Short answer
Roofing labor price per square = crew hours per square × crew size × (loaded wage + overhead per hour) ÷ (1 − margin). Example on assumed inputs: a 3-person crew laying 150 sq ft an hour, $36.00 loaded wage, $9.00 overhead and 25% margin prices labour at $120.00 per square, or $2,880.00 for 24 squares.
- One square is 100 sq ft of roof surface; price per square = price per sq ft × 100.
- Assumed walkable one-storey install: 2 labour hours per square, $90.00 break-even, $120.00 price.
- Pitch, storeys and roof type are slower production rates: $120.00 to $300.00 per square on one crew cost.
- One-layer tear-off is its own line: $90.00 per square including $30.00 of disposal.
- Materials are excluded; add them at cost for a full installed quote.
On this page
- How do you calculate roofing labor price per square?
- Roofing labor cost per square calculator
- Worked example: labor price for 24 squares of shingles
- Roofing labor price per square by pitch, storeys and roof type
- Why steep and two-storey roofs take more crew hours per square
- Tear-off labor per square: price it as a separate line
- Does the labor price per square include materials?
- Wage is not the labor cost: burden, overhead and the markup mistake
- What to put in a roofing labor price sheet, with Excel formulas
- Step-by-step
- FAQ
How do you calculate roofing labor price per square?
Work out what one crew hour costs, divide by the squares the crew installs in that hour, then divide by one minus your margin. One roofing square is 100 sq ft of roof surface, so the per-square price is the per-sq-ft price × 100.
- Hours on site = roof area ÷ crew production rate (sq ft the whole crew installs per hour).
- Labour and overhead = hours × crew size × (loaded wage + overhead per sellable hour).
- Price = labour and overhead ÷ (1 − margin).
- Labour price per square = price ÷ area × 100.
This is a labour-only figure: what a crew charges to install roofing someone else has bought. Shingles, underlayment and flashing are left out on purpose. Pitch, height and tear-off do not get a percentage surcharge here. Each one is a slower production rate, run through the same formula. I build pricing maths and am not a roofer, so every rate and wage below is an assumption you replace with your own timed numbers.
Roofing labor cost per square calculator
Enter the roof area in sq ft (squares × 100), the sq ft your whole crew installs per hour, crew size and your costs. Leave materials at zero for a labour-only price.
It starts on the worked example below, so the price should read $2,880.00 and the price per sq ft $1.200. Multiply that by 100 for the price per square: $120.00. The production rate is for the crew together: 150 sq ft an hour means three people lay 1.5 squares between them in one hour on site.
Worked example: labor price for 24 squares of shingles
At an assumed 150 sq ft per hour for a 3-person crew, 24 squares take 16 hours on site and price at $2,880.00 for labour only, which is $120.00 per square.
The assumptions: a walkable pitch on a one-storey house, old roof already off; three workers paid $25 an hour with 44% burden, so $36.00 loaded each; $43,200 of yearly overhead over 3 people × 200 billed days × 8 hours, which is $9.00 per sellable hour; 25% margin.
Worked example: Install labour only, 24 squares (2,400 sq ft), walkable one-storey: 3-person crew at 150 sq ft per hour (assumed inputs)
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Workers (input) | 3 |
| Hourly wage paid (input) | $25.00 |
| Labour burden % (input) | 44% |
| Materials (input) | $0.00 |
| Overhead for the year (input) | $43,200.00 |
| People in the field (input) | 3 |
| Billable days a year (input) | 200 |
| Target margin % (input) | 25% |
| Jobs a week (input) | 1 |
| Area (sq ft) (input) | 2,400 |
| Production rate (sq ft per hour) (input) | 150 |
| Loaded labour rate (per hour) | $36.00 |
| Crew-hours | 48 |
| Labour cost | $1,728.00 |
| Overhead per sellable hour | $9.00 |
| Overhead share | $432.00 |
| Break-even cost | $2,160.00 |
| Price to quote | $2,880.00 |
| Profit on the job | $720.00 |
| Price if you MARK UP instead | $2,700.00 |
| Margin you actually keep with markup | 20% |
| Lost per job by marking up | $180.00 |
| Lost per year by marking up | $9,360.00 |
| Hours on the job | 16 |
| Price per sq ft | $1.200 |
| Break-even per sq ft | $0.900 |
Computed with the same formulas as the free calculators on this site. Change any input in the calculator above to see your own numbers.
