How to Charge a Trip Fee as a Mobile Mechanic
Charge a flat fee per call or a per-mile rate past a free radius, and put it on the quote before you roll. Most solo mobile mechanics charge $20 to $75 a call.
Price the drive in seconds
Enter where you are and where the car is. The free travel fee calculator gets the real driving distance and tells you what to charge with your per-mile rate.
Price my trip3 ways techs charge for the drive
Flat trip fee. Same price every call. Simple, and easy for customers to understand.
Free radius, then per mile. Close jobs pay nothing extra, far jobs pay for the miles past your radius.
Per mile with a long-haul rate. One rate up to a set distance, a different rate for the miles after it.
How to say it so nobody argues
Put the trip fee on the quote as its own line, before you drive out. Customers push back on surprise charges, not on a fee they agreed to. Something like: "Trip fee covers my drive to you, so you don't have to tow it or sit at a shop."
Don't forget your time
Gas is the part everyone counts. The part they miss is the 30 or 40 minutes behind the wheel that you can't bill as labor. A fair trip fee covers the miles and the minutes. Not sure what your time is worth? Use the labor rate calculator or read how much a mobile mechanic should charge.
Put the trip fee on every quote without doing the math each time.
Repair Rocket builds the quote, the customer signs and pays from their phone. Free to start, no card needed.
Common questions
How do I charge a trip fee as a mobile mechanic?
Pick one: a flat trip fee per call, or a per-mile rate after a free radius. Put it as its own line on the quote so the customer sees it before you drive out. Most solo mobile mechanics charge a flat $20 to $75 per call.
Flat trip fee or per mile, which is better?
A flat fee is simple and works if most of your jobs are close. Per mile past a free radius is fairer when your area is big, because close customers pay little and far customers pay for the drive. Some techs use a flat fee plus a per-mile rate past a set distance.
What does a trip fee need to cover?
Your vehicle cost per mile (fuel plus tires, oil, brakes and wear, often $0.35 to $0.60 a mile) and your drive time, since every minute driving is a minute you are not billing for work.
Should I waive the trip fee if they book the job?
That is your call. Some techs waive it or credit it toward the repair to win the job. If you do, make sure your labor rate already covers the drive, or you are working for free on the way there.
More free tools: parts run calculator, minimum job calculator, and all tools for mobile mechanics.