Calculate fully-burdened Davis-Bacon labor costs in seconds. Base rate + fringe benefits + payroll burden: everything you need to price a prevailing wage job.
This is an estimate. Actual rates must come from SAM.gov wage determinations for your project's county and trade. You can look up the official wage determination for your county for free.
For federal and federally assisted construction contracts in excess of $2,000 (40 U.S.C. 3142(a)), the Davis-Bacon Act requires that workers receive the prevailing wage, which is the sum of two components: the base hourly rate and the fringe benefit rate. Together these make up the total prevailing wage that must be paid to the worker.
Prevailing Wage = Base Rate + Fringe Rate
Example: $30.00 base + $15.00 fringe = $45.00 prevailing wage per hour
Working in a state with its own prevailing wage law? See our guides for California, Illinois, and New York, or check the 2026 prevailing wage laws by state map.
The base rate is cash wages paid directly to the worker. The fringe rate can be paid as cash on the paycheck, or as employer contributions to bona fide benefit plans (health insurance, pension, vacation, training). Wage determinations list the basic hourly rate and any fringe benefits separately (29 CFR 5.30) so contractors know the minimum for each.
Wondering how prevailing wage differs from union scale? The two often track each other but are set by different processes.
Under CWHSSA (contracts over $100,000) and the FLSA, overtime is 1.5x the basic hourly rate (the WD base, or your actual cash rate if higher); the fringe portion is owed at straight time on every hour (40 U.S.C. 3701(b)(3)(A); 29 CFR 5.32(a), (c)(2)). This calculator follows that rule: straight time is capped at 40 hours per week, hours over 40 are priced at 1.5x the base rate, and fringe is added at straight time on every hour.
The prevailing wage is what the worker receives, but the contractor's true cost is higher. A fully-burdened labor cost includes the following employer-paid items on top of gross wages:
The default burden rates in this calculator (about 25.75% combined) are reasonable national averages for construction. FICA and FUTA are the federal figures; the SUTA, workers comp, and general liability defaults are industry estimates, so replace them with your actual rates from your workers comp carrier, payroll provider, and state unemployment office for accurate bids.
This tool is designed for:
Once your bid wins and the project starts, you'll need to file weekly certified payroll reports (Form WH-347) with the contracting agency. Our weekly WH-347 filing checklist walks through every line. That's also where CertifiedPayrollPro comes in: we turn your payroll data into signed, audit-ready reports automatically.
Wage Lookup →
Find the actual prevailing wage rate for your county and trade
Prevailing Wage Guide →
Complete guide to Davis-Bacon and state prevailing wage laws
WH-347 Form Guide →
Learn how to complete the federal certified payroll form
Cost Calculator →
Estimate what certified payroll compliance costs your company each year
Related reading: step-by-step SAM.gov prevailing wage search tutorial.
Under 29 CFR 1.2, the prevailing wage is the wage (basic hourly rate plus fringe benefits) paid to the majority, meaning more than 50 percent, of workers in a classification on similar projects in the area. If no single rate is paid to a majority, the prevailing wage is the rate paid to the greatest number of those workers, provided that group is at least 30 percent. If no rate reaches 30 percent, the Department of Labor uses a weighted average of the rates paid. For federal and federally assisted construction contracts in excess of $2,000, the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 3142(a)) requires contractors to pay at least that prevailing wage. Rates are published as wage determinations on SAM.gov.
This calculator provides estimates based on the rates and burden percentages you enter. The formulas follow standard Davis-Bacon labor cost conventions (base + fringe + employer burden). However, actual prevailing wage rates must come from the official wage determination on SAM.gov for your project's county and trade. The FICA and FUTA defaults are federal figures from IRS Publication 15; the SUTA, workers comp, and general liability defaults are industry estimates that vary by state, experience modifier, and coverage. Confirm them with your payroll provider or insurance broker.
Prevailing wage rates are published as wage determinations on SAM.gov (formerly beta.SAM). You'll need your project's state, county, and construction type (building, heavy, highway, or residential) to pull the correct determination. Our free Wage Lookup tool can help you find the right determination quickly.
Standard employer burden includes FICA (7.65%, per IRS Publication 15), federal unemployment (FUTA, 0.6% net on the first $7,000 of wages per worker), state unemployment (SUTA, which varies by state and experience rating), workers compensation (which varies by trade class code; construction commonly runs 8-20% of payroll), and general liability insurance (roughly 1-5% of payroll). The SUTA, workers comp, and general liability figures are industry estimates, not statutory rates. Some contractors also add health insurance, retirement, and paid time off if those aren't already included in the fringe rate.
No. This calculator gives you the fully-burdened labor cost only. To build a complete bid, you'll need to add material costs, equipment costs, subcontractor costs, project overhead (supervision, site trailers, permits, etc.), general company overhead, and profit margin on top of the labor number this tool produces.
Yes, this is exactly what it's designed for. Use it to quickly price out labor on a Davis-Bacon job before finalizing your bid. Just remember to verify the prevailing wage rate for your specific trade and county on SAM.gov, and confirm your burden percentages match your actual insurance and tax situation.