---
title: "Locksmith profit per job and after-hours calculator · LockCommand"
description: "Work out the real profit on a locksmith job after parts, drive time, mileage and card fees, and the after-hours surcharge that keeps night calls worth it. Free."
url: https://lockcommand.com/tools/job-profit-calculator
---

[Free tool · no account needed](https://lockcommand.com/tools)

# Locksmith job profit calculator

Put in one real job: the price, the parts, the drive and the time on site. See what you kept, and what to charge for the same job at 2 a.m.

**Example job.** A $175 lockout, 20 minutes each way. Change any number to match a real job of yours.

## The job

$

Everything the customer paid, trip fee included.

$

What the parts cost you, not what you charged.

min

mi

min

$

What the tech costs you an hour, or what you pay yourself.

$

Fuel only: gas price ÷ miles per gallon. Fuel, wear and insurance: the IRS business rate is 72.5¢ for January to June 2026.

%

From your processor's statement.

$

Use 0 if there isn't one.

## Profit on this job

Profit

$91.22

Margin

52.1%

Profit as a share of the price

| Cost | Amount | How |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Parts | $20.00 | What you paid |
| Labor | $40.83 | 1.17 h × $35.00 |
| Vehicle | $17.40 | 24 mi × $0.725 |
| Card fee | $5.55 | 3% + $0.30 |
| Total cost | $83.78 | Out of $175.00 |

That's $78.19 of profit for each hour the job took, drive included.

## The same job at night

What does a night call cost you that a day call doesn't? Set it here, and see the surcharge that keeps the night job paying the same.

%

50% is time and a half for the tech.

$

On-call pay, a later start next morning.

$

0 means the night job pays the same as the day job.

## After-hours surcharge

Charge at least

$36.51

Night work costs you $35.42 more

Rounded for your price list

$40

23% of the day price

At night this job is $215.00 and earns $94.60, against $91.22 by day. The surcharge is a little higher than the extra cost because the card fee takes its share of it too.

Set night, weekend and holiday surcharges once. The AI receptionist adds the right one to every quote.

[Set your night surcharge in LockCommand](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-up?from=tool-job-profit-calculator)

## How to work out the profit on a locksmith job

A $175 lockout sounds like a good job until you take out the parts, the 40 minutes of driving, the gas and the card fee. This calculator shows what is left, then works out how much more a night call has to cost so it pays you as well as the same job in daylight.

### What eats into a locksmith job

- **Parts:** what the lock, cylinder, key blank or fob cost you, not what you charged for them.
- **Time:** the drive there and back plus the time on site, at what an hour of labor costs you.
- **The vehicle:** fuel at the least, and wear and insurance if you count them by the mile.
- **Card fees:** a percent of the price plus, with many processors, a fixed fee per payment.

### How to use the calculator

1. Pick a real job from last week and enter what the customer paid.
2. Enter what the parts cost you, the drive time and miles there and back, and the time on site.
3. Set a labor cost per hour and a vehicle cost per mile. The table below helps you pick the mileage number.
4. Leave "Paid by card" on if they paid by card, and enter the fee from your processor's statement.
5. In the night section, enter what a night call costs you that a day call doesn't.

### How the profit is worked out

- Labor = (drive minutes + minutes on site) ÷ 60 × labor cost per hour.
- Vehicle = miles × cost per mile.
- Card fee = price × card percent + the fixed fee per payment.
- Profit = price − parts − labor − vehicle − card fee. Margin = profit ÷ price.

### Picking a cost per mile

| Method | Cost per mile | Use it when |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Fuel only | Gas price ÷ mpg, e.g. $3.50 ÷ 15 mpg = 23.3¢ | The van payment and insurance are already in your hourly cost. |
| IRS rate, January to June 2026 | 72.5¢ | You want one number for fuel, wear and insurance. |
| IRS rate, from July 1, 2026 | 76¢ | The same, for jobs in the second half of 2026. |

Don't count the van twice. If the monthly costs in the [hourly cost calculator](https://lockcommand.com/tools/hourly-rate-calculator) already include the van payment, fuel and insurance, use a labor cost from there and a cost per mile of 0 here, or take the van out of the monthly costs.

### Card fees

Card fees differ by processor and by how the card is taken. As one example, a large processor's published US rates in October 2026 were 2.6% + 15¢ for a tapped, dipped or swiped card, 3.5% + 15¢ for a card typed in by hand, and 3.3% + 30¢ online. A keyed-in card on a $175 job costs you $6.28; a tapped card costs $4.70. Use the numbers on your own statement.

