Trip fee zones by distance

Set rings of miles around your base with a trip fee for each one. Type a distance and get the fee, then print the zone sheet for the van or the dispatcher.

Your base

Example values: change them to yours

Shop name

Base town

Where your miles are counted from: the shop or where the van parks.

How you count miles

Zones and trip fees

Zone 1
From
mi
To
mi
Trip fee
$
After-hours add-on
$
Optional
Zone 2
From
mi
To
mi
Trip fee
$
After-hours add-on
$
Optional
Zone 3
From
mi
To
mi
Trip fee
$
After-hours add-on
$
Optional

Zones join end to end. A job right on the line, like 10 miles, takes the lower fee. Changing where a zone ends moves the start of the next one.

Jobs past your last zone

What does this job cost to reach?

Distance to the job

After hours

Zone 2 (10–20 mi)

$55

Trip fee

Zone sheet

Trip fee zones

Example Lock & Key

Miles from Mesa, AZ, counted as driving miles.

Zone	Miles	Trip fee	After hours
Zone 1	0–10 mi	$35	$75 ($40 add-on)
Zone 2	10–20 mi	$55	$95 ($40 add-on)
Zone 3	20–35 mi	$85	$135 ($50 add-on)

Past 35 mi: no set fee. Quote the trip before you book it.

A job right on a zone line takes the lower fee. The trip fee is on top of the price of the work.

LockCommand adds travel fees by ZIP or by miles from your shop to every phone quote, and flags jobs outside your service area.

Set travel fees in LockCommand

How to use it

A trip fee pays for the drive before any work starts: fuel, wear on the van and the time you can't spend on another job. A flat fee is simple, but it loses money on the long runs and scares off the customer two streets away. Zones fix that. Everyone in the same ring pays the same fee, and the fee goes up as the ring gets wider.

Setting up your zones

Enter your base town. Miles count from where the van starts the day, which may be your home and not a shop.
Pick how you count miles. Driving miles from a map app are fairer to the customer. Straight-line miles are quicker to guess on the phone but run short in hilly or river country.
Set each zone's end and its trip fee. The next zone starts where the last one ends, so there are no gaps. If you type a start by hand and leave a gap or an overlap, the tool says so in red and offers to line the zones up.
Add an after-hours amount to any zone where night calls cost you more. Leave it empty for no add-on.
Choose what happens past your last zone: decline the job, or quote the trip each time.

Reading the result

Type the distance to the job and tick After hours if it applies. The big number is the trip fee for that distance. A job right on a line takes the lower zone, so 10 miles is in the 0–10 zone and 10.1 miles is in the next one. Say that out loud on the phone once and callers stop arguing about a tenth of a mile.

A worked example

The tool opens with example numbers you should replace:

Zone	Miles	Day	After hours
1	0–10	$35	$75
2	10–20	$55	$95
3	20–35	$85	$135

A lockout 14 miles out at 2 p.m. is zone 2, so the trip fee is $55. The same call at 11 p.m. is $55 plus the $40 add-on, $95. A job 40 miles out is past the last zone, so with "Quote it case by case" you price that trip before you book it.

These amounts are examples, not market rates. Work out what an hour on the road really costs you with the hourly cost calculator, then set fees that cover it.

Zones and your Google service area

Your trip fee zones and your Google Business Profile service area are two different things, but they should agree. Google lets a service-area business list up to 20 cities, ZIP codes or regions, does not allow a radius, and asks that the whole area stay within about 2 hours of driving from your base. If your last zone goes past what you could reach in 2 hours, the tool warns you. List the towns your zones cover on your profile, and don't list towns you would decline.

Sources

Manage your service areas for service-area & hybrid businesses, Google Business Profile Help (up to 20 areas, about 2 hours of driving, no radius).
Guidelines for representing your business on Google, Google Business Profile Help.

Last checked October 2026. The fee amounts are yours to set; no source sets them.

Questions

Should a locksmith charge a trip fee?

Most mobile locksmiths do, because the drive costs fuel and time before any work starts. Zones keep the fee fair: close jobs pay less, far jobs pay more, and everyone in the same ring pays the same.

Driving miles or straight-line miles?

Driving miles from a map app match what the trip really costs and are easier to defend to a customer. Straight-line miles are faster to estimate on the phone but run short where roads wind around water or hills. Pick one and print it on the sheet so everyone quotes the same way.

What happens to a job exactly on a zone line?

It takes the lower fee. A job at 10 miles is in the 0–10 zone; at 10.1 miles it moves to the next zone.

How far can my Google service area reach?

Google asks service-area businesses to keep the whole area within about 2 hours of driving from the base, with up to 20 cities, ZIP codes or regions listed. A radius isn't allowed. Source: Google Business Profile Help, checked October 2026.

Does this tool save my zones?

No. Everything stays in your browser while the page is open, and nothing is stored or sent. Print the sheet or save it as a PDF to keep it.

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