What does it actually cost to send a truck to a service call? Enter your vehicle cost, the tech’s travel time and your call-out fee to see what the trip costs and how much the fee leaves over.
Cost a service call
Calculated from your inputs.
See how this was calculated
| Vehicle cost (distance × rate) | — |
| Labour cost (time × hourly) | — |
| True cost of the trip | — |
| Service call fee charged | — |
| Fee minus cost | — |
True cost = (distance × vehicle rate) + (travel time × loaded hourly cost). Difference = fee − true cost.
How to read your result
30-mile round trip at $0.70/mile, 1 hour of travel at a $45/hr loaded cost, $89 call fee.
- Vehicle: 30 × $0.70 = $21.00
- Labour: 1 × $45 = $45.00
- True cost: $66.00 — fee minus cost: +$23.00 for overhead and profit
Example numbers to show the math — enter your own trip above.
Which trades is this for?
Dispatch-based trades where the truck roll has a real cost.
- HVAC & plumbing: daily truck rolls across a wide service area.
- Electrical: service calls with real drive time between them.
- Appliance repair: tight routes where trip cost decides profit.
- Pest control: high stop counts where fuel and time add up fast.
Assumptions & limits
- Use your own vehicle cost estimate. Add up fuel, insurance, maintenance, tyres and depreciation to work out a rate per mile or kilometre. This calculator doesn’t assume a tax-authority mileage rate.
- You can use miles or kilometres. Just make sure your vehicle rate uses the same unit as your distance.
- Dispatch and scheduling time aren’t included. The calculation covers the trip, not the office time spent booking the call.
- Loaded hourly cost includes wages and employer burden. The labour rate calculator helps you work it out.
- Traffic, tolls, parking and return trips for parts aren’t included. Account for them in your distance or rate if they’re a regular expense.
- This is a planning aid, not financial advice.
Common questions
What’s a fair vehicle cost per mile?
Start with your own expenses. Add up a year’s fuel, insurance, maintenance, tyres and depreciation, then divide by your annual business miles. Many trade vans fall somewhere in the $0.60–$1.00/mile range, but your actual costs are what matter. Enter the rate that reflects your vehicle.
Should the fee cover the trip both ways?
Yes. That’s why the distance field uses a round trip. If you only charge enough to cover the drive there, you’re absorbing the cost of the return trip.
What about dispatch and scheduling time?
This calculator covers vehicle costs and the tech’s travel time. The office time spent booking and scheduling the call is overhead, so make sure your call fee or job pricing leaves room to cover it.
Should I charge a call fee or roll it into the job?
A separate fee helps cover diagnostic visits that don’t turn into paid jobs and makes travel costs easier to see. If you include it in the job price instead, you still need to know what the trip costs. That’s what this calculator helps you work out.
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Dispatch the closest tech and make sure every trip is priced to cover its true cost.
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