters or studs, taping every joint, and fixing them overhead are slow. | ||||||
| Fixing a vapour control layer | 0.03–0.12 (0.06) | m² | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Sealing, not spreading. Rolling the sheet across open framing is quick; taping every lap and sealing it round each box, pipe and joist end is most of the time. | ||||||
| Lagging pipework | 0.03–0.15 (0.07) | m | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Open runs in a loft slide on quickly. Pipes clipped tight to a wall, bends and tees that need mitred joints, and pipes in a cramped floor void are the high end. | ||||||
| Blowing loose-fill insulation | 0.05–0.2 (0.1) | bag | 2 labourers | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| The machine first: a contractor's truck-mounted blower empties bags far faster than a hire-shop hopper. Setting up the machine and the hose is a fixed cost, so a small loft is slow per bag. Baffles at the eaves, a loft that has to be cleared first, and a hose run up through a house are the high end. | ||||||
| Framing and boarding a deck | 0.7–3 (1.4) | m² | 2 carpenters | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Height and shape. A low rectangular deck on level ground is the low end; a raised deck with posts, bracing and a stair, a picture-frame border, angles, and hidden fixings are the high end. The footings are a separate operation. | ||||||
| Fixing sheathing boards to a frame | 0.2–0.7 (0.35) | sheet | 2 carpenters | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Plain wall and floor runs go quickly. Cutting round openings, sheathing a roof on a pitch, and working off a scaffold are the high end. | ||||||
| Erecting and striking formwork | 0.6–2.5 (1) | m² | 1 carpenter + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Measured on the face the concrete touches. Edge forms for a ground slab are quick and reused; wall and column forms, curves, many stop-ends and tie holes are slow. Striking and cleaning are included; the reinforcement is not. | ||||||
| Fitting a handrail and balustrade | 0.8–3 (1.5) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| The balusters, not the metres. Square spindles cut to the rake and fixed into a capped string go quickly; turned spindles, a winder, a landing return, and a handrail jointed round a wreath are slow. New newel posts are a separate job. | ||||||
| Fitting kitchen base units | 0.5–3 (1.5) | unit | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. The kitchen-run page counts base units, wall units or worktop lengths as its row asks, so only the kitchen takeoff's row reaches it. | ||||||
| Flat-pack or rigid. Factory-assembled units are set and levelled in well under an hour each; flat-pack adds the assembly. An out-of-level floor, cutting the backs for services, corner units and appliance housings move it to the high end. | ||||||
| Hanging kitchen wall units | 0.4–2.5 (1.2) | unit | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. The kitchen-run page counts base units, wall units or worktop lengths as its row asks, so only the kitchen takeoff's row reaches it. | ||||||
| Rigid units hang quickly once the rail is level; flat-pack adds the assembly. A wall that needs plugging into soft or crumbling plaster, and units lined up round an extractor or a boiler, are slower. | ||||||
| Cutting and fitting a worktop | 0.6–2.5 (1.2) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Joints and cut-outs. A straight run with one sink cut-out is quick; a corner joint, a hob cut-out, scribing to an uneven wall and sealing every cut edge take hours that do not grow with the length. Stone and quartz are templated and fitted by their supplier and are not described here. | ||||||
| Fitting plinths, cornice and pelmet | 0.1–0.4 (0.2) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practicenot attached | |
| No calculator computes with this row. Offered manually. The kitchen-run page's answer is stock lengths to buy, and the metres fitted are only in its working. | ||||||
| Mitres and returns. A straight plinth clipped to the unit legs is quick; cornice and pelmet mitred round every end panel and corner, and a plinth scribed to an uneven floor, are slower. | ||||||
| Fitting threshold and transition strips | 0.3–1 (0.5) | m | 1 floor layer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Each doorway is a small job of its own, so the count matters more than the metres. A strip screwed to a sound subfloor is quick; one bonded across a level change, or set round an architrave, is slower. | ||||||
| Fixing fence panels or boards | 0.2–0.8 (0.35) | m | 1 landscaper + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Panels slotted between posts that are already set go quickly. A close-boarded fence nailed board by board, a sloping run that has to be stepped or raked, and an old fence to take down first are the high end. Setting the posts is a separate operation. | ||||||
