Manual work cost calculator
What is the busywork costing your business?
Choose a recurring task. Enter how often it happens, how long it takes, and the cost of the people doing it. See the estimated annual cost, then decide whether it is worth a closer look.
Every input is yours; we only do the multiplication.
Estimated manual work costs and service fee comparison
Start with one recurring task.
Use a process your team knows well, such as quote preparation, document intake, or weekly reporting. Reasonable estimates are enough to begin. Add other workflows to build a fuller picture.
×1.3 employer cost
Include pay, employer taxes, benefits, and overhead.
Workflow added.
Workflow removed.
Add a name for this workflow.
Enter a valid number.
Enter zero or a positive number.
Enter a number of working weeks greater than zero.
Enter a multiplier greater than zero.
Add a workflow to begin
Enter a recurring task and your estimates to see its current annual cost.
Meets the initial cost screen
The work you entered costs at least three times the annual fee shown. The next step is to check what can be automated and what value can realistically be recovered.
Worth reviewing the scope
The current estimate is below the usual three-times screen. We would need to examine the scope and recoverable value before recommending a standard engagement.
Too small for a standard engagement at this scope
These figures do not support the standard engagement. An existing smaller solution may fit, or keeping the current process may be the better decision.
Annual work cost = times per week × minutes each time ÷ 60 × hourly employee cost × working weeks per year
Supports a standard engagement.
The standard engagement covers work worth three to six times the annual fee.
Supports a standard engagement, sized to the work.
Engagements at this scale are sized to the work; see the figure below.
Fits a smaller single-workflow engagement, from $2,000 per month.
A single high-volume process can justify its own engagement before the standard scope does.
Total employee cost per hour
standard annual fee
annual fee sized to this scope
single-workflow annual fee
Primary: Book a discovery call with these figures
Secondary: Send this baseline to us
Line beneath: You see exactly what is sent.
Fully loaded employee cost *(shown only when a row uses hourly wage)*
Default: 50
Default: 1.3
not applied while fully loaded cost is selected
We start with 50 weeks to allow for time off. Change this to match how often the work happens in your business.
The standard engagement covers work worth three to six times the annual fee. Above that, the fee is sized so the work stays at three to six times what you pay. Passing this initial screen does not establish that all of that cost can be eliminated.
Estimated cost of the work you entered
per year · – per month · – hours per active week
Your engagement, sized to this scope
$5,000 / mo
Set in your proposal.
Your figures, with the math visible.
- Fully loaded employee cost (shown only when a row uses hourly wage)
hourly wage × employer cost multiplier- Weekly manual effort
times per week × minutes each time ÷ 60 × people doing this work- Annual work cost
weekly manual effort × hourly employee cost × working weeks per year
The result uses your estimates and the editable assumptions shown. It is a starting point for understanding current work costs. It does not account for every implementation constraint or predict the savings an automation will achieve.
During discovery and the diagnostic, we review the inputs together. The baseline you confirm becomes the reference for the proposal and later value reporting.
Now let's look at the work behind the number.
Bring your estimates to a discovery call. We'll look at the process, what could change, and whether a paid diagnostic is the right next step.
Start with the process you want to improve.