Snow removal pricing guide

How much to charge for snow removal

Work out your price per push and per season from your own time and costs, then check it against what plow contractors typically charge.

Snow removal pricing calculator

Start from an example, then change the numbers to match your truck, your crew and the site.

Charge per push

$70

Seasonal contract

$840

12 pushes at your per-push price

Truck time, including the drive
Shoveling labor
Materials
Your cost with overhead
Profit per push

Prices round up to the nearest $5 and never go below your minimum charge. Works in any currency: enter your own rates in dollars or Canadian dollars.

What snow removal typically costs

Ranges from published US pricing guides and town bid sheets. Prices in your area can sit well above or below them, so use them to check your number, not to set it.

Residential

Service Typical price
Driveway plowing $30–$100 per push
Seasonal driveway contract $300–$1,000 per season
Walks and steps (shovel or blower) $30–$100 per visit

Commercial

Service Typical price
Small lot (under half an acre) $75–$225 per push
Lots priced by size $50–$150 per acre per push
Salting or deicing $100–$400 per application

Hourly

Service Typical price
Pickup with plow and operator $75–$150 per hour
Skid steer with operator $90–$170 per hour
Shoveler or snow blower operator $40–$60 per person-hour

Four ways to price snow removal

Most contractors use more than one: seasonal contracts for driveways, per push or per event for commercial lots, and hourly for cleanup.

Per push

Best for: Driveways and small lots where storms vary

One flat price every time you plow. Easy to explain and you get paid for every visit, but your income swings with the weather and a big storm that needs two pushes has to be spelled out in the contract.

Per event

Best for: Commercial lots that want one bill per storm

One price per storm no matter how many times you come back. Set it by snowfall ranges (for example 2–4 inches, 4–8 inches, 8–12 inches) so a blizzard doesn't cost you money.

Seasonal contract

Best for: Residential routes and steady customers

One price for the whole winter, usually paid in installments. Predictable for you and the customer. Price it from the number of pushes in an average winter, and cap it or add a per-push rate after a set number of storms.

Hourly

Best for: Big lots, hauling and cleanup work

Bill time on site for each piece of equipment. Fair on jobs that are hard to estimate, but customers need to trust your hours, so record start and end times on every visit.

How to work out your price

  1. 1

    Know what your truck costs per hour

    Add up your truck and plow payments, insurance, fuel, maintenance and the wage you want to pay yourself, and divide by the hours you expect to plow in a season. That's your floor. Anything below it loses money no matter how busy you are.

  2. 2

    Time each site, and count the drive

    Walk or measure every property before you quote it. Note the size, the surface, where the snow will go, and anything that slows you down: islands, curbs, parked cars, a long gravel drive. Then add the drive to and from it, because you're paying for that time too.

  3. 3

    Add walks, salt and materials

    Shoveling, blowing and salting take extra hands and extra material. Price them as their own lines so the customer sees what they're paying for and you can drop or add them per storm.

  4. 4

    Add overhead and profit, then set a minimum

    Overhead covers the costs that don't belong to one site, and many contractors figure it at about 20% of their costs. Profit is what's left to grow the business: aim to keep 10–25% of the price after every cost is paid. A minimum charge makes sure even a five-minute driveway pays for the stop.

  5. 5

    Put the trigger depth and the limits in writing

    Every contract should say how much snow has to fall before you come out, when you'll arrive, what happens after a big storm, and what a seasonal price covers. Most billing disputes start with a contract that didn't say.

Pricing mistakes new plow operators make

  • Guessing instead of timing. A driveway you thought took 10 minutes takes 20 once you clear the apron and push back the banks.
  • Forgetting the drive. Ten sites spread across town cost more than ten sites on one street, even when the plowing time is the same.
  • Pricing a seasonal contract off a light winter. Use an average winter, and say what happens after a set number of storms.
  • No proof of service. Without times, photos and weather for each visit, it's your word against the customer's when an invoice or a slip-and-fall claim gets disputed.

Price next season from real numbers

Plow360 records how long every site actually takes

Your crew logs each job from the free operator app. Plow360 saves the start and end time, GPS location, photos and the weather for every visit, so you know your real minutes per site and have proof when a customer asks.

  • Quotes, plus invoices built from your completed jobs
  • Trigger depths on each service, matched against the forecast
  • Routes that cut the drive time between sites
Start free trial Plans from $20/month

Snow removal pricing questions

Pricing your first season? Email [email protected] and we'll help.

Where these numbers come from

How much should I charge to plow a residential driveway?
Published pricing guides put a standard residential driveway at $30–$100 per push, with $40–$75 the most common range. Seasonal contracts usually run $300–$1,000, and most fall between $350 and $700. Start from your own numbers: a driveway that takes 15 minutes to plow plus 10 minutes of drive time costs you about $46 at a $110 hourly truck rate, before overhead and profit.
How much should I charge for a commercial parking lot?
Small commercial lots commonly run $75–$225 per push, and larger lots are often priced at $50–$150 per acre per push. Tight lots with islands, curbs and nowhere to pile snow take longer and belong at the top of that range or above it. Salting is usually priced separately, often $100–$400 per application.
Should I charge per push or sell a seasonal contract?
Per push pays you for every visit, so it protects you in a heavy winter. A seasonal contract gives you steady income and keeps customers from shopping around after every storm. To price a seasonal contract, multiply your per-push price by the number of pushes in an average winter where you work, then decide how many storms are included before extra pushes are billed.
What hourly rate should I charge for a plow truck?
Town bid sheets and private quotes put a pickup with a plow and operator at roughly $70–$170 per hour, often with a 2-hour minimum. Skid steers with an operator run about $90–$170 per hour, and shovelers about $40–$60 per person-hour. Your rate has to cover your truck payment, insurance, fuel, plow wear and your own wage before any profit.
What is a trigger depth?
The trigger depth is the amount of snow that has to fall before you go out. It belongs in every contract. Commercial lots often use a lower trigger than driveways because businesses need to stay open. In Plow360 you can set a trigger depth on each service, and the weather outlook shows which storms are forecast to meet it.
How do I price salting?
Add the cost of the material you put down (by the bag or by the pound), the time to spread it and your drive time, then add overhead and profit the same way as plowing. Commercial salting is commonly quoted at $100–$400 per application, depending on the area treated.
How many pushes should I plan for in a season?
It depends on where you plow and your trigger depth. A quick estimate is your area's average seasonal snowfall divided by your trigger depth: 36 inches of snow with a 3-inch trigger is about 12 pushes. Contractors around Boston report about a dozen plowable storms in a typical winter, while 20 or more is common in snowier places like Buffalo and Minnesota. Use your local average, not last winter.
Should I set a minimum charge?
Yes. Every stop costs you drive time, setup and paperwork even if the plowing only takes five minutes. Set a minimum that covers getting the truck to the site and back on schedule, and use it as the floor for every per-push price.

Price it right. Prove every visit.

Track time, GPS, photos and weather on every job, then bill from what you actually did.

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