Act on the result
Document the scope delta and supporting cost records before issuing the change order.
Educational only: Business decision support, not accounting, tax or legal advice.
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Update policy: Reviewed when formulas or official dependencies change.
Scope: Market-neutral small-business planning using your own assumptions.
What this planner helps you decide
Best for
Construction businesses pricing incremental scope and schedule effects in a change order.
Outputs
Added direct and delay cost, contingency, required change price, retention held, initial collectible amount and revised contract value.
Start here
Enter only costs and timing effects caused by the proposed scope change.
Use a different tool when: Do not use this to compare quoted and actual job economics and identify overruns; use Job Costing & Margin Planner for that decision. Use this tool to price construction scope changes with sequencing, delay, subcontractor and retention effects.
Quote & capacity
Construction Change Order Pricing: added direct and delay cost
Added direct and delay cost, contingency, required change price, retention held, initial collectible amount and revised contract value.
Amounts use the same currency as your inputs. No currency conversion is performed.
Your industry scenario
Price incremental construction scope from site labour, materials, subcontractors, plant and travel, sequencing overhead, contingency and protected margin.
Your numbers stay in this browser
Approved ex-tax contract value before this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Labour caused only by the changed scope. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Additional materials and handling for the change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Subcontractor quotes attributable to this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Plant, equipment and travel attributable to the change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Fixed supervision, administration or mobilisation overhead for this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Supervision, preliminaries and site overhead extended by each delay day. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis.
Whole additional calendar or working days on the chosen project basis.
Rate protecting uncertainty inside the changed scope only.
Margin retained after incremental cost and contingency.
Share of the approved change-order price expected to be withheld initially.
Optional indirect-tax rate used only to show an inclusive price.
Industry decision result
Build a change-order amount that contains only the added scope and does not silently absorb disruption cost. Review every output on the same entered business basis.
- Added direct cost
- 16,700.00
- Schedule delay cost
- 2,550.00
- Change contingency
- 1,925.00
- Protected change cost
- 22,375.00
- Required change-order price
- 28,685.90
- Required price including tax
- 28,685.90
- Retention held from change
- 1,434.29
- Initially collectible amount
- 27,251.60
- Revised contract value
- 508,685.90
Scenario comparison
Each row names the assumption axis changed from the baseline.
ScenarioResultDifference
Current industry scenario28,685.90Baseline
Lower Schedule delay days27,487.18-1,198.72
Higher Schedule delay days29,884.621,198.72
Save these results, change an input, then compare the updated figures with this baseline.
The baseline is temporary in this tab and is not added to shared scenario links or generated reports.
Calculation details
View calculation detailsView the formulas and inputs used for these results.
Added direct cost
Added direct cost
added labour + materials + subcontractors + equipment and travel16,700 , ex taxResult16,700.00
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Added direct costOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Added direct costIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Added direct costIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Added direct costIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Added direct costEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Added direct costFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Added direct costSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Added direct costSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Added direct costSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Added direct costTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Added direct costContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Added direct costTax Rate
- 0
Schedule delay cost
Schedule delay cost
site overhead per day * delay days2,550 , ex taxResult2,550.00
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Schedule delay costOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Schedule delay costIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Schedule delay costIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Schedule delay costIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Schedule delay costEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Schedule delay costFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Schedule delay costSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Schedule delay costSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Schedule delay costSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Schedule delay costTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Schedule delay costContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Schedule delay costTax Rate
- 0
Change contingency
Change contingency
(added direct cost + delay cost) * contingency rate1,925 , ex taxResult1,925.00
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Change contingencyOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Change contingencyIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Change contingencyIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Change contingencyIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Change contingencyEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Change contingencyFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Change contingencySite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Change contingencySchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Change contingencySequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Change contingencyTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Change contingencyContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Change contingencyTax Rate
- 0
Protected change cost
Protected change cost
added direct cost + delay cost + fixed overhead + contingency22,375 , ex taxResult22,375.00
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Protected change costOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Protected change costIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Protected change costIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Protected change costIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Protected change costEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Protected change costFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Protected change costSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Protected change costSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Protected change costSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Protected change costTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Protected change costContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Protected change costTax Rate
- 0
Required change-order price
Required change-order price
protected change cost / (1 - target margin)28,685.90 , ex taxResult28,685.90
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Required change-order priceOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Required change-order priceIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Required change-order priceIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Required change-order priceIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Required change-order priceEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Required change-order priceFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Required change-order priceSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Required change-order priceSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Required change-order priceSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Required change-order priceTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Required change-order priceContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Required change-order priceTax Rate
- 0
Required price including tax
Required price including tax
required change-order price * (1 + entered tax rate)28,685.90 , ex taxResult28,685.90
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Required price including taxOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Required price including taxIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Required price including taxIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Required price including taxIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Required price including taxEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Required price including taxFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Required price including taxSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Required price including taxSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Required price including taxSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Required price including taxTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Required price including taxContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Required price including taxTax Rate
- 0
Retention held from change
Retention held from change
required change-order price * retention rate1,434.29 , ex taxResult1,434.29
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Retention held from changeOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Retention held from changeIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Retention held from changeIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Retention held from changeIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Retention held from changeEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Retention held from changeFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Retention held from changeSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Retention held from changeSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Retention held from changeSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Retention held from changeTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Retention held from changeContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Retention held from changeTax Rate
- 0
Initially collectible amount
Initially collectible amount
required change-order price - retention held27,251.60 , ex taxResult27,251.60
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Initially collectible amountOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Initially collectible amountIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Initially collectible amountIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Initially collectible amountIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Initially collectible amountEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Initially collectible amountFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Initially collectible amountSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Initially collectible amountSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Initially collectible amountSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Initially collectible amountTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Initially collectible amountContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Initially collectible amountTax Rate
- 0
Revised contract value
Revised contract value
original contract value + required change-order price508,685.90 , ex taxResult508,685.90
Uses the named industry records and reports this output, ex tax. The shared engine retains full precision; display rounding never feeds the calculation.