| Protecting floors and finishes that stay | 0.02–0.08 (0.04) | m² | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Taping, not spreading. Laying board or sheet across an empty floor is quick; masking round fitted furniture, stairs and every door frame, and lifting it all cleanly at the end, take most of the time. | ||||||
| Loading waste into a skip | 0.5–3 (1) | m³ | 1 labourer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Barrow distance and weight. A skip at the door filled straight from the work with light strip-out waste is the low end; carrying brick and concrete rubble in bags down stairs or through a house is the high end. Sorting it into separate streams adds a little; a chute or a grab lorry changes it entirely. | ||||||
| Laying and compacting a hardcore sub-base | 0.4–3 (1) | m³ | 2 labourers | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Delivery and spreading. Tipped where it is needed and spread by machine is the low end; barrowed through a side gate and spread by hand is the high end. Each layer is compacted before the next, so a deep base takes proportionally longer. | ||||||
| Applying a liquid waterproofing membrane | 0.1–0.4 (0.2) | m² | 1 waterproofing operative | 1 | Trade practice2 calculators | |
| The details, not the field. Rolling coats over an open floor or roof is quick; reinforcing every upstand, outlet, corner and penetration with mat, and waiting for each coat to cure, are the high end. | ||||||
| Tanking walls and floors | 0.3–2 (1) | m² | 1 waterproofing operative + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| What comes off first. Coating sound, clean masonry is the low end; hacking off old plaster back to the brick, cutting out salts and repairing the wall before the first coat are the high end. A guarantee usually requires the system's own approved installer. | ||||||
| Laying perimeter drainage | 0.25–3 (1.2) | m | 1 waterproofing operative + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Cutting a channel into an existing basement floor is the slow end; laying perforated pipe in gravel in a trench that is already dug is the fast end. Rodding points, the connection to a sump and the falls along the run add to it. | ||||||
| Fitting a wardrobe's rails and shelves | 0.75–3 (1.5) | m | 1 carpenter | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| A rail and a shelf on cleats inside carcasses that are already square is the low end; shelf supports fixed into uneven masonry, adjustable systems, and drawer packs and shoe racks assembled in place are the high end. The carcasses, the doors and the end panels are their own work. | ||||||
| Hanging mass-loaded vinyl on a wall | 0.1–0.45 (0.2) | m² | 1 drywaller + 1 labourer | 2 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| The sheet is heavy and floppy. Full drops on a plain frame, lapped and taped, are the low end; cutting it round back boxes, pipes and a window reveal, hanging it overhead, or between two layers of board, are the high end. | ||||||
| Sealing the edges of an acoustic lining | 0.01–0.08 (0.03) | m | 1 drywaller | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| A straight bead round the perimeter of one layer is quick; sealing every edge of two layers, the gaps round back boxes and pipes, and a ragged edge against old plaster are slow. | ||||||
| Fixing resilient bars (resilient channel) | 0.03–0.15 (0.06) | m | 1 drywaller | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Bars screwed straight across studs or joists at their centres are the low end; battening an uneven wall out first, cutting round openings, and clips with furring channel instead of bars are the high end. | ||||||
| Laying a floor finish: the sealer and its coats | 0.06–0.3 (0.12) | m² | 1 floor layer | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| The hours are the working time only, never the drying between coats. A sealer and two coats of lacquer rolled over an open floor is the low end; an oil worked in and buffed off by hand, abrading between more coats, and many small rooms with their edges and thresholds are the high end. The sanding is its own work. | ||||||
| Repointing mortar joints (tuckpointing) | 0.05–0.25 (0.09) | m of joint | 1 mason | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Even joints in square brick, pointed flush or bucket-handle from a scaffold that is already up, are the low end; narrow joints, soft brick, lime put back in thin layers, a weatherstruck or tuck profile, and a face worked off ladders are the high end. The raking out is its own work, and the mortar's mixing is inside this. | ||||||
| Fixing tile backer board | 0.15–0.6 (0.3) | m² | 1 tiler | 1 | Trade practice1 calculator | |
| Whole boards screwed across an open floor or a plain wall are the low end; a small bathroom cut round a bath, a tray, the pipes and the window reveals, with every joint and corner taped and sealed, is the high end. On a timber floor the adhesive bed under the boards adds to it. | ||||||
Behind the table
156 calculators compute with this data
Generated from the calculators themselves rather than written, grouped by trade. Open any of them to see a figure from this table at work.
