Struggling to turn salaries, hours, contingency, and margin into one clean client-ready number? The free Project Cost Calculator from Shapno helps teams quote projects in minutes—using blended hourly rates, delivery timelines, and buffers—then export the full breakdown to Excel for sharing and auditability.
???? Try it now: https://shapno.info/tools/project-cost
Why accurate project costing is hard
Even experienced PMs and founders wrestle with:
• Converting monthly salaries → daily/hourly rates
• Accounting for utilization (no one is 100% billable)
• Reconciling working days per week vs. per month
• Translating delivery weeks → delivery hours
• Layering estimation time, utilities, contingency, and profit margin
• Producing a client-facing total that’s easy to explain
The result? Spreadsheets everywhere, inconsistent quotes, and margins that quietly disappear.
Meet the Project Cost Calculator (free)
The Project Cost Calculator solves all of that with a clean, modern interface built for speed and clarity.
What it does (in plain English)
• Blended hourly rate: Converts each teammate’s monthly salary into daily and hourly costs, then adjusts by utilization % to reflect real capacity. The calculator sums those effective hourly costs to a team blended rate.
• Delivery hours: Converts hours/day × working days/week × delivery weeks into total delivery hours (or infers from working days per month ÷ 4.33).
• Raw delivery cost: Blended hourly × delivery hours.
• All-in post-raw: Adds estimation hours, utility/other costs, and a contingency buffer.
• Profit & total: Applies profit margin % to the post-raw amount and returns a client-facing total.
You’ll also see weekly burn, Project Cost Calculator, Project Estimation monthly burn, and a clean cost breakdown—perfect for executive reviews and client transparency.
Export to Excel (one click)
With one click, download a formatted Excel-compatible .xls file that includes:
• Team roster with daily and hourly conversions
• Line-item breakdown (estimation, utilities, contingency, post-raw, profit, total)
• A concise engagement profile (currency, working days, hours/day, delivery weeks, buffers)
The export is styled for readability and ready to share.
Key inputs you control
• Team roster: name, role, monthly salary, utilization %
• Working days per month or per week
• Hours per day
• Delivery weeks
• Estimation hours (or auto-set as a % of delivery hours)
• Utility & other costs (connectivity, tooling, workspace)
• Contingency % and profit margin %
• Currency tag (e.g., “BDT ”, “$ ”, “€ ”)—displayed everywhere
What sets this calculator apart
• Real-world math: Uses 4.33 weeks/month for better month-to-week conversion.
• Utilization-aware: Blended rates reflect actual availability (no over-promising).
• Client-friendly: “Live quote,” “Delivery hours,” and a transparent cost sheet.
• Lightweight & fast: No logins. Just open, enter numbers, export.
When to use it
• Pre-sales: Build a defensible quote without wrangling three tabs and a pivot.
• SOW/Proposal: Attach the Excel breakdown to justify contingency and margin.
• What-if analysis: Nudge utilization or delivery weeks to see margin impact instantly.
• Internal alignment: Get finance, delivery, and sales on the same number—fast.
How the math works (quick reference)
• Hourly (per teammate) = Monthly Salary ÷ Working Days/Month ÷ Hours/Day
• Effective Hourly (teammate) = Hourly × Utilization %
• Blended Hourly (team) = Σ Effective Hourly (all teammates)
• Delivery Hours = Hours/Day × Working Days/Week × Delivery Weeks
(or inferred from Working Days/Month ÷ 4.33)
• Raw Delivery Cost = Blended Hourly × Delivery Hours
• Post-Raw = Raw Delivery Cost + (Blended Hourly × Estimation Hours) + Utilities + Contingency
• Profit = Post-Raw × Profit Margin %
• Total = Post-Raw + Profit
Example scenarios
• Fixed-scope app build: Add your engineers and designer, set 6–10 delivery weeks, include discovery/estimation, add a 10–20% contingency and target margin. Export the Excel—done.
• Retainer: Use working days/week × hours/day to confirm weekly burn and check your target margin before quoting monthly price.
• Rapid change request: Adjust delivery weeks and estimation hours—your quote updates in real time.
Best practices for accurate quotes
1. Use realistic utilization (70–85% is common).
2. Include estimation even for “small” projects—it’s always there.
3. Add contingency for unknowns (10–25% depending on risk).
4. Protect margin with a clear % threshold (e.g., 20–35%).
5. Share the breakdown to build trust and reduce negotiation friction.
Try it (free)
Spin up a quote in minutes and export the full breakdown:
Project Cost Calculator (https://shapno.info/tools/project-cost)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a blended hourly rate?
It’s the sum of each teammate’s effective hourly (monthly → daily → hourly × utilization), giving you one team-wide hourly rate.
How do working days per month vs. per week interact?
If you provide working days per month, those drive daily rates. If you only set working days per week, the tool infers days/month as days/week × 4.33.
Can I include non-labor costs?
Yes—enter them under Utility & other costs (e.g., software, tooling, workspace).
Is the export client-safe?
Yes. The .xls export includes a clear breakdown and summary, suitable for proposals and SOW attachments.
What’s a good contingency %?
Typical ranges are 10–25% depending on scope clarity, third-party dependencies, and risk appetite.