Overview
Bricklayers price by the brick, and the brick line drives the whole job
Bricklaying is one of the few trades where the customer can count the units. A boundary wall is so many bricks, a single skin extension is so many more, and a chimney rebuild is somewhere in between. The brick rate is usually visible, which means margins live in the parts the customer can't easily count: mortar mix at the right ratio, sand, cement, lime if it's an old building, scaffolding for anything over chest height, and the labour rate that reflects whether the bricks are hand-cut or machine-cut. A flat rate per square metre that hides all of this is a quote that's going to lose money on every wall over two metres tall.
QuoteGenio gives bricklayers a clean way to put every line on the page. Bricks per thousand at supplier price, mortar by weight, scaffold by week, labour by day at the right rate for the brick type. Send the quote via WhatsApp from the customer's garden, take a deposit when they accept, raise a progress invoice once the brickwork is at chest height, and the final invoice when the wall is capped. The customer sees what they're paying for, and you stop absorbing the cost of every awkward corner the original site visit didn't catch.
Who it is for
Who uses QuoteGenio
Built for every type of bricklaying and masonry business.
The problem
The quoting headaches every bricklayer knows
Brick jobs live and die on the take-off. Get the count wrong and your margin walks off with the bakkie.
Brick counts take forever to do by hand
Working out bricks per square metre, mortar volumes, and wastage on a scrap of paper takes an hour you don't have.
Underquoting on materials kills the job
Cement, sand, and brick prices shift weekly. A quote written last month eats your profit when you buy this month.
Verbal quotes get forgotten
You tell the client a number at the site visit. A week later they remember a different number and the job goes sour before it starts.
The fix
QuoteGenio makes it simple
A faster, cleaner workflow built around how bricklayers actually work, on-site, in the sun, and priced by the square metre.
The payoff
What you get with QuoteGenio
The everyday wins that add up across a year of quoting and invoicing.
Built for brickwork
Line items for bricks, mortar, lintels, DPC, wall ties, and labour per square metre. Everything a brickwork quote needs.
Quote from the site visit
Pace the wall out, key the dimensions in, and send the quote before you drive off. No laptop, no office trip.
Quote in under 3 minutes
A structured workflow that gets you from site visit to sent quote before the client has finished their coffee.
Track payments easily
Know which invoices are outstanding and follow up with one tap. No spreadsheet required.
Built for your trade
Quoting calibrated to how bricklayers actually work
Pick your trade in Settings and the entire quote flow switches to fit. Line item presets, compliance fields, on-the-quote calculators, and per-m² / after-hours pricing all change to match your industry.
Trade-specific line items
Quick add picker pre-fills the common items your trade quotes. Skip the blank rows.
Brand-specific catalogues
Pylontech, Hikvision, Canadian Solar, Sunsynk and others pre-named. Pick the brand, the description writes itself.
Compliance fields built in
IOPSA, ECASA, PIRB, PSIRA, NHBRC, SAQCC. Set once. Every quote prints them under FROM.
Registration expiry alerts
Dashboard notification 60 days before your PSIRA, CoC or any dated registration lapses.
Per-m² / hour / day billing
Unit selector on every line item: m², hr, linear m, days. Stop doing the maths externally.
After-hours and emergency
1.5× and 2× multipliers as a one-tap toggle. Customer sees the breakdown on the quote.
Quote-flow calculators
Solar size, battery backup, cable run cost. Compute on the spot, drop straight onto the quote.
Staged payments
Deposit on acceptance + balance on completion as two separate amounts on the quote PDF.
Scope-of-work checklist
Structured Included / Not included lists. Client acceptance = signing the scope.
Site-survey mode
Log a location per line item: camera positions, fixtures by room, sensors by zone.
Regional rate hints
Pricing ranges per item per currency shown as you quote.
Free on every plan
All of the above included on the free plan. Premium is for capacity, not the trade tooling.
Why QuoteGenio
Why Bricklayers choose QuoteGenio
The tools that matter most when you are quoting on-site, under pressure, and between jobs.
Quote from your phone
Most Bricklayers build and send quotes directly from the job site. No laptop, no office, no delays.
Win more jobs, faster
The first professional quote a client receives usually wins. Respond in minutes, not hours.
Quote to invoice in one click
When the job is accepted, convert to an invoice instantly. No retyping, no double entry.
Pricing guide
Typical Bricklayers job pricing
A rough guide to what bricklayers charge for common jobs. Pricing shifts with brick type, wall height, access, and whether scaffold is needed. Use these as a sanity check when building your rate card, not as fixed numbers.
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Single skin boundary wall (per sq m) | R297 - R529 / sq m |
| Double skin face brick wall (per sq m) | R744 - R1,405 / sq m |
| Boundary wall complete (2.1m high, per m) | R909 - R2,314 / m |
| House building (brickwork only, per sq m) | R628 - R1,240 / sq m |
| Braai and fireplace build | R14,048 - R74,372 |
| Retaining wall (reinforced, per sq m) | R1,818 - R4,628 / sq m |
| Brick repair and pointing (per sq m) | R364 - R909 / sq m |
Pricing converted from USD to ZAR at indicative rates. Rates vary significantly by country, region, currency, and market.
