The Financial Operating System for Equipment Owner-OperatorsTRUEHOUR is the trusted source equipment owners run their business on. It replaces guesswork with a clear, defensible equipment cost per hour — owning, operating, overhead, and target profit — so owner-operators and small contractors can price every job with confidence. Built on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cost method.
You run the equipment. TRUEHOUR helps you run the business.
Stop guessing what your machine costs. Start charging what your work is worth.
Most equipment-based businesses don't lose money on bad jobs — they lose it on bad numbers. Fuel creeps, repairs cluster, insurance renews, and depreciation eats silently. Every quote from memory bets your margin on a guess. TRUEHOUR fixes that.
Built on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cost method used across professional construction operations.
Takes 2–3 minutes • No spreadsheet • 30 days of full access
Skid steer, mini excavator, dozer, tractor, mulcher, dump truck, or a full small fleet — TRUEHOUR tells you exactly what an hour on your machine costs. From skid steer pricing to dump truck operating cost, know your number before you quote.
Even well-run operations can miss part of the picture
If you've been in this work for a while, you already know how to get jobs, keep machines running, and stay busy.
But most operators were never shown a complete system for calculating:
- True ownership cost
- Real operating cost
- Full business overhead
So decisions get made using partial numbers.
It's not a lack of effort — it's missing components.
Once everything is calculated together, the number is often different than expected.
30 days of full access • No credit card required
Explore TRUEHOUR
Everything you need to understand your true cost — and price with confidence.
Feature Tour
See exactly what TRUEHOUR does, screen by screen.
Explore Feature TourWhy TRUEHOUR
The methodology and reasoning behind every calculation.
Explore Why TRUEHOURBenchmarks
Compare your costs against aggregated, anonymous data by state.
Explore BenchmarksWho It's For
Built for owner-operators and small fleet contractors.
Explore Who It's ForPricing
30 days of full access, no credit card required. Pro keeps full functionality after that.
Explore PricingTRUEHOUR Decision App
Buy, sell, or hold? A second app for equipment decisions.
Explore TRUEHOUR Decision AppSmall gaps in cost calculation add up over time
This isn't about doing anything wrong.
It usually comes down to things like:
- •Overhead not fully allocated
- •Utilization estimated too high
- •Ownership costs simplified
- •Rates based on market instead of full cost
Individually small. Over time, they compound.
Most operators don't notice it — because the business still looks busy.
30 days of full access • Takes 2–3 minutes
This happens even in well-run operations
Overhead not fully allocated
Shop, admin, insurance, and compliance often get left out of the per-hour math.
Utilization overestimated
Assuming more billable hours than the year actually delivers inflates your safety margin.
Ownership costs simplified
Depreciation, financing, and taxes get rounded down — or skipped entirely.
Rates based on market, not full cost
Pricing to match competitors can quietly lock in a loss on every hour run.
30 days of full access • No credit card required
There is a defined, industry-standard method
The correct calculation includes three categories — combined, not chosen one at a time:
Owning Costs
Depreciation, financing, insurance, taxes
Operating Costs
Fuel, maintenance, repairs, wear items
Overhead Allocation
Admin, shop, compliance, indirect costs
Most calculators only include fuel and payments. That's why they miss the full picture.
30 days of full access • No credit card required
Run your operation with professional-grade cost accuracy
TRUEHOUR gives owner-operators the same structured cost insight used by large contractors.
30 days of full access • No credit card required
TRUEHOUR applies the full calculation for you
Enter your machine, ownership costs, operating costs, and overhead. TRUEHOUR calculates your true hourly cost.
No spreadsheets. No guesswork.
Takes 2–3 minutes • No spreadsheet • 30 days of full access
If your rate is off, every job compounds the loss
Find out in minutes — not months.
30 days of full access • No credit card required
Equipment Cost Per Hour — Frequently Asked Questions
Convert each cost to dollars per hour once: annual costs use the relevant annual machine-use or productive-hour allocation, while fuel price multiplied by fuel consumption per hour is already hourly. Depreciation based on useful-life hours and wear or service costs based on an hour interval are also already hourly; do not divide any hourly figure by annual billable hours again. Add hourly owning and operating costs, then allocated overhead and operator labor where applicable; profit belongs in the selling price, not in equipment O&O cost.
Owning costs are expenses you incur simply by possessing the equipment — depreciation, insurance, financing, and taxes. Operating costs are incurred when the machine runs — fuel, oil, filters, tires, undercarriage, and repairs. Together they form the O&O cost: the baseline number every contractor needs before setting an hourly rate.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) publishes the Equipment Ownership and Operating Expense Schedule (EP 1110-1-8), which has been the professional standard for construction equipment costing for over 70 years. It defines a structured, repeatable framework for calculating the true cost of owning and operating any piece of equipment. TRUEHOUR applies this same methodology in a mobile app.
Start by calculating your full equipment cost per hour — owning, operating, and overhead. That gives you a break-even number. Then add your desired profit margin. Setting rates based on what the market charges, without knowing your actual cost, is the most common cause of underpricing in equipment-based businesses.
No. TRUEHOUR is a cost calculation and pricing tool — not an accounting, tax, or legal service. It helps you understand your true equipment cost per hour so you can price work confidently. For tax filings, financial statements, and compliance, continue working with a qualified accountant.
TRUEHOUR's cost methodology is based on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers EP 1110-1-8 — the professional standard for construction equipment costing for over 70 years. Read the full history.