How to estimate a roofing job is a sequence, and the order matters: measure before you count, count before you price, price before you present. The measurement is the facets and their pitch; the count is the squares with waste, the starter, ridge, underlayment, ice barrier, flashing, vents and fasteners, plus the tear-off and disposal; the price is the material at the supplier's sheet and the crew's hours at a loaded rate, with the equipment; then the overhead the job must recover and the markup that leaves a profit. The estimate template on this site holds the last two steps and prints the lines the customer sees.
Measure and convert to squares
Measure each facet from the ground plan or the satellite image and correct it for pitch with the roof's slope factor, then divide by one hundred square feet to get squares. Add the waste factor the roof's shape demands, small for a gable and larger for hips, valleys and dormers. Count the ridge, hip and eave lengths separately because the starter, the ridge cap and the drip edge are bought by the foot, and count the penetrations because every boot and vent is a piece and a flashing detail.
Price the material, the hours and the tear-off
Price the bundles, rolls and pieces at the supplier's current sheet; the price sheet is the estimate's date. Estimate the hours from the crew's own record of squares per day for that material and pitch, and add the tear-off hours per layer and the disposal by the container. Load the hourly rate with the burden the wage does not carry, and price equipment such as the lift and the trailer by the day. Subcontracted work, gutters or a chimney rebuild, goes in at the quoted price.
Add the overhead and the markup, then present one total
The overhead percentage comes from the company's own books, last year's overhead over last year's direct cost, and is applied before any profit. The markup is the percentage on top of cost that produces the price; it is not the margin. Present the homeowner one total with the scope, the products, the warranty and the exclusions, and keep the estimate with its quantities and hours. Pro files it against the customer and the property, so the squares installed can be read against the squares estimated when the job closes.
Questions people ask about how to estimate a roofing job
How many squares does a roof have?
Its facet area corrected for pitch, divided by one hundred square feet, plus the waste factor for its cuts; a plain gable and a cut-up roof of the same footprint need different bundle counts.
How do I estimate the labor on a roofing job?
From the crew's own squares per day on that material and pitch, plus tear-off hours per layer, at an hourly rate loaded with taxes, insurance and the unpaid parts of the day.
What markup should a roofing estimate carry?
The percentage that covers the company's overhead and leaves the profit the owner wants, calculated from the books; the template applies whatever percentage you enter and prints the margin alongside it.