Welding cost per foot calculator

Filler, gas, power, and labor. This page does not print prices.

The per-foot math

Filler, gas, power, and labor. Each piece follows from the weld’s cross-section and your travel speed.

• Filler: steel weighs 0.283 lb/in³. Fillet weld metal per foot ≈ leg² × 1.7 lb (a 1/4" fillet ≈ 0.11 lb/ft; aluminum at 0.096 lb/in³: leg² × 1.15). At ~95% deposition efficiency for solid wire, divide by 0.95, then multiply by the wire price you actually pay per pound.
• Gas: flow rate (cfh) × arc time. Arc time per foot = 12 ÷ travel speed (ipm). Multiply the gas used by the price on your current invoice.
• Power: amps × volts × arc time ÷ 1,000 = kWh. Multiply that by your local rate. On most jobs this piece is small next to labor.
• Labor: shop rate × arc time, then allow for fit-up. Real shops weld maybe 30–50% of the clock (fit-up, tacking, repositioning); multiply arc time by 2–3 for true labor minutes. Use the rate you pay, not a rate printed here.

Per foot ≈ (wire lb/ft × price) + (cfh × 12/travel-ipm × gas price per ft³) + (A×V×arc-time × price per kWh) + (shop rate × arc-minutes/60 × operator factor)

Check current local prices for wire, gas, power, and the shop rate before you multiply. This page does not supply those prices.

Why thickness dominates

Fillet metal volume scales with leg², so a 1/4" fillet needs 4× the filler of a 1/8" fillet, at roughly half the travel speed — about 8× the arc time per foot. Thicker sections also demand multi-pass work with inter-pass cleaning. Labor time climbs faster than the metal volume as thickness climbs.

Where the time actually goes

• Travel speed: a faster travel speed cuts labor time per foot. Bigger wire at higher amps is the lever. Set that speed with the MIG wire speed chart and the thickness calculator, then price the wire yourself.
• Wire diameter: a larger wire deposits more metal per amp in the same settings range, which can mean fewer passes on thicker steel.
• Flux-core over gas MIG for thick outdoor work: no shielding gas to buy, higher deposition, wind-tolerant. The wire price is still a local invoice.
• Don't overweld: a fillet with legs 1.5× material thickness is nearly always over-designed. Each extra 1/16" of leg adds metal volume, and that volume is filler you pay for.

Dial in your settings first with the thickness calculator, the MIG wire speed chart, and the duty cycle calculator — a machine that trips on thermal overload turns every cost estimate upside down.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The Amazon links below are affiliate links; they don't change the math.

Once the per-foot cost is clear, turn your weld cost into a customer quote so the job is laid out for approval.