The working: 2,400 sq ft ÷ 150 = 16 hours. 16 hours × 3 workers = 48 labour hours, which is 2 labour hours per square. Each labour hour costs $45.00 ($36.00 loaded wage + $9.00 overhead), so a crew hour on site costs $135.00 and break-even is $2,160.00. Divide by 0.75 and the price is $2,880.00.
Per hour, that is $180.00 billed for each hour the crew is on site, or $60.00 per labour hour. Per square, break-even is $90.00 and the price is $120.00. Time the rate over the whole visit, setup and clean-up included, so those hours are inside it.
Roofing labor price per square by pitch, storeys and roof type
On one set of crew costs, the install labour price runs from $120.00 to $300.00 per square in the table below. The only input that changes from row to row is the production rate.
| Condition | Assumed crew rate | Hours on 24 squares | Labour hours per square | Break-even per square | Labour price per square | 24-square total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shingles, walkable pitch, one storey | 150 sq ft/hr | 16 | 2 | $90.00 | $120.00 | $2,880.00 |
| Shingles, walkable pitch, two storeys | 120 sq ft/hr | 20 | 2.5 | $112.50 | $150.00 | $3,600.00 |
| Shingles, steep pitch, one storey | 100 sq ft/hr | 24 | 3 | $135.00 | $180.00 | $4,320.00 |
| Shingles, steep pitch, two storeys | 80 sq ft/hr | 30 | 3.75 | $168.75 | $225.00 | $5,400.00 |
| Metal panels, walkable pitch, one storey | 60 sq ft/hr | 40 | 5 | $225.00 | $300.00 | $7,200.00 |
Every row is the calculator run again with a lower sq ft per hour. The rates are assumptions to show the method, not measured averages, and where “walkable” ends and “steep” starts is your call from your own timed jobs. Dropping from 150 to 120 sq ft an hour adds $30.00 per square, or $720.00 on 24 squares. Nothing else moved.
The steep two-storey row in full:
Worked example: Install labour only, 24 squares, steep two-storey: 3-person crew at 80 sq ft per hour (assumed inputs)
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Workers (input) | 3 |
| Hourly wage paid (input) | $25.00 |
| Labour burden % (input) | 44% |
| Materials (input) | $0.00 |
| Overhead for the year (input) | $43,200.00 |
| People in the field (input) | 3 |
| Billable days a year (input) | 200 |
| Target margin % (input) | 25% |
| Jobs a week (input) | 1 |
| Area (sq ft) (input) | 2,400 |
| Production rate (sq ft per hour) (input) | 80 |
| Loaded labour rate (per hour) | $36.00 |
| Crew-hours | 90 |
| Labour cost | $3,240.00 |
| Overhead per sellable hour | $9.00 |
| Overhead share | $810.00 |
| Break-even cost | $4,050.00 |
| Price to quote | $5,400.00 |
| Profit on the job | $1,350.00 |
| Price if you MARK UP instead | $5,062.50 |
| Margin you actually keep with markup | 20% |
| Lost per job by marking up | $337.50 |
| Lost per year by marking up | $17,550.00 |
| Hours on the job | 30 |
| Price per sq ft | $2.250 |
| Break-even per sq ft | $1.688 |
Computed with the same formulas as the free calculators on this site. Change any input in the calculator above to see your own numbers.
The same 24 squares take 30 hours and price at $5,400.00, which is $225.00 per square and $2,520.00 more than the walkable one-storey job. Quote it at the walkable figure and the price lands below its break-even of $4,050.00.
Metal is in the table because the method is identical: a different roof type is a different production rate timed on your own jobs, not a multiplier on your shingle price.
Why steep and two-storey roofs take more crew hours per square
Fall protection, access and material handling all use crew time that lays no roofing, so fewer squares go down per hour. That is the reason to price slope and height as a slower rate.
