The short answer
Start from what that trade pays per hour where you are, multiply by the hours you actually need, and add for heavy, dirty, or skilled work. The Daily Pay Finder gives you the local number. A post priced under it sits open, and an open post costs more than the difference.
Start with the local number
Pay for the same work is not the same in Kansas City and in Los Angeles, and it is not the same for demo and for careful finish work. Guessing from what you paid somebody five years ago is how a post sits unanswered.
The Daily Pay Finder shows the published wage data for a trade in your area, plus what jobs on this platform have actually paid nearby. Look at both before you pick a number.
Price the day, not the wish
Take the hourly figure and multiply it by the hours you really need, including setup and cleanup. A four hour job priced as if it were three fills slowly and finishes late.
If you post a flat day rate, be clear about the hours it covers. A worker deciding between 180 for six hours and 200 for ten is doing that math whether you spell it out or not.
What moves the number up
Some work is worth more than the base rate for the trade, and the people who can do it know that.
- Heavy lifting all day, or anything with stairs.
- Dirty or unpleasant conditions. Crawl spaces, demolition dust, heat.
- A skill, a certification, or a tool they bring themselves.
- Short notice, especially same day.
- A start before dawn, a weekend, or a holiday.
What an underpriced post really costs
The obvious cost is the post not filling. The quieter one is who does answer. Underpriced jobs get answered last, by whoever has nothing else, which is not the same pool as the people your neighbor got.
Twenty dollars more on a day rate is cheaper than a job that runs into a second day, and much cheaper than a job that gets done badly.
Do not pay less because they showed up
Changing the number at the end of the day, because it went faster than expected or because you decided it was easier work, is the fastest way to get a bad review and never get that person back.
If the job finished early, you got a good deal on a fair rate. Pay what you posted and hire them again.
Paying more than the rate on purpose
Employers who pay a little above the local number get their pick of the people who have worked here before and have reviews to show for it.
It is the cheapest hiring advantage available. Ten percent over the going rate turns a post that fills in two days into one that fills in an hour.
This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Rules differ by state and by situation, so talk to your own professional before you rely on it.