What to charge / Carpenters · Checked 16 October 2026
Checkatrade’s April 2026 table puts a carpenter’s day rate at £240 to £360 and the hourly rate at £30 to £45, and its carpentry guide gives £300 a day and £37.50 an hour as typical. HaMuch lists carpenters and joiners together, and its averages come in lower, at £198 a day and £27 an hour. Below are prices for doors, skirting, fitted wardrobes and flooring, what the business costs to run, and a calculator for your own rate.
Rates
| Rate | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| An hour, Checkatrade 2026 table | £30 to £45 [1] | Last updated April 2026. Checkatrade does not say whether VAT is included. |
| For a day’s work, Checkatrade 2026 table | £240 to £360 [1][2] | Its carpentry guide, updated May 2026, puts the typical day at around £300. |
| An hour for general carpentry | £37.50 [2] | Checkatrade’s average, from a range of £30 to £45. |
| An hour for a carpenter or joiner, HaMuch average | £27 [3] | Its average day rate is £198. HaMuch’s rates exclude VAT and call-out charges. |
| An hour for cabinet repair, furniture refinishing or fine woodworking | £35 to £45 [2] | Checkatrade, average £40 for each. |
| A day for a carpenter fitting wardrobes | £240 to £300 [4] | Checkatrade’s fitted wardrobe guide, average £270, from a November 2024 table. |
Job prices
What customers are typically quoted, from published UK price guides. Use them as a check on your own quotes, not a fixed price list.
| Job | Typical price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Hang a new internal door | £100 to £140 [2] | Checkatrade, labour only, average £120 |
| Hang an internal door, outside London | £80 to £200 [5] | Fantastic Services, labour. £120 to £300 in London and the South East |
| Supply and fit a standard internal door | £150 to £350 [5][6] | Fantastic Services, door included. Checkatrade gives £125 to £400, with hardwood doors at the top |
| Replace a door frame | £165 [3] | HaMuch average |
| Supply and fit skirting board | £20 to £40 a metre [2] | Checkatrade, average £30 a metre |
| Build a fitted wardrobe | £800 to £1,400 [2] | Checkatrade’s carpentry guide, average £1,100 |
| Standard 3-door fitted wardrobe | £2,500 to £4,000 [4] | Checkatrade’s fitted wardrobe guide, average £3,250 |
| Lay laminate flooring | £40 to £50 a m² [2] | Checkatrade, labour only. Engineered wood £45 to £55, herringbone £65 to £90 |
| Install decking | £80 to £120 a m² [2] | Checkatrade, labour only, average £100 |
| Board a loft | £650 [3] | HaMuch average |
| Replace a staircase and banister | £2,500 [3] | HaMuch average |
Checkatrade’s carpentry job prices come from a table last updated in May 2024, on a guide refreshed in May 2026. Fantastic Services says its 2026 figures include VAT where applicable. HaMuch figures are averages from its own trade database.
Your numbers
Start from what you want to earn, add what the business costs to run, and divide by the hours you can actually charge for. Travel, quoting, paperwork and chasing payments are not chargeable hours, so be honest about them.
The starting numbers are examples, not a recommendation. Change them to match your year. The result is before income tax and National Insurance, and before VAT if you are registered.
Before you set a price
Pricing well
A sticking door or a bit of boxing in is hard to price before you see it, so an hourly rate with a minimum charge suits it. Fitted furniture, staircases and flooring can be measured, so give a fixed price. Customers find it easier to agree to a number than to an open clock.
A fitted wardrobe or an alcove unit takes design time, workshop time, materials and a day or more on site. Add those up and quote the piece as one price. Checkatrade’s £800 to £1,400 for a fitted wardrobe and £2,500 to £4,000 for a three-door unit show how wide the spread is, so work the price out from your own hours.
Timber, sheet materials, doors and ironmongery can change price between quote and job. List them separately, say whether the customer or you is buying, and put a time limit on the quote so a price rise does not come out of your labour.
Price guides mix labour-only and supply-and-fit figures. Checkatrade gives £100 to £140 to hang a door, labour only, while Fantastic Services gives £150 to £350 for a standard door supplied and fitted. Make clear which one you are quoting, and whether hinges, handles and trimming the door to size are in it.
If you do first and second fix for builders, a 20% CIS deduction comes off every payment before it reaches you. It counts towards your tax bill, but it still leaves a gap each month. Allow for that when you agree a day rate with a contractor.
If you employ a joiner or an apprentice, the BATJIC agreement sets voluntary wage rates, such as £16.76 an hour for an Advanced Craft (NVQ3) worker from 10 August 2026. Our builder guide explains what BATJIC is and its 2026/27 rates.
A day rate that looks good can still fall short once you count the days lost to quoting, collecting materials, weather and quiet weeks. Run your numbers through the calculator below using the hours you can actually bill.
A good rate only helps if the customer reaches you. Most callers who hit voicemail ring the next name on the list. If you miss three calls a week and two in five would have become a £300 job, that is about £1,559 of work a month going to someone else. See what a missed call costs, or how While You Work answers calls for carpenters while you are on a job.
Our AI receptionist for carpenters takes those calls when you are on the tools.
Questions
Checkatrade’s April 2026 table gives £30 to £45 an hour, and its carpentry guide puts general carpentry at £37.50 on average. Cabinet repair and fine woodworking are £35 to £45. HaMuch’s average is lower at £27 an hour, excluding VAT and call-out charges.
Checkatrade’s 2026 table gives £240 to £360 a day, with its carpentry guide putting the typical day at around £300. HaMuch’s average for carpenters and joiners is £198. Its city figures include £265 in London and £208 in Glasgow.
HaMuch, which lists carpenters and joiners together, gives an average of £27 an hour and £198 a day, excluding VAT and call-out charges. In its city table, Leeds is £29 an hour and London £40. Checkatrade’s 2026 table gives £30 to £45 an hour for a carpenter.
Checkatrade gives £100 to £140 to hang a new internal door, labour only, with an average of £120. Fantastic Services gives £80 to £200 outside London and £120 to £300 in London and the South East. Supplying and fitting a standard internal door is £150 to £350 according to Fantastic Services.
Checkatrade’s carpentry guide gives £800 to £1,400 for a carpenter to build a fitted wardrobe, average £1,100. Its separate fitted wardrobe guide puts a standard three-door wardrobe at £2,500 to £4,000, average £3,250, with carpenter labour at £240 to £300 a day.
Checkatrade gives £20 to £40 a metre to supply and fit skirting board, with an average of £30 a metre.
The National Careers Service gives £24,000 for a starter and up to £40,000 with experience for employed carpenters. Under the BATJIC agreement from 10 August 2026, an Advanced Craft (NVQ3) worker is paid at least £16.76 an hour. Self-employed carpenters set their own rates, which is what the figures above cover.
Figures checked on 16 October 2026. Price guides change, so check the source before you rely on a figure. Where a source says whether a price includes VAT, the page says so; where it does not, treat the figure as unconfirmed on VAT.
Quote these figures
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