- The 6-foot trigger. OSHA's fall protection standard, 29 CFR 1926.501, paragraph (b)(13), says each employee engaged in residential construction activities 6 feet or more above lower levels shall be protected by guardrail systems, a safety net system or a personal fall arrest system, unless another provision of that paragraph provides an alternative.
- Steep roofs. Paragraph (b)(11) of the same standard says each employee on a steep roof with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet or more above lower levels shall be protected by guardrail systems with toeboards, safety net systems or personal fall arrest systems.
- Where OSHA draws “steep”. The definitions in 29 CFR 1926.500 say a steep roof has a slope greater than 4 in 12, and a low-slope roof a slope of 4 in 12 or less.
The rules do not say how many hours that takes. That part is arithmetic on your own jobs: time spent setting up and moving fall protection, and getting materials to a higher roof, is time on site, so area ÷ hours comes out lower. Log the rate separately for each condition. This is not safety or legal advice; confirm what applies to your work with OSHA or a qualified safety professional.
Tear-off labor per square: price it as a separate line
Tear-off has its own production rate and its own cost, disposal, so it gets its own row. On the assumed inputs, tearing off one layer prices at $90.00 per square, of which $30.00 is the disposal line.
Worked example: Tear-off, one layer, 24 squares: 3-person crew at 300 sq ft per hour, $540 disposal cost (assumed inputs)
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Workers (input) | 3 |
| Hourly wage paid (input) | $25.00 |
| Labour burden % (input) | 44% |
| Materials (input) | $540.00 |
| Overhead for the year (input) | $43,200.00 |
| People in the field (input) | 3 |
| Billable days a year (input) | 200 |
| Target margin % (input) | 25% |
| Jobs a week (input) | 1 |
| Area (sq ft) (input) | 2,400 |
| Production rate (sq ft per hour) (input) | 300 |
| Loaded labour rate (per hour) | $36.00 |
| Crew-hours | 24 |
| Labour cost | $864.00 |
| Overhead per sellable hour | $9.00 |
| Overhead share | $216.00 |
| Break-even cost | $1,620.00 |
| Price to quote | $2,160.00 |
| Profit on the job | $540.00 |
| Price if you MARK UP instead | $2,025.00 |
| Margin you actually keep with markup | 20% |
| Lost per job by marking up | $135.00 |
| Lost per year by marking up | $7,020.00 |
| Hours on the job | 8 |
| Price per sq ft | $0.900 |
| Break-even per sq ft | $0.675 |
Computed with the same formulas as the free calculators on this site. Change any input in the calculator above to see your own numbers.
The working: 2,400 sq ft ÷ 300 = 8 hours, which costs $1,080.00 in labour and overhead. Add $540 of disposal cost (the dumpster or dump fees, entered in the materials box) and break-even is $1,620.00. Divide by 0.75 for $2,160.00.
| Line | Assumed crew rate | Hours on site | Disposal cost | Tear-off labour per square | Disposal per square | Tear-off price per square | 24-square total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tear-off, one layer | 300 sq ft/hr | 8 | $540 | $60.00 | $30.00 | $90.00 | $2,160.00 |
| Tear-off, two layers | 200 sq ft/hr | 12 | $900 | $90.00 | $50.00 | $140.00 | $3,360.00 |
A second layer is not a surcharge. It is a slower rate and a heavier load, so both the hours and the disposal cost rise. Add the lines for the full job: one-layer tear-off plus the walkable install is $5,040.00, or $210.00 per square. With two layers it is $260.00 per square.
Enter disposal at cost. At a 25% margin each $100 of disposal cost adds $133.33 to the price.
Try it with your numbers — free
The free calculator does this whole method in about a minute: loaded labour, overhead share, break-even and the price to quote at your margin. No signup, nothing to download, and your numbers stay in your browser.
Open the free roofing pricing calculator →Get the free spreadsheetWant it built around your own rates, services and branding? Done-for-you custom calculator ($497).
Does the labor price per square include materials?