- Acoustic Sealant Bead Volume Calculator
- Attic Rafter Baffle/Chute Count Calculator
- Basement Wall Waterproofing Coating Coverage Calculator
- Blown-In Insulation Bag Count Calculator
- Brick Veneer Anchor Spacing Calculator
- Brick Calculator
The other 90
- Brick Initial Rate of Absorption (IRA) Calculator
- Brick Movement Joint Spacing Calculator
- Carpet Cushion Roll Calculator
- Carpet Roll Length & Waste Calculator
- Carpet Seam Tape and Sealer Calculator
- Ceiling Plasterboard (Gypsum Board) Sheet Calculator
- Chain Link Fence Post Spacing Calculator
- Circular Pier / Cylinder Concrete Calculator
- Clay Barrel Roof Tile Calculator
- Closet Shelving Calculator
- CMU Bond Beam Block Count Calculator
- CMU Wall Self-Weight Calculator
- Concrete Calculator
- Concrete Formwork Calculator
- Continuous Footing / Grade Beam Volume Calculator
- Sports Court Floor Line Marking Paint Calculator
- Curved/Radius Wall Framing Stud Layout Calculator
- Slope Cut-and-Fill Earthwork Balance Calculator
- Diagonal Tile Layout 45° Corner Cut Waste Calculator
- Gypsum Board Butt Joint Backing Calculator
- Drywall Ceiling Screw Count Calculator (Fastening Schedule)
- Drywall Corner Bead Linear Footage Calculator
- Curved Wall Drywall Kerf Cut Spacing Calculator
- EIFS Finish and Primer Pail Count Calculator
- EIFS Foam Board Adhesive Coverage Calculator
- EIFS Reinforcing Mesh Roll Count Calculator
- EPDM Single-Ply Roofing Roll Calculator
- Epoxy Primer Coverage Over a Profiled Slab Calculator
- Excavation Sloping/Benching Setback Calculator
- Excavation Bracing Strut Load Calculator
- Fiber-Cement Siding Caulk Joint Volume Calculator
- Firebrick Chimney Liner Thermal Expansion Calculator
- Float and Set Plaster Calculator
- Floor Drain Slope Screed Volume Calculator
- Floor Primer Dilution and Coverage Calculator
- Floor Screed Calculator — Sand and Cement, Bagged or Liquid
- Floor Transition Strip Calculator
- Gravel Base Layer Tonnage Calculator
- Highway Guardrail Post Spacing Calculator
- Heated Screed Volume Calculator
- Herringbone/Chevron Pattern Flooring Waste Calculator
- Lap Siding Fastener Schedule Calculator
- Cold-Applied Liquid Waterproofing Membrane Volume Calculator
- Mineral Wool Insulation Batt Calculator
- Mass-Loaded Vinyl (MLV) Soundproofing Barrier Calculator
- Modular Carpet Tile Layout Calculator
- Paver Base & Sand Calculator
- Paver Calculator
- Rooftop Terrace Paver Pedestal Height Calculator
- Paver Polymeric Sand Calculator
- Plaster Angle and Stop Bead Calculator
- Gypsum Plaster Brown Coat Volume Calculator
- Gypsum Plaster Finish Coat Volume Calculator
- Gypsum Plaster Scratch Coat Volume Calculator
- Plywood and OSB Sheet Calculator (Subfloor, Wall and Roof)
- Post Hole Concrete Calculator
- Quarry Tile Acid-Resistant Grout Joint Volume Calculator
- Rain-Screen Cladding Furring Strip Calculator
- Render and Plaster Mix Calculator, Coat by Coat
- Resilient Channel (RC-1) Spacing & Linear Footage Calculator
- Retaining Wall Block Calculator
- Retaining Wall Footing Sizing Calculator
- Reverse Concrete Slab Solver
- Ridge Vent Linear Footage Calculator
- Roof Eave Ice Dam Protection Membrane Footprint
- Roof Paver Pedestal Grid Calculator
- Roof Perimeter Termination Bar Calculator
- Roof Tile and Slate Calculator (Gauge, Battens and Ridge Tiles)
- Roof Vent Pipe Boot Count Calculator
- Floor Screed Thickness Calculator — Bonded, Unbonded and Floating
- Built-In Bench/Planter Seat Wall Concrete Volume Calculator
- Vinyl Siding Fastener Count Calculator
- Vinyl/Fiber-Cement Siding J-Channel Trim Calculator
- Vinyl Siding Starter Strip Linear Footage Calculator
- Skim Coat Plaster Calculator
- Slate Shingle Course Calculator
- Isolated Spread Footing Sizing Calculator
- Structural Steel Primer Coverage Calculator
- Structural Column Pour Calculator
