Accountants Project Quote (Monthly) Calculator
Estimate a monthly accounting project quote using expected hours, labour rate, recurring costs, overheads and target profit margin.
Overview
Use this monthly accounting project quote calculator to estimate a recurring client fee from planned hours, your target hourly rate, client-specific costs, business overheads and desired profit margin. It can help you create a consistent starting point when pricing bookkeeping, management reporting, payroll support or similar monthly services.
How it works
The calculator first multiplies planned monthly hours by your target hourly rate to estimate labour cost. It adds software and other direct costs, then applies your overhead percentage to create a monthly cost base. The cost base is divided by one minus the target profit margin to calculate the recommended fee. For example, a 25% target margin means costs should represent 75% of the final quote.
How to use this calculator
- 1Estimate the total hours the client will require in a typical month.
- 2Enter the hourly rate you want the work to recover.
- 3Add any client-specific monthly software and direct costs.
- 4Set an overhead allowance for general business costs.
- 5Choose the gross profit margin you want the quote to achieve.
- 6Review the suggested monthly fee and effective hourly quote before adjusting for scope or risk.
Example Calculation
Estimated monthly hours
12
Target hourly rate
$75
Monthly software costs
$30
Other monthly direct costs
$20
Overhead allowance
15%
Target profit margin
25%
Recommended monthly quote
$1,457
With a cost base of about $1,092.50, the estimated monthly quote is about $1,457, producing an effective hourly quote of roughly $121.39 and an estimated profit of about $364.17.
Frequently asked questions
What is a monthly accounting project quote?
It is a recurring fixed fee for an agreed package of accounting work delivered each month, such as bookkeeping, reconciliations, reporting or payroll support.
Should I use a target profit margin or a markup?
This calculator uses profit margin. Margin is profit as a share of the final fee, whereas markup is profit as a share of cost, so the two percentages are not interchangeable.
What should I include in estimated monthly hours?
Include all expected time for production work, review, client communication, meetings, internal administration and routine follow-up related to the client.
What is included in the overhead allowance?
Overhead can cover shared operating costs such as insurance, office expenses, general software, professional subscriptions, marketing and non-billable administration.
Should software costs be charged separately?
That depends on your pricing approach. You can include them in the fixed fee, show them as a separate charge, or enter them here so they are recovered within the monthly quote.
How can I account for work outside the agreed scope?
Define the monthly scope clearly and set a separate hourly rate, fixed-price menu or change process for extra work. This calculator estimates the agreed recurring work only.
Explore Related Calculators
Assumptions and warnings
Assumptions
- The engagement is recurring monthly and the estimated hours reasonably reflect the expected workload.
- Your target hourly rate represents the labour value you want the engagement to recover.
- The overhead allowance is calculated as a percentage of direct costs.
- The target profit margin is treated as a gross margin after the cost base, not as a markup on cost.
- Taxes, payment processing charges, bad debts and exceptional out-of-scope work are not included unless you add them to costs or allowances.
Warnings
- This calculator provides a pricing estimate only and is not financial, tax or business advice.
- Review scope, service levels, contract terms and client-specific risks before issuing a quote.