No. A labour-only price per square covers crew wages, burden, overhead and margin, and nothing you install. A full installed quote adds materials at cost before the margin is divided in.
| Item | Labour-only price | Full installed quote |
|---|---|---|
| Who buys the roofing | The customer or the hiring contractor | You |
| Materials box in the calculator | Zero, or disposal cost only | Your supplier total for the job |
| Unit you quote in | Price per square | One price for the roof |
| Where to work it | This page | Roofing estimate template in Excel |
To turn the figure into a full quote, put your materials total in the materials box, or use the free roofing contractor calculator. That guide covers materials per square, waste and the write-up.
Which squares? Squares are roof surface ÷ 100, not floor area: a sloped roof has more surface than the footprint under it, and the same guide has the pitch factors. State whether your per-square price multiplies the squares of roof measured or the squares of material ordered. If 27 squares are ordered for the 24 on the roof, the same $2,880.00 is $106.67 per ordered square. The job total has not changed, only the divisor.
Wage is not the labor cost: burden, overhead and the markup mistake
Three errors each have a dollar cost per square you can calculate: pricing at the bare wage, leaving overhead out, and adding margin as markup.
- Wage instead of loaded rate. Two labour hours per square at the $25 wage is $50.00. At the $36.00 loaded rate it is $72.00.
- No overhead. Add $9.00 of overhead per labour hour and break-even is $90.00 per square. Overhead is yearly cost ÷ sellable hours, not a percentage.
- Markup instead of margin. Adding 25% to break-even gives $2,700.00 for the job, or $112.50 per square, a real margin of 20%. That is $180.00 less than the margin price, and $9,360.00 a year at one such roof a week.
The 44% burden is an assumption. Build yours from real lines. The IRS gives the employer's share as 6.2% for Social Security and 1.45% for Medicare (IRS Topic 751), which is 7.65%, or $1.91 an hour on a $25 wage. The example's burden is $11.00 an hour, so the other $9.09 stands for workers' compensation, unemployment insurance and paid time off. Workers' comp is a large line for roofing and is set by your policy and state, so use the rate on your own policy, not this placeholder.
The labor burden calculator guide builds the percentage line by line, and the markup vs margin guide covers the division. Tax and insurance questions are for your accountant or agent.
What to put in a roofing labor price sheet, with Excel formulas
A labour price sheet needs one row per condition, each with its own timed production rate, plus a tear-off row with a disposal cost. Layout: B2 = roof area in sq ft, B3 = crew production rate (sq ft per hour), B4 = crew size, B5 = wage, B6 = burden %, B7 = disposal or materials cost, B8 = yearly overhead, B9 = people in the field, B10 = billable days, B11 = margin %.
Squares
=B2/100B2 = roof surface area in sq ft. One square is 100 sq ft.
Labour hours per square
=100/B3*B4B3 = sq ft the whole crew installs per hour, B4 = crew size.
Break-even
=B2/B3*B4*(B5*(1+B6)+B8/(B9*B10*8))+B7Hours × crew size × (loaded wage + overhead per sellable hour) + disposal cost. Burden entered as a percent. Call this cell B13.
Labour price
=B13/(1-B11)B11 = margin as a percent. Call this cell B14. Never =B13*(1+B11).
Labour price per square
=ROUND(B14/B2*100,2)Copy the block once per condition and once for tear-off, then add the per-square results.
- Condition: roof type, pitch class, storeys, layers to remove.
- Timed production rate with the crew size it was timed at.
- Loaded wage, overhead per sellable hour, margin.
- Disposal cost, and whether the price is per measured or per ordered square.
| Option | Cost | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| The calculator on this page | Free, no signup | Labour price per square from area and production rate, one condition at a time |
| Free roofing contractor calculator | Free, no signup | A whole roof from crew hours and materials, with break-even and the cost of markup pricing |
| Free Job Pricing Starter | Free | Loaded labour, overhead and break-even in Excel or Google Sheets |
| Done-for-you custom build | $497 one-time | A workbook built around your own conditions, rates and crew |
| Roofing estimating software | Subscription | Companies quoting many roofs a week from aerial measurements |
There is no ready-made ProSheet roofing template. For the general method behind every row, see the contractor job pricing guide.
