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Project margin and Cost of Execution calculator

Project margin is what you billed minus the Cost of Execution: team hours valued at what they cost you, plus contractor fees and the software and expenses spent on the project. Enter the billed amount, hours at each person’s cost rate and the other costs to see the margin in money and as a percentage.

This calculator runs in your browser and needs JavaScript. The method is written out below if you want to do the sum by hand.

Project
Team hours at cost

Cost per hour is what the person costs you (salary and on-costs divided by hours worked), not what you charge.

Other project costs

Nothing you type here is sent anywhere: the calculation runs on this page, in your browser.

How it is worked out

Cost of Execution (CoE) is everything it costs you to deliver a project: the hours your team spends valued at their labour rate, contractor fees, and the software and other expenses you file against that project. True margin is what you billed minus the Cost of Execution.

  1. Team cost = each person’s hours × their cost per hour, added up.
  2. Cost of Execution = team cost + contractors + software and other expenses filed to the project.
  3. Margin = billed − Cost of Execution. Margin % = margin ÷ billed.

The billed amount is before VAT or GST, because tax you collect is not yours. Amounts are worked out in whole cents, and each person’s cost is rounded to the cent. Overheads such as rent are not included; this is the margin on the project itself.

ReckonOS works this out on every project from time entries, contractor costs and expenses as they are recorded. How true margin works.

Estimates based on the rules for general project costing (no tax rules applied) as of November 2026. Check with your accountant. This tool gives an estimate, not tax, legal or financial advice.

More free tools: see all six.

Questions

What is Cost of Execution?

Cost of Execution (CoE) is everything it costs you to deliver a project: the hours your team spends valued at their labour rate, contractor fees, and the software and other expenses you file against that project. True margin is what you billed minus the Cost of Execution.

Why value hours at cost rather than at the billing rate?

Margin asks what the work cost you. An hour of your team costs its salary and overheads divided by the hours worked, whatever you charge for it. Valuing hours at the billing rate would always show a margin of zero on time-and-materials work.

What is a good project margin for an agency?

It depends on your overheads, which this calculator does not include. Compare each project with your own average, and look hardest at the ones below it.

Track the margin on every project as it happens.

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