Call-out fees
Most bricklayers quote free for jobs within 20km, but a detailed take-off on a full house is half a day of work. Charging R2,479 to R5,784 for a proper bill of quantities, refundable against the contract, filters out tyre kickers and pays for your time.
Hourly vs fixed pricing
Use fixed pricing per square metre of wall when dimensions are clear and the brick type is specified. Use daywork rates (around R2,975 to R4,628 per bricklayer per day) for repair work, awkward matching jobs, and anything where you can't measure the scope until you start. State clearly on the quote which sections are fixed and which are daywork.
See it in action
Example quote breakdown
Here's what a clean itemised quote for a boundary wall looks like. Every course of bricks, every bag of cement, and every metre of labour is visible. Transparent quotes win brickwork jobs because the client can see where the money goes.
Try it yourself
Job size
Region
Sample quote
Boundary wall, 18m long at 2.1m high, stock brick plastered one side
Foundation excavation and concrete strip
Stock bricks supply (50 per sq m, double skin)
Cement, sand, lime for mortar
Brickwork labour (37.8 sq m double skin)
Wall ties, DPC, expansion joint
Plaster one side (yard side)
Wall cap bricks and finishing course
Site clean and rubble removal
| Description | Qty | Rate | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foundation excavation and concrete strip | 18 | R529 / m | R9,520 |
| Stock bricks supply (50 per sq m, double skin) | 3780 | R9 | R34,360 |
| Cement, sand, lime for mortar | 1 | R8,925 | R8,925 |
| Brickwork labour (37.8 sq m double skin) | 37.8 | R959 / sq m | R36,227 |
| Wall ties, DPC, expansion joint | 1 | R2,975 | R2,975 |
| Plaster one side (yard side) | 37.8 | R364 / sq m | R13,750 |
| Wall cap bricks and finishing course | 18 | R297 / m | R5,355 |
| Site clean and rubble removal | 1 | R3,636 | R3,636 |
| Subtotal | R114,747 | ||
| Tax (10%) | R11,470 | ||
| Total incl. tax | R126,217 | ||
Totals recalculate as you change the controls above. Tax rate inferred from the sample quote.
Items often forgotten
Foundation concrete and rebar, DPC and wall ties, wastage allowance (usually 5 to 10 percent on bricks), scaffold hire if the wall goes above 1.8m, water and power on-site, rubble removal, and a provisional sum for rock or soft spots in the trench. Put these on your template once and stop absorbing them.
Peer snapshot
How Bricklayers actually use QuoteGenio
Indicative activity for Bricklayers on the platform. Use it as a benchmark for how often to quote and how fast to respond.
33
Quotes sent per month
55%
Average quote acceptance
3 min
Median time to send quote
R126,217
Typical quote value
Figures are indicative platform averages for this trade segment.
Start quoting Bricklayer jobs like this, free
Build your first quote in under 2 minutes. No credit card, no setup fee, no contract.
Avoid these
Common quoting mistakes
We talk to a lot of bricklayers. The same pricing and quoting mistakes come up again and again. Fixing these will protect your margin and stop arguments on the final invoice.
Mistake: Quoting bricks without a wastage allowance
Better: Add 5 to 10 percent on stock brick and 10 to 15 percent on face brick for cuts, breaks, and colour matching. The client pays for wastage, not you. State it as a line item so there's no surprise.
Mistake: Forgetting the foundation on a wall quote
Better: A boundary wall needs a concrete strip footing, rebar, and sometimes a rubble stone course. Quote the foundation as a separate line from the brickwork so the client sees the full job.
Mistake: Not allowing for scaffold above 1.8m
Better: Working off a plank on bricks is slow and unsafe. Any wall above 1.8m needs proper scaffold. Add it as a hire line, typically R198 to R413 per square metre per week.
Mistake: Lumping plaster into the brickwork rate
Better: Plaster is a separate trade and a separate skill. Quote brickwork per sq m and plaster per sq m. If the client only wants one side plastered, the maths is honest.
Mistake: No material price validity
Better: Cement and brick prices move monthly. Put a 30 day validity on every quote, and state that material costs beyond that date are subject to re-quote. Nobody argues when it's in writing.
Mistake: Quoting stock brick when the client wanted face brick
Better: Specify the brick type, size, and source in the quote description. Face brick is two to four times the price of stock brick. Get the spec wrong and you swallow the difference.
Mistake: No payment schedule on bigger walls
Better: Ask for a deposit to cover bricks and cement, a progress payment at DPC level, and the balance on completion. Bricklayers who don't stage payments end up funding the client's wall out of their own pocket.
Mistake: No follow-up after sending the quote
Better: Most quotes that don't close, don't close because nobody followed up. Send a polite check-in 48 hours after the quote lands, and a second nudge at day 7. Two of every three accepted quotes get there because someone followed up.