Step-by-step: Roofing Labor Price per Square: How Much to Charge for Labour Only
- Measure the roof in squares. Take the roof surface area in sq ft and divide by 100. Use surface, not floor area.
- Pick the production rate for the condition. Use the sq ft your whole crew installs per hour on that pitch, height and roof type, timed on your own jobs.
- Get hours on site. Area ÷ production rate gives hours on site. Multiply by crew size for labour hours.
- Cost each labour hour. Loaded wage (wage plus burden) + overhead per sellable hour (yearly overhead ÷ field staff × billable days × 8).
- Divide by one minus margin. Labour hours × cost per labour hour is break-even. Break-even ÷ (1 − margin) is the labour price.
- Convert to a price per square. Price ÷ area × 100. Run tear-off as a second line with its own rate and disposal cost.
Run your own numbers — free
The free calculator does this whole method in about a minute: loaded labour, overhead share, break-even and the price to quote at your margin. No signup, nothing to download, and your numbers stay in your browser.
Open the free calculator →Get the free spreadsheetWant it built around your own rates, services and branding? Done-for-you custom calculator ($497).
Frequently asked questions
How much do roofers charge per square for labor?
It depends on the crew's cost and speed, so derive it. On this page's assumed inputs, a 3-person crew at $45.00 cost per labour hour and 25% margin prices install labour from $120.00 per square on a walkable one-storey roof to $225.00 on a steep two-storey one. Replace the rates with your own.
How do you calculate labor cost for roofing?
Divide the roof area by your crew's production rate for hours on site, multiply by crew size and by the loaded wage plus overhead per hour, then divide by one minus your margin. Divide the result by the area and multiply by 100 for the labour price per square.
How much is labor for a square of shingles?
On this page's assumptions, one square of shingles on a walkable one-storey roof takes 2 labour hours. That costs $72.00 in loaded wages and $90.00 with overhead, and prices at $120.00 at a 25% margin. Your own production rate changes every one of those figures.
What is roofing labor cost per hour?
It is the loaded wage plus overhead per sellable hour. In this page's example that is $45.00 per labour hour, or $135.00 for each hour a 3-person crew is on site. At a 25% margin the crew bills $180.00 per hour on site.
Is tear-off included in the labor price per square?
Price it as a separate line. Tear-off has its own production rate and a disposal cost. On assumed inputs, one layer adds $90.00 per square including disposal, so tear-off plus a walkable install comes to $210.00 per square for labour and disposal.
What is the metal roofing labor price per square?
Use the same formula with a production rate timed on your own metal jobs. As an illustration only, a 3-person crew at an assumed 60 sq ft an hour needs 5 labour hours per square, which prices at $300.00 per square on this page's costs.
How many squares does it take to roof a 2,000 square foot home?
It depends on the footprint and pitch, not the living area. Squares are roof surface ÷ 100. A sloped roof has more surface than the footprint under it, a two-storey house has a smaller footprint than its floor area, and material orders add waste. The roofing estimate template guide on this site works squares from footprint and pitch.
Is there a roofing labor cost per square calculator?
Yes. The calculator on this page returns the labour price per sq ft from area, crew production rate, crew size, wage, burden, overhead and margin; multiply by 100 for the price per square. It is free with no signup, and it starts on the 24-square example priced at $2,880.00.
Sources
- OSHA: 29 CFR 1926.501, Duty to have fall protection — (b)(13) residential construction 6 feet or more above lower levels: guardrail, safety net or personal fall arrest system; (b)(11) steep roofs: guardrail systems with toeboards, safety net systems or personal fall arrest systems.
- OSHA: 29 CFR 1926.500, Scope, application and definitions (Subpart M) — Definitions: steep roof = slope greater than 4 in 12; low-slope roof = slope less than or equal to 4 in 12.
- IRS Topic no. 751, Social Security and Medicare withholding rates — Employer rate of 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare (7.65% combined).
I'm not a contractor, landlord or accountant. I build the pricing maths, and every number on this page shows its working so you can check it instead of trusting it. Guides are drafted with AI assistance; every worked figure is computed by the same code as the free calculators. How these guides are made → · Watch the breakdowns on YouTube →