About Trade Price Book
Pricing, estimating and sizing tools for trade businesses — tools that show their math, and guides that explain it in shop language.
On this page6 sections
- Every tool shows its mathFormulas, assumptions and sourcesEach calculator writes out its arithmetic, labels its example inputs as examples, and names the source of every published figure it uses.
- Guides cite their sourcesPrimary sources first, every guide datedIRS, Labor Department, code bodies and makers’ own pages first; anything else is labeled for what it is. Every source is linked at the end of the guide.
- Nothing you type is saved unless you press SaveAccounts are optional, no analyticsThe calculators run in your browser and work without an account; the generators remember your business details on your device only if you ask.
- Trade Price Book
- tradepricebook.com
- Sheet 0.01
- About
- Scale
- Not to scale
- Date
- November 1, 2026
Who runs this site
Trade Price Book is run by people who operate a plumbing and sewer business in the United States. The site is published under its own name, Trade Price Book, and every tool and guide on it shows its arithmetic and its sources so you can check them yourself.
We are not accountants, attorneys or engineers, and the site does not give tax, legal or code advice. It shows the arithmetic and reports what the cited sources say, with the sources linked. It is not affiliated with any software company, supplier, manufacturer or trade association.
You can reach us at hello@tradepricebook.com.
Why it exists
Most trade businesses are run by people who are very good at the work and were never taught the business math: what an hour of a tech's time really costs once taxes, insurance, the truck and the office are in it; why a 50% markup leaves a 33% margin; what a service call costs before anyone picks up a tool. Underpricing rarely shows up on one job. It shows up at the end of the year.
Trade Price Book puts those numbers in front of you with the math visible, so you can check every line, change what doesn't fit your shop, and explain your price with confidence.
How the tools work
The tools are free, with nothing to install, and they work without an account. They run in your browser: the numbers, names and prices you enter are sent to this site and stored only if you press Save. The estimate and invoice generators can remember your own business details on your device, but only if you ask them to.
Each tool states its formula and its assumptions, names the sources of any figure it uses, and says where a value is the site's own arithmetic or a rule of thumb. The arithmetic is covered by automated tests. Sizing tools give planning estimates; the code your jurisdiction enforces and the manufacturer's instructions decide what gets installed.
How the guides are made
- Each guide answers one question a shop owner actually has, such as “What should I charge per hour?”
- Facts come from primary and authoritative sources — the IRS, the Social Security Administration, the Department of Labor, the Department of Energy, code bodies, manufacturers and software vendors' own pages — and each guide lists them.
- Guides are researched and drafted with AI writing tools. Before a guide is published, a separate review pass checks every factual statement against its cited source and recomputes the worked examples. Guides never claim testing, credentials or results that do not exist.
- Every guide shows when it was published and when it was last updated.
- Factual corrections are shown on the guide itself, with the date.
- The photos on the site are original images generated for it with an AI image model. They set the scene; they are not pictures of a real shop, job or customer, and every number on the site is in the drawings and the text.
The full process is in the Editorial Policy, and the limits of what the site can tell you are in the Disclaimer.
How the site is funded
Trade Price Book is free to use. It is supported by advertising from Google AdSense and by the Amazon Associates program: some tool listings link to Amazon, each marked “(paid link)”. As an Amazon Associate, Trade Price Book earns from qualifying purchases. If the site later joins software referral programs, those links will be marked the same way. Ads are labeled “Advertisements” and kept separate from the tools and guides. Affiliate links are marked next to the link, and a vendor that pays a commission is described by the same rules as one that doesn't. See the Privacy Policy for how advertising uses data and how to opt out.
Get in touch
Found a mistake, a tool that misbehaves or a question a guide doesn't answer? Use the contact page or email hello@tradepricebook.com.