How to price your courier work: per mile, per drop and same-day

TL;DR: Work out your vehicle cost per mile and your time cost per hour, add waiting, empty miles and extras, then set a minimum charge so short jobs still pay. We haven't found a dated, citable UK price survey for couriers, so instead of an "average" this guide shows you how to build your own rate card, and suggests checking three or four local couriers' published prices and noting the date.

• Vehicle: fuel, servicing, tyres, finance or depreciation, and insurance, turned into a cost per mile.
• Your time: driving, loading, waiting and admin, at the hourly rate you want.
• Empty miles: the drive back or to the next pickup.
• Extras: tolls, parking, congestion or clean air zone charges where they apply.
• Overheads: phone, app fees, accounting and business insurance.

1. Track a fortnight of real jobs: miles, hours, waiting, empty return.
2. Work out cost per mile and target pay per hour.
3. Set a minimum charge so short jobs still pay.
4. Price urgency: same-day or timed slots above standard.
5. Add waiting time after a free period.
6. Check the result: a job's price minus its mileage cost, ÷ the hours it took door to door (including the empty run back), shows what you really earn per hour.

• Per mile: simple for one-off runs; add a minimum.
• Per drop: suits multi-drop rounds where stops are close.
• Per hour or day rate: for dedicated vans and contracts.
• Fixed zone pricing: set prices by postcode zone so quoting is quick.

As your rounds grow, check GOV.UK's Register for VAT guidance to see when it applies to you, and decide early with your accountant whether your rate card shows prices with or without VAT.

Review your rate card when fuel or vehicle costs move, and give contract customers written notice of the new rates and start date.

The Courier Delivery Price List & Service Menu (£4.99) is a rate card you edit for your own prices. The Courier Delivery Pricing Calculator — Premium (£14.99) is an 8-sheet Excel workbook covering hours, materials and a printable quote. The Courier Delivery Round Management Pack (£9.99) is an Excel workbook that tracks accounts, route, drop frequency, price and next drop.

To keep the money side in order once your prices are set, the Courier Delivery Financial Forms Bundle — Premium (£19.99) has 10 financial record templates (fillable PDF, editable DOCX, or fill in online).

See every courier product on the Courier hub. Before you take paid work, read Courier insurance UK.

Per mile suits one-off runs; per drop suits dense multi-drop rounds. Many use both with a minimum charge.

Set a free period on your rate card and a charge after it, and put it in your terms.

Usually. Same-day and timed slots stop you grouping jobs efficiently, so price that lost flexibility into the rate.

All accessed 16 October 2026.

• GOV.UK, "Register for VAT"
• LaunchKit product pages linked above (checked live, HTTP 200, 16 Oct 2026; prices as shown on the page).

This article is general information, not financial or tax advice. We don't set prices for you. Check your own costs and figures before you decide.