You send one quote. The customer looks at the total and has two moves: accept it or go quiet. If the number is a little more than they hoped, "go quiet" wins, and you never find out that a simpler version at a lower price would have got you the job. Good-better-best pricing changes that. You give three options, at three prices, and the customer chooses. Done properly, every one of them pays you what the work is worth.
What good-better-best means
You offer the same job at three levels. The names vary, and you can call them Standard, Plus, and Premium if that suits your customers, but the idea is constant:
- Good - the sound, straightforward version. It does the job properly and costs the least.
- Better - a step up in materials, scope, or finish that most customers will recognize as worth a bit more.
- Best - the premium version, for the customer who wants the top result and will pay for it.
Notice what changes between tiers: the work and the materials, not just the price. Three tiers are three different jobs.
Why offer options at all
- It turns "yes or no" into "which one." The customer is picking a version instead of deciding whether to hire you.
- It lets the customer set their own budget. You don't have to guess what they can spend, and you don't have to cut your price to meet it. They can choose the tier that fits.
- It handles the discount request. Instead of "can you do better on the price?" you already have a cheaper option that's priced properly. See how to give a discount without losing money.
- It shows you what customers want. Over time you'll see which tier people pick, and you can adjust what you offer.
How to build the tiers
The most important rule: price each tier as its own job. Work out the labor, the materials with your markup, the overhead, and your target margin for each one separately. Don't price "Better" by adding 30% to "Good." That guess lands you at different margins on each option, and the one that sells most might be the one that pays worst.
Some ground rules for what goes in each tier:
- Make the differences easy to see. Different fixture, longer coverage, added protection, extra visit. If the customer needs a paragraph to spot the difference, it's too subtle.
- Every tier should be work you're happy to put your name to. Don't strip safety or code compliance out of the cheapest option to make it cheaper. Cut the extras instead.
- Keep the margin the same across tiers. A tier you're making less on will be the one a customer picks because it's cheapest. Price all three to your target.
- Keep it to three. More options make deciding harder, not easier.
A worked example: replacing a kitchen faucet
The same visit, three ways. Good installs a basic faucet. Better keeps the faucet and adds new supply lines and shutoff valves. Best moves to a premium faucet, keeps the new lines and valves, and allows more time for a tidy, tested finish. Every tier uses a $70 labor rate, a 20% materials markup, 15% overhead, and a 20% target margin.
| Line | Good | Better | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labor hours | 1.5 | 2 | 2.5 |
| Faucet (your cost) | $60.00 | $60.00 | $180.00 |
| Supply lines and shutoff valves (your cost) | - | $55.00 | $55.00 |
| Labor ($70/hr) | $105.00 | $140.00 | $175.00 |
| Materials with 20% markup | $72.00 | $138.00 | $282.00 |
| Subtotal | $177.00 | $278.00 | $457.00 |
| Overhead (15% of subtotal) | $26.55 | $41.70 | $68.55 |
| Cost basis | $203.55 | $319.70 | $525.55 |
| Price (cost basis ÷ 0.80) | $254.44 | $399.62 | $656.94 |
Illustrative example — figures chosen to show the method, not a quote. How we source figures.
Three prices, and the profit on each is 20% of the price: about $50.89, $79.92, and $131.39. The customer who picks Good isn't a worse customer to have than the one who picks Best. They're just buying a smaller job at the same margin. Compare that with a common shortcut, where "Good" is the number you'd have quoted anyway and the others are guesses added on top. There, the tier that sells can quietly be the one you earn least on.
Don't add a "Good" tier you'd resent doing, just to make the other prices look better. If you wouldn't be happy to be hired for it, don't offer it. Every option on the page should be one you're glad to win.
How to present the options
- Show all three side by side. One page, same layout, so the differences are obvious at a glance.
- Describe outcomes, not just parts. "Fewer callbacks and a cleaner look" says more than a model number.
- Say what's the same. Note that every option includes the same care, cleanup, and workmanship, so the customer knows they're choosing the extras, not the quality of you.
- Let them choose. Resist steering hard. A customer who picks freely is more likely to be happy with the pick.
- Note what you learn. Track which option customers choose, and use it to adjust the tiers over time.
Price each option from real costs
In TradeReady you can price each tier as its own job in the calculator, with its own hours and materials, using the same labor rate, markup, overhead, and margin every time. Reuse the parts and materials you've saved in your pricebook so the costs stay consistent, and check each option's break-even price to confirm none of them is a loss leader. The calculator's low, recommended, and high prices show how each option's number moves if you tighten or loosen your margin by five points.
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The bottom line
Good-better-best gives the customer a real choice and gives you three chances to win instead of one. The catch is discipline: build each tier from its own costs, hold the same margin across all of them, make the differences obvious, and only offer work you're glad to do. Do that, and every answer the customer gives is a good one.
Common questions
What is good-better-best pricing?
It's a way of quoting the same job at three levels, typically a basic option, a step-up option, and a premium option, so the customer chooses a version rather than simply accepting or rejecting one price. Each level differs in scope, materials, or finish, and each is priced from its own costs.
How do I price each tier?
Price every tier as its own job: work out labor, materials with your markup, overhead, and target margin separately for each. Avoid pricing the higher tiers by adding a percentage to the lowest one, because that can leave you with different margins on each option, and the one customers choose most may be the one that pays worst.
How many options should I offer?
Three is the usual number, and it keeps the choice simple. More options tend to make deciding harder for the customer and add work for you, so it's usually better to offer three clear levels than five similar ones.
Should the margin be the same on all three tiers?
Generally yes. If one tier earns you less, it's the one a price-conscious customer is likely to pick. Pricing all three to your target margin means you are happy to win any of them. In the example above, each tier earns 20% of its own price.
What should differ between the tiers?
The work and materials: a different fixture, extra components, added protection, an additional visit, or a higher level of finish. The differences should be easy for a customer to see at a glance. Don't strip safety or code compliance out of the cheapest tier; cut extras instead.
Does this work for small jobs and emergencies?
It works best where the customer has a real choice, like a replacement, an upgrade, or a larger job. For a small fix with only one sensible way to do it, or an emergency where the customer needs the problem solved right now, a single clear price is usually simpler and better.
- The figures above are arithmetic worked through on a sample job using the same true-margin method as the app, to show three tiers priced from their own costs. They are not survey data, and no standard tier pricing or "typical" customer choice is offered as fact. See how we research these guides.
- Whether an option fits a given job, and what work must be included to meet code, licensing, or manufacturer requirements, depends on your trade and location. Confirm what applies to you before you offer a tier.
- Product notes describe TradeReady as it works today: price each option as its own job in the calculator, reuse pricebook items, and see a recommended, low, and high price and a break-even price. The app does not build side-by-side tiered options for you.