Construction Change Order Pricing Planner formulas →Inputs used by these formula steps
- Revised contract valueOriginal Contract Value Ex Tax
- 480,000
- Revised contract valueIncremental Site Labour Ex Tax
- 4,200
- Revised contract valueIncremental Materials Ex Tax
- 7,600
- Revised contract valueIncremental Subcontractors Ex Tax
- 3,100
- Revised contract valueEquipment And Travel Cost Ex Tax
- 1,800
- Revised contract valueFixed Overhead Ex Tax
- 1,200
- Revised contract valueSite Overhead Per Delay Day Ex Tax
- 850
- Revised contract valueSchedule Delay Days
- 3
- Revised contract valueSequencing And Delay Contingency Rate
- 0.1
- Revised contract valueTarget Change Order Margin
- 0.22
- Revised contract valueContract Retention Rate
- 0.05
- Revised contract valueTax Rate
- 0
Inputs used
- Original contract value (/original contract, ex tax)
- 480,000
- Incremental site labour (/change order, ex tax)
- 4,200
- Incremental materials (/change order, ex tax)
- 7,600
- Incremental subcontractors (/change order, ex tax)
- 3,100
- Equipment and travel (/change order, ex tax)
- 1,800
- Fixed change overhead (/change order, ex tax)
- 1,200
- Site overhead per delay day (/delay day, ex tax)
- 850
- Schedule delay days (whole delay days/change order)
- 3
- Sequencing and delay contingency (decimal fraction of changed-scope direct cost)
- 0.1
- Target change-order margin (decimal fraction of change-order price)
- 0.22
- Contract retention rate (decimal fraction of approved change-order price withheld)
- 0.05
- User-entered tax rate (decimal fraction of change-order price added as tax)
- 0
Open this calculator with preset values
This calculator supports documented, shareable scenario URLs. Compatible assistants and applications can construct links using the parameters below.
Scenario links contain only allowlisted numeric and closed-choice inputs shown in the URL; Margin101 excludes free text and identifying fields. Anyone you share the URL with can read those numbers, so do not include private or identifying data.
| Parameter | Meaning | Unit | Allowed values | Presence | Default |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| contractRetentionRate | Share of the approved change-order price expected to be withheld initially. | decimal fraction of approved change-order price withheld | 0 to 1 | Required | 0.05 |
| equipmentAndTravelCostExTax | Plant, equipment and travel attributable to the change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/change order, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 1800 |
| fixedOverheadExTax | Fixed supervision, administration or mobilisation overhead for this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/change order, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 1200 |
| incrementalMaterialsExTax | Additional materials and handling for the change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/change order, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 7600 |
| incrementalSiteLabourExTax | Labour caused only by the changed scope. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/change order, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 4200 |
| incrementalSubcontractorsExTax | Subcontractor quotes attributable to this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/change order, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 3100 |
| originalContractValueExTax | Approved ex-tax contract value before this change. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/original contract, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 480000 |
| scheduleDelayDays | Whole additional calendar or working days on the chosen project basis. | whole delay days/change order | 0 to 10000 | Required | 3 |
| sequencingAndDelayContingencyRate | Rate protecting uncertainty inside the changed scope only. | decimal fraction of changed-scope direct cost | 0 to 1 | Required | 0.1 |
| siteOverheadPerDelayDayExTax | Supervision, preliminaries and site overhead extended by each delay day. Keep every amount on the same ex-tax currency basis. | currency units/delay day, ex tax | 0 to 10000000 | Required | 850 |
| targetChangeOrderMargin | Margin retained after incremental cost and contingency. | decimal fraction of change-order price | 0 to 0.99 | Required | 0.22 |
| taxRate | Optional indirect-tax rate used only to show an inclusive price. | decimal fraction of change-order price added as tax | 0 to 1 | Required | 0 |
Construction Change Order Pricing: added direct and delay cost
A defensible change price includes incremental sequencing and delay effects, not direct inputs alone.
Formula summary
- Primary formula
- protected change cost / (1 - target margin)
Data used here
- The estimate uses your inputs and the general business formula documented in the methodology.
Decision checks
Stress-test the decision
Retest longer delay, higher subcontractor cost and a larger entered retention rate.
When this estimate can be misleading
- Industry costs, tax, contract terms, capacity and targets are entered by the user; no market benchmark is embedded.
- Use records from one consistent period and one ex-tax currency basis where money applies.
- This is educational business decision support, not accounting, tax, legal or financial advice.
- A defensible change price includes incremental sequencing and delay effects, not direct inputs alone.
Educational estimate, not advice. See all assumptions & limitations →
Related reading
Guides to interpret the decision and its assumptions.
- Scope Change Quote Checklist
Record and cost added work, compare absorb, partial-charge and full re-quote paths, then stop for approval.
Read guide
Frequently asked questions
How do I price construction scope changes with sequencing, delay, subcontractor and retention effects?
Document the scope delta and supporting cost records before issuing the change order.
Which planning assumptions should I stress-test?
Compare a plausible alternative scenario and verify the decision-critical assumption that changes the plan most.