- Traditional 3-Coat Stucco Plaster Volume & Mass Calculator
- Stucco Vertical Control Joint Spacing Calculator
- Stucco/EIFS Expansion Joint Layout Calculator
- Stud Calculator
- Road Subgrade Excavation Truck Fleet Calculator
- Ceramic/Porcelain Tile Spacer Count Calculator
- Tuckpointing Mortar Repair Volume Calculator
- Two-Pack Paint and Coating Mixing Calculator — Pot Life and Batch Size
- Perimeter Weeping Tile Pipe Segment Calculator
- Wet Room Tanking and Waterproof Membrane Calculator
- Wood Shingle Triple-Lap Exposure Calculator
- Tile Backer Board Calculator
- Baseboard & Trim Calculator
- Board and Batten Siding Calculator
- Ceiling Paint Calculator
- Countertop Area Calculator
- Crown Molding Calculator
The other 40
- Deck Board Calculator
- Deck Footing Calculator
- Deck Stain Calculator
- Drywall Calculator
- Drywall Joint Compound Calculator
- Exterior Paint Calculator
- Fascia Board Calculator
- Fence Picket Calculator
- Floor Sanding and Finish Calculator
- Floor & Wall Tile Calculator
- Framing Stud Calculator
- Gutter Calculator
- Handrail Length Calculator
- House Wrap Calculator
- Masking and Protection Materials Calculator
- Metal Roof Panel Calculator
- Metalwork and Railing Paint Calculator
- Paint Boxing Calculator — Blending Tins Before You Start
- Paint Calculator
- Paint Coverage Over Dark Colours Calculator
- Paint Lightening and Darkening Calculator
- Paint Mix Ratio Calculator — Two Paints, Recordable Parts
- Paint Primer Calculator
- Paint Tint Ratio and Colourant Load Calculator
- Pergola Post Spacing Calculator
- LVP, Laminate & Engineered Floor Calculator
- Roof Covering Fixing Calculator
- Roof Squares Calculator
- Roofing Shingle Calculator
- Roofing Underlayment Calculator
- Siding Calculator
- Soffit Panel Calculator
- Square Feet to Roofing Squares Calculator
- Stucco Calculator
- Stucco Lath Calculator
- Studs to Linear Feet Calculator (16 in OC)
- Tile & Grout Calculator
- Tile Layout Calculator
- Wood Fence Stain Calculator
- Woodwork Paint Calculator
Cite this page
Reference data
The rest of the library
Each table here is a view onto data the calculators already compute with, and each names where its figures come from.
A source on every row
A standard, a manufacturer, trade practice or arithmetic — named where the figure is.
A range where reality is one
A band prints whole, never flattened to a single figure.
Free to reuse
CC BY 4.0, and the same rows as JSON. Credit Craft Quantities.
Frequently asked questions
- Are these person-hours or crew-hours?
- Person-hours. A two-person crew that hangs fifty sheets in an eight-hour day has spent 16 person-hours on them, not 8. Divide a figure here by the crew size to get hours on the clock, and multiply a crew-day by the crew size before comparing it with anything in this table.
- Why is every rate a range rather than one figure?
- Because no one in the trade can support one figure. On every row the high end is at least 1.6 times the low, and the figure in brackets is where the work usually lands, not where it will land on your job. The note under each row says what moves it — nearly always access, repetition and ceiling height rather than the material.
- Where do these rates come from?
- They are ranges widely quoted in the trade, and none carries a citation because none was checked — a reference nobody can verify would make them look better sourced than they are. Treat each row as a starting point, and replace it with your own crew's figure as soon as you have one.
- Do the calculators price labour from this table?
- No. On a calculator a rate appears as a suggestion you accept or edit, the way a material price does, and the estimate reads your number rather than this table. Nothing here is money either: the hourly rate is yours, and it varies more between two towns than these bands do between two trades.