beginnerBusiness Operations

Average Job Value (AJV)

The typical dollar amount you earn from a completed project — if you completed 10 jobs last month totaling $80,000, your average job value is $8,000.

Full Definition

Average Job Value tells you what size jobs you're actually landing versus what you're bidding on. It's crucial for setting realistic revenue goals and knowing whether you're attracting the right customers. A concrete contractor might bid mostly $15,000 driveways but actually close more $5,000 sidewalk jobs.

Formula

totalRevenueFromCompletedJobs / numberOfCompletedJobs

totalRevenueFromCompletedJobs= sum of all final payments received from completed projects in a specific period

numberOfCompletedJobs= count of projects actually finished and paid for in the same period

Example

Concrete contractor completes 15 jobs in Q1: Total revenue = $120,000. AJV = $120,000 ÷ 15 jobs = $8,000 per job

For Contractors

Why It Matters

Knowing your AJV determines everything from how much you can spend on leads to how many jobs you need to hit your monthly revenue target. If your AJV is $8,000 and you need $40,000/month revenue, you need exactly 5 jobs — not 10, not 3. This prevents you from overspending on lead generation or underpricing to get volume.

Real-World Example

A concrete contractor in Phoenix tracks their last 20 completed jobs: 8 driveways averaging $12,000, 7 patios averaging $6,500, and 5 walkways averaging $3,200. Their AJV is $8,100. Knowing this, they realize they can afford to pay up to $200 per lead (based on their 25% close rate) and still be profitable at their 30% margin.

Common Mistakes

-Including estimates and proposals in the calculation instead of only completed, paid jobs
-Not separating different service types — your driveway AJV and patio AJV might be drastically different
-Using last year's numbers when material costs and your pricing have changed significantly
-Counting change orders as separate jobs instead of adding them to the original job value

What to Do

Pull your invoices from the last 3 months. List every completed job and its final payment amount (including change orders). Add them up and divide by the number of jobs. Do this separately for each major service you offer — don't lump $15,000 driveways with $3,000 repairs.

LeadFlowGod helps contractors track job values and outcomes to optimize for higher-value projects, not just more leads

LeadFlowGod finds exclusive leads from social media and delivers them scored and ready to close. 7-day free trial, no credit card required.

See how LeadFlowGod's project tracking helps you identify which lead sources bring the highest-value jobs

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I calculate AJV for my entire business or separate it by service type?

Separate it by service type. Your concrete driveway AJV might be $12,000 while your repair work AJV is $2,500. This helps you focus marketing spend on the services that bring higher value jobs.

How often should I recalculate my Average Job Value?

Quarterly is ideal, or whenever you change your pricing significantly. Markets change, material costs fluctuate, and your target customer might shift. Using outdated AJV numbers can lead to overspending on leads or missing revenue targets.

What if my job values vary wildly from $2,000 repairs to $50,000 full installations?

Track them as separate service lines. Don't average a $2,000 crack repair with a $50,000 pool deck — they're different businesses with different lead costs, close rates, and profit margins. Calculate AJV for repairs separately from new installations.

Should change orders be included in the original job value or counted separately?

Include them in the original job value. If you bid a $10,000 driveway and the customer adds $3,000 in decorative edges, that's a $13,000 job, not two separate jobs. Change orders are part of project value, not new projects.