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User-entered ratesScope-awarePlanning methodsFree tools

Construction Cost
Planning Calculators

22 bounded calculators for quantities and early planning. Each method states what the user must supply and what the output excludes.

22
Released calculators
0
Embedded market-rate datasets
User
Supplies rate and currency
Planning
Output scope

Construction Cost Calculators

Choose the calculation matching the quantity or planning question. Verify every rate, currency, date, geography, scope, and allowance before relying on an output.

cost
Concrete Stairs Volume
Steps + waist slab geometry → concrete volume (m³ / yd³)
Calculate →
cost
Excavation Volume
Pit dimensions + swell → bank and loose (haul) volume
Calculate →
cost
Trench Volume
Length, depth, widths → trench excavation volume (trapezoidal)
Calculate →
cost
Sand Volume
Area + depth → loose sand volume, weight, and bulk bags
Calculate →
cost
Brick
Wall area + brick size + joint → bricks per m²/ft² and total
Calculate →
cost
Area Unit
Convert m², ft², acres, hectares, mi² — exact factors
Calculate →
cost
Imperial to Metric
Length, area, mass, volume — convert all units at once
Calculate →
cost
Architecture Fee
Construction cost + complexity → design fee and phase breakdown
Calculate →
cost
Material Density
Searchable kg/m³ + lb/ft³ for 40+ building materials
Calculate →
cost
Brick Bond Pattern
Verified layout rate → allowance and pack-rounded order
Calculate →
cost
Property Tax
Market value × assessment × mill rate → annual tax
Calculate →
cost
Allowable Building Area
IBC 2024 Equation 5-1 + Table 506.3.3 frontage factor
Calculate →
cost
Drawing Scale
Convert drawing ↔ real length at any metric or imperial scale
Calculate →
cost
Curved Slab Concrete Volume
Ring / arc slab geometry → concrete volume (m³ / yd³)
Calculate →
cost
Concrete Curing Time
Verified strength and curing records vs project requirements
Calculate →
cost
Construction Cost
Choose a published building model + area → sourced reference with its own period and scope
Calculate →
cost
Hospital Construction Cost
2–3-story hospital model + floor area → two sourced area-reference totals, not bed costs
Calculate →
cost
Hotel Construction Cost
Published hotel model + floor area → m²/ft² reference; room-based development cost stays separate
Calculate →
cost
Office Construction Cost
2–4-story office model + floor area → area-reference endpoints; fit-out costs stay separate
Calculate →
cost
Residential Construction Cost
2024 contractor-built detached-home median + finished area → reference excluding lot value
Calculate →
cost
Retail Construction Cost
2026 U.S. in-line store fit-out + area → reference total, not ground-up construction
Calculate →
cost
School Construction Cost
2024 U.S. school model + floor area → sourced m²/ft² reference
Calculate →

Define the estimate basis before calculating

These tools perform bounded arithmetic on user-entered quantities, rates, and assumptions. They do not supply a current market cost database, a bid, or a complete development-cost estimate.

  • State the project stage, location, currency, date, measurement basis, and source of every rate.
  • Separate measured quantities from allowances, contingencies, escalation, taxes, fees, and exclusions.
  • Treat a planning output as an editable scenario, not a contractor quotation or certified estimate.
  • Reconcile results with current local evidence and the project cost professional before a decision.
Units do not convert currencies or markets

Area-unit conversion is arithmetic. A rate still belongs to a particular currency, location, date, building scope, procurement route, and evidence source; changing the area unit does not translate those conditions.

Building-type labels are not a rate source

Complexity, servicing, equipment, site constraints, specification, procurement, programme, and market conditions can materially change cost. Supply a defensible project-specific rate instead of relying on a generic building-type range.

Hospitals cost roughly 1.3–1.6× a prime office, not 3–5×

In the RLB Quarterly Construction Cost Report (North America, Q1 2026) the Chicago hard-cost range is $455–925/sf for a general hospital against $355–580/sf for a prime office. Healthcare carries MEP complexity, infection-control requirements, heavier structure and specialist equipment, but the multiple is closer to 1.5× than the 3–5× often repeated. Supply a project-specific, dated rate for the building you are pricing.

Source and review basis

Hub claims reviewed .