### How the night surcharge is worked out

Extra night cost = labor × your night premium + any other extra cost per call. The surcharge has to cover that, plus any extra profit you want, after the card fee takes its percent of the surcharge. So the surcharge = (extra cost + extra profit) ÷ (1 − card percent). The rounded figure goes up to the next $5 so it reads well on a price list.

### A worked example

A $175 lockout with $20 of parts, 40 minutes of driving and 30 minutes on site, at $35 an hour of labor. 24 miles at 72.5 cents is $17.40. A 3% card fee plus 30 cents is $5.55. Labor is 70 ÷ 60 × $35 = $40.83. Total cost is $83.78, so the profit is $91.22, a 52.1% margin.

At night your tech is on time and a half, so labor costs 50% more ($20.42), and you add $15 for the on-call cost. That is $35.42 of extra cost. Divided by 0.97 for the card fee, the surcharge has to be at least $36.51. On a price list, $40.

| Line | Day | Night |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $175.00 | $215.00 |
| Parts, labor and vehicle | $78.23 | $78.23 |
| Card fee (3% + 30¢) | $5.55 | $6.75 |
| Extra night cost | $0.00 | $35.42 |
| Profit | $91.22 | $94.60 |

The $40 surcharge pays a little more than the day job, because it rounds $36.51 up to the next $5.

### Flat amount or percent after hours?

A flat amount, like $40, is easy to say on the phone and matches a night cost that is mostly your time. A percent, like 25%, grows with the job, which suits safe openings and all keys lost car work, where a night job ties you up longer. Whichever you pick, put it on your [price list](https://lockcommand.com/tools/price-book-builder) with the hours it applies, so every quote includes it.

### Sources

- IRS, [standard mileage rates](https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/standard-mileage-rates) : business use is 72.5 cents a mile for January 1 to June 30, 2026 and 76 cents from July 1, 2026. Last checked October 2026.
- Card fee example: a large processor's [published US processing fees](https://squareup.com/us/en/payments/our-fees) . Last checked October 2026.

## Questions

### What is a good profit margin on a locksmith job?

There is no public study of locksmith job margins we trust, and a margin means little without knowing what was counted. Use this calculator on a few typical jobs. If a common job leaves little after parts, time, mileage and card fees, raise its price or its trip fee rather than chasing more of it.

### What should I use for labor cost per hour?

For a tech, use what they cost you an hour, with payroll taxes and benefits if you pay them. If you work alone, use what you want to pay yourself an hour. The hourly cost calculator can help you find that number.

### Which cost per mile should I use?

Use fuel only (gas price ÷ miles per gallon) if your van payment and insurance are already counted somewhere else. Use the IRS business rate if you want one number that covers fuel, wear and insurance. It is 72.5 cents a mile for January to June 2026 and 76 cents from July 1, 2026.

### Why is the surcharge higher than the extra night cost?

If the customer pays by card, the card fee takes a percent of the surcharge as well. The calculator grosses the surcharge up so you keep the full amount after the fee.

### Should I charge a flat amount or a percent after hours?

A flat amount is easier to say on the phone and fits jobs where the night cost is mostly your time. A percent grows with bigger jobs. LockCommand takes either one.

### Does drive time really count as labor?

Yes. The hour you spend driving to a job is an hour you can't spend on another one, and a paid tech is on the clock while driving. Leaving it out makes far jobs look better than they are.

## More for your shop

- [Hourly rate and minimum ticket Your true cost per hour on the road and the smallest job worth driving to.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/hourly-rate-calculator)
- [Price book builder Build a locksmith price list with low and high prices, trip fee and after-hours surcharge, and print it.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/price-book-builder)
- [Service area and trip fee zones Set zones by miles from your base with a trip fee for each, and print a zone sheet.](https://lockcommand.com/tools/service-area-zones)
- [After-hours calls How to answer, price and route night and weekend lockout calls without being on the phone all night.](https://lockcommand.com/after-hours-locksmith-calls)
- [Payments Invoices and pay links that pay into your own Stripe, Square, PayPal, Venmo, Cash App or Zelle, with no LockCommand fee.](https://lockcommand.com/features/payments)

## Let LockCommand do this on every job

The AI receptionist quotes from your price book, books the job and texts the customer. Create your account and set up your shop in a few minutes.

[Create your account](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-up?from=tool-job-profit-calculator) [See pricing](https://lockcommand.com/pricing)

Already have an account? [Log in](https://app.lockcommand.com/sign-in). Questions first? Email  [support@lockcommand.com](mailto:support@lockcommand.com) .