Masonry Estimating & Bidding Software
Masonry is unit-count work with heavy labor and real access cost. Brick and block quantities follow from wall area, but scaffolding, lift equipment, and weather protection can carry a significant share of the bid. Pro Spec IQ tracks units and access separately so neither disappears into a blended rate.
What Pro Spec IQ tracks on a masonry bid
Beyond material, labor, and equipment, masonry bids get inputs specific to the trade:
Block / Brick Count
blocksTotal blocks or bricks needed
Wall Sq Ft
sq ftTotal masonry wall area
Mortar Bags
bagsNumber of mortar bags needed
Scaffold Rental Days
daysDays of scaffold rental
Starting markups for masonry
10%
Overhead
15%
Profit
5%
Contingency
These are editable defaults, not fixed rates. Set them per bid to match your own cost structure and the risk on the job.
What drives cost on masonry work
- Unit count derived from wall area and the unit size in use
- Mortar volume and mix type
- Wall height, which drives scaffolding and lift requirements
- Reinforcement, ties, and any grouted cells
- Cleaning, sealing, and weather protection
Where these estimates go wrong
- Estimating units without accounting for openings and returns
- Omitting scaffolding cost and erection labor on tall walls
- Underpricing cleanup and sealing at the end of the job
- Not pricing cold-weather protection on late-season work
Masonry estimating questions
How do you estimate masonry work?
Calculate wall area net of openings, convert to unit count, and price units and mortar from there. Add scaffolding, reinforcement, and cleaning, apply labor hours at your rate, then layer overhead, profit, and contingency. Pro Spec IQ tracks unit count and wall area as explicit inputs.
Should scaffolding be its own line on a masonry bid?
Keeping it separate is generally clearer, since it's driven by height and duration rather than by unit count. It also makes the number easier to defend if the schedule changes and the scaffold stays up longer.
What defaults does the masonry estimator use?
Masonry bids start at 12% overhead, 15% profit, and 7% contingency, all editable per bid.
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