Step by step
How to quote bricklaying jobs
Walk the site and pace the wall out before you price anything. Measure the length, the finished height, and decide whether the wall is single skin or double skin, because that roughly doubles your brick count at 50 bricks per square metre. Dig a test hole at one end of the line to check soil conditions, because a trench that hits rock or soft clay changes the footing spec and the machinery you need. Note wall height above 1.8 metres for scaffold, water and power access, and whether the client wants face brick, stock brick, or block. These observations decide foundation depth, rebar, DPC line, and whether you need one face plastered or both.
Itemise the foundation, the bricks, the mortar, and the labour as separate lines instead of lumping it all under one square metre rate. List trench excavation and concrete strip per linear metre, bricks at 50 per square metre of double skin with a 5 to 10 percent wastage allowance, cement and sand and lime as their own supply line, and brickwork labour per square metre of wall. Add wall ties, DPC, and expansion joints, a cap-brick or finishing course per metre, and plaster on the yard side as its own line so an owner can choose to plaster both sides later. Specify the brick type and size in writing, because face brick at two to four times the stock price cannot be swapped in on the day.
Put a 30 day validity on every quote and state clearly that material prices beyond that date trigger a re-quote. Cement, stock brick, and ready-mix concrete shift month to month with supplier increases, and holding a three-month-old rate on a two-week build eats your margin. Ask for a staged payment schedule on anything over a few thousand: a deposit to cover bricks and cement before delivery, a progress payment at DPC level once the first lifts are up, and the balance on completion. On bigger boundary walls add a provisional sum for rock or soft spots in the trench, photographed and signed off before you pour any extra concrete.
Send the quote from the site before you drive off. Homeowners chasing quotes for a boundary wall usually invite three bricklayers in one weekend, and the professional itemised PDF that lands on WhatsApp first almost always wins the job even when the number is not the cheapest. Build the quote on your phone while you are still pacing the line, share it as a WhatsApp link before you pack the tape, and follow up with a short polite message after two or three days if you have not heard back. When the client asks to add a braai wall or a new gate pillar, treat it as a variation order inside QuoteGenio so the new scope is accepted in writing before a single extra brick gets laid.
FAQ
Common questions from bricklayers
Everything you need to know before getting started.
Yes. QuoteGenio supports unlimited line items. Add foundation, bricks, mortar, labour per sq m, scaffold, and plaster on separate lines. Each has its own description, quantity, and rate.
Yes. As you add line items and quantities, subtotals, VAT, and grand totals update instantly. No spreadsheet needed.
Yes. Once your quote is ready, share it as a link directly via WhatsApp. Your client gets a professional branded document on their phone.
Yes. Every quote has a unique public link. Your client can open it on their phone and accept it online. No signup required.
Yes. Convert any accepted quote into an invoice with one click. All the line items carry over, so there's no double entry.
Yes. The free plan gives you 5 quotes and 2 invoices per month with no credit card required. Upgrade to Premium for unlimited quotes, invoices, statements, and reports.
Per square metre is what the trade uses and what clients understand. A double skin wall takes about 100 bricks per sq m, so your quote reads as area and labour, while your internal costing still works off the brick count. This avoids awkward conversations about 'why so many bricks' when the client has never built a wall.
List the bricks as a line item with the specific product and size. If the client wants to upgrade to face brick, you issue a revised quote with the new material line and a note that labour increases by around 15 to 25 percent because face brick is slower and more demanding to lay.
Yes, always. Foundations vary with soil type, wall height, and whether the council requires rebar and inspection. Keep the trench, concrete, and rebar as separate lines so if the soil is soft and you need a deeper footing, you can issue a clean variation without rewriting the whole quote.
Quote the wastage percentage in the bricks line from the start (say 1,050 bricks for a 1,000 brick wall). Don't invoice extra after the fact. If the client sees 'bricks' and then a separate 'breakages' line on the invoice, it looks like poor planning and you lose trust on the next job.
Still have questions? We would rather answer them now than after you have signed up.
Pricing benchmark
What do bricklayers charge in 2026?
Hourly rates by region, common job prices, a worked sample quote, and the FAQs customers actually ask. The complete pricing reference for bricklayers.
Typical hourly
$50-$120/hr
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Reviews
Trusted by tradespeople
Real feedback from people who quote for a living.
"Simple pricing, no hidden fees. The free plan was enough to try it out and I upgraded within the first week. Well worth it."
André Pretorius
Tiler · Stellenbosch
"Fast, modern, and my customers love the clean look of the quotes. Perfect for small trade businesses."
Lukas Becker
Electrician · Berlin
"My clients respond faster to professional PDF quotes. Being able to send via WhatsApp means they do not need to check email. I am closing more jobs."
Sarah Wilson
Designer · London
Guides
Guides for Bricklayers
Practical advice to help you quote better, get paid faster, and grow your business.
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