Event DJs: is this gig paying you? Setup, teardown, and upsells counted. Free, no signup.
Everything below is measured against this rate. Set it to what an hour of your real time is worth, not what you hope to get.
Planning covers consultations, playlist prep, MC script, and vendor coordination. Clients never see it, so most DJs never count it. Gear covers rented speakers, subs, or an assistant.
Upsells are where DJ margins actually live. If the quote includes any of these, check them so the math reflects it. Prices are starting points, edit to your market.
Peak dates sell out first. Most pros quote them higher instead of working the busiest night of the week at a Tuesday price.
Pick the gig preset: House party, Corporate, or Wedding. Each fills the quote, performance hours, setup, teardown, planning and prep, travel, gear cost, and miles, and every field stays editable as a starting point. Read the note on the gig card: planning covers consultations, playlist prep, MC script, and vendor coordination, and clients never see it, so most DJs never count it. Enter travel miles at cost per mile ($0.70 default) and gear rental or hired help. The upsells card is where DJ margins live: MC services ($200), dance lighting ($150), uplighting ($250), ceremony sound ($200), fog and haze ($100), and photo booth ($300). Check the ones included in the quote; each price is editable and feeds the math. Toggle the peak-date premium (25 percent default) for Saturday or in-season dates. Set your bar: the minimum dollars per hour you will work for ($100 default). The results card shows the line-item breakdown, invisible hours (setup, teardown, prep, travel), true dollars per hour, the peak-adjusted minimum quote to hit your rate, and a PRICED RIGHT, CLOSE BUT LEAKING, or UNDERPRICED verdict. The monthly goal card shows how many gigs per month you need at this quote's kept amount.
Example only, not typical pricing. Load the Corporate preset against a $100 bar: $1,200 quote, 4 performance, 1.5 setup, 1 teardown, 3 planning, 1 travel: 10.5 real hours. Travel is 60 miles at $0.70 ($42) plus $150 in gear: $192 in costs. You keep $1,008, so the effective rate is $96.00 per hour: CLOSE, BUT LEAKING, and the minimum quote is $100 times 10.5 plus $192, or $1,242. The trap is right there: 4 performance hours feel like $300 per hour, but 10.5 real hours make it $96. Now add $800 of upsells and the 25 percent peak premium: revenue is $2,000, you keep $1,808, and the effective rate is $172.19 per hour: PRICED RIGHT. At a $4,000 monthly goal you need 2.3 gigs a month at that kept amount.
**What are invisible hours?**
Setup, teardown, planning, and travel: the work around the performance that clients never see. The Corporate preset has 6.5 of them against 4 performance hours, which is why the effective rate surprises people.
**Why do upsells matter so much?**
They add revenue without proportional hours. The six upsell lines (MC services, lighting, uplighting, ceremony sound, fog, photo booth) are the margin engine, and the tool subtracts them from the minimum quote because they are doing pricing work.
**How does the peak-date premium work?**
It multiplies the minimum quote by 1 plus the premium percent when the toggle is on. Peak dates sell out first, so the tool prices them like it instead of charging Tuesday rates on a Saturday.
**What does CLOSE, BUT LEAKING mean?**
Your effective rate is below your bar but within 85 percent of it. The verdict names the exact quote that hits your rate, with the peak premium applied when the toggle is on.
**Are the preset fees market rates?**
No. They are editable starting points, and the footer says prices vary by market. Set hours and costs from your own gigs before quoting real clients.