Electrician day rate calculator
Stop guessing what to charge. Start from the income you actually want, add your real overheads, divide by the days you can genuinely bill, and there's your number. Most electricians who do this find out they've been undercharging for years.
- Hourly equivalent (8h day)–
- Billable days per year–
- Revenue needed–
Guidance only. This is labour pricing, before VAT and before tax planning. It doesn't replace your accountant, but it will tell you in ten seconds whether your current rate covers the life you're working for.
Why most electricians undercharge
The classic mistake is pricing off a fantasy year: 5 days a week, 52 weeks, zero overheads. Reality is quoting on Sunday nights, a van service on Tuesday, a bank holiday, a quiet January. Most sole traders genuinely bill somewhere between 160 and 210 days a year. Divide your target income by the fantasy and you set a rate that quietly pays you £10 an hour less than you think. If your work comes through CIS, my CIS tax calculator estimates the refund you're probably owed.
The overheads people forget
- Van: finance or depreciation, fuel, insurance, maintenance, the odd parking ticket you'll deny.
- Cover: public liability, professional indemnity, tools insurance.
- Compliance: NICEIC or NAPIT registration, 18th Edition updates, test instrument calibration.
- The office you carry in your pocket: phone, quoting software, accountant, bank fees.
- Dead time: every hour quoting, invoicing and chasing payments is an hour nobody pays for, your day rate has to.
What UK electricians actually charge
Most self-employed electricians land between £200 and £350 a day, with London and the South East running £300 to £450 and emergency call-outs above that. Commercial and industrial work generally pays more than domestic, and specialisms like inspection and testing, EV charger installs and solar sit toward the top of the range, another reason chasing the cheapest domestic work is a mug's game. If your calculated number came out higher than what you charge today, you've just found out why the diary is full but the bank account isn't.
Electrician hourly rates UK (2026)
Prefer to think in hours? The calculator shows your hourly equivalent too. Across the UK, self-employed electricians typically charge £45 to £65 an hour, with London and the South East at £60 to £90 and emergency call-outs commonly £80 to £120 for the first hour. But be careful quoting hourly for small jobs: a "one hour" socket swap still costs you travel, parking, materials collection and invoicing. That's why most electricians set a minimum charge (half a day, or a fixed call-out fee) rather than selling single naked hours.
| Charge basis | Typical UK range | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate | £45 to £65 (£60 to £90 London) | Small jobs with a minimum charge |
| Day rate | £200 to £350 (£300 to £450 London) | Rewires, first/second fix, open-ended work |
| Emergency call-out | £80 to £120 first hour | Out-of-hours faults |
| Fixed price | Job dependent | EICRs, board changes, EV chargers |
The uncomfortable truth about raising rates
You can only charge what demand allows. Booked solid three weeks out? You're too cheap, put the rate up until someone blinks. Struggling to fill next week? The problem isn't your rate, it's your enquiries. Pricing power comes from a full pipeline, and a full pipeline comes from being the electrician people find first when they search. Which, funnily enough, is what I do.
Pricing FAQs
What's the average electrician day rate in the UK?
Roughly £200 to £350 for most of the country, £300 to £450 in London and the South East, more for emergency and out-of-hours work. Averages are a floor to beat, not a target, your overheads and demand set your number.
What's the average electrician hourly rate in the UK?
Around £45 to £65 an hour for standard domestic work in 2026, with London and the South East nearer £60 to £90 and emergency call-outs commonly £80 to £120 for the first hour. Just don't sell single naked hours: set a minimum charge so a "quick job" still covers travel, materials collection and invoicing.
How many billable days does a self-employed electrician really have?
Far fewer than 260. After holidays, quoting, van maintenance, admin, training and the odd quiet week, most sole traders genuinely bill 3.5 to 4.5 days a week for 45 to 47 weeks, roughly 160 to 210 days a year. Price off a fantasy 260 and you underpay yourself all year without ever noticing where it went.
Day rate or fixed price per job?
Both, deployed deliberately. Fixed prices win on repeatable jobs (EICRs, board changes, EV chargers) because you get faster and keep the gain. Day rate protects you on open-ended work with unknowns, rewires in occupied houses being the classic.
Should I charge for quotes?
For standard domestic work, usually no, but ruthlessly qualify before you drive anywhere. For complex or commercial quotes involving design time, charging (and crediting it back if you win the job) filters out the tyre-kickers.
How do I raise my rates without losing customers?
New rate for new enquiries, existing quotes honoured. If you're booked out weeks ahead, add 10% and watch what happens, almost always nothing, except your margin. The real enabler is more enquiries than you can serve, so you can afford to lose the price-shoppers.
What about VAT?
These figures are ex-VAT. If you're near the registration threshold, that's a strategy conversation with your accountant, because pricing, growth and VAT interact in ways a calculator shouldn't pretend to solve.
The rate is the easy half. Demand is the hard half.
Charging properly only works when the phone keeps ringing. That's my job: when your town searches "electrician near me", they find you, and your diary fills at the rate you deserve.
Know your worth? Now make your town know it too.
I'm Jack. I do SEO for electricians, nothing else, and leads don't grow in 90 days? I work for free till they do.* Fair?