Terms of use

Estimates disclaimer — read this one

Every number this site produces is a planning estimate. It is calculated from general cost ranges and standard rules of thumb, and it is intended to help you budget, sanity-check a bid, or work out roughly how much material to order.

It is not any of the following:

• Not a quote. Nobody has looked at your site, your soil, your access, your existing conditions or your local labour market. Only a contractor standing in front of the job can give you a price.
• Not an engineering calculation. Framing, structural, foundation, electrical and plumbing outputs on this site are arithmetic based on common practice. They are not a design, they have not been checked against your local code, and they carry no stamp.
• Not a substitute for a licensed professional. Nor for a permit, an inspection, or a plan review.

This matters most on the structural, electrical and plumbing tools. A rafter length, a pier count, a panel amperage or a pipe size produced here must not be treated as a design decision. Have it confirmed by an engineer, a licensed electrician or a licensed plumber, and have the work permitted and inspected. If a number on this page and a number from a licensed professional disagree, the professional is right.

About the cost figures

The cost constants behind the estimators are general industry ranges. Each group carries the date it was last reviewed and a note about where it came from, shown at the foot of the explainer on any page with dollar figures. Prices move — with the season, with the material market, and with how busy the trades are in your area. Treat a figure that was reviewed six months ago as a starting point, not a current price.

Using the site

SiteReckoner is free to use for personal and commercial purposes. You are welcome to use the results in your own estimates, bids and client conversations. You may not scrape the site at volume, republish the calculators or explainer text as your own, or use automated tools in a way that degrades the service for other people.

No warranty, and limits on liability

The site is provided as it is, without warranty of any kind. We work hard to get the formulas right and to explain them openly on every page so you can check them yourself, but we do not guarantee that any result is accurate, complete or suitable for your situation.

To the fullest extent the law allows, SiteReckoner is not liable for any loss arising from your use of the site — including money spent, material ordered, work carried out, or contracts entered into on the basis of a number you read here. You are responsible for verifying anything before you act on it.

Advertising and external links

The site is funded by advertising. Ads are served by third parties and their presence is not an endorsement. We also link out to manufacturers, code bodies and suppliers where it is useful; we do not control those sites and are not responsible for their content.

Content and intellectual property

The calculators, explainer writing, layout and branding are ours. The underlying formulas are, in most cases, standard trade arithmetic that belongs to nobody, and we show them on the page for exactly that reason.

Changes

We add calculators, correct formulas and update cost figures regularly. These terms may change with them; the date at the top tells you when they last did.

Contact

If you think a formula is wrong or a cost figure is out of date, tell us at hello@sitereckoner.com. Corrections from people who do the work for a living are the most useful mail we get.