Price the whole booking, not just the food.
CostReady turns a client's menu, their portion count and your travel into a price per portion or per plan that pays for the hours, and keeps it right when the shop does.
The problem
A private chef sells hours as much as food, and almost none of those hours look like cooking. There is the shop for one specific client, the drive to their house, the unfamiliar kitchen, and the washing up you do before you leave. Quote a weekly plan as one round number and the portions that plan contains are doing very different work from week to week, which is how a client who books fortnightly ends up paying less per portion than one who books weekly.
How you sell, per portion or per plan
You sell per portion and per plan, so CostReady does both. Cost the shop for a cook session, say how many portions it produces, and put the travel and the session itself in the fixed costs. You get a price per portion with the booking total beside it, and cutting a plan from twenty portions to twelve shows the true cost rise instead of hiding it.
Costing a booking, not a plate
Cost the shop
The actual list for that client, including the jar you bought for one dish and will not use again.
Add the hours nobody sees
Shopping, the drive each way, the unfamiliar kitchen, the cleardown. The cooking is rarely half of it.
Divide by the portions produced
Then watch what happens when the client trims the plan and your drive stays exactly the same.
The drive is the same whatever they order
Hours that do not look like cooking
- The shop: a specific list for one client, not a supermarket run you were making anyway.
- The drive: identical for twelve portions or twenty eight, both ways.
- Someone else's kitchen: finding the pans before you can start.
- The cleardown: unbilled almost everywhere, and never optional.
| One menu, one drive | Booking | Per portion |
|---|---|---|
| 12 portions | £147.60 | £12.30 |
| 20 portions | £189.00 | £9.45 |
| 28 portions | £230.40 | £8.23 |
Calculators for private chefs
Free, no signup. Pick what you sell for tailored guidance and a FAQ for that product.
Guides for private chefs
Cornerstone private chef guide. From one cook session to a defensible price per portion and per plan.
Private Chef Cost Per Portion and Plan Size (UK)Why the same menu costs more per portion on a smaller plan, and where to set a minimum.
Private Chef Rates and Margins (UK)What to charge for your hours, and how to tell whether the rate is actually paying you.
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Start freeFrequently asked questions
How do I price meal prep?
Cost the shop for one cook session, add containers per portion, then add the travel and the kitchen hours you spend whatever the portion count. Divide by the portions produced and apply your margin.
Why does a smaller plan cost more per portion?
Because the shop trip, the drive and most of the session are the same whatever the count. The same menu is £9.45 a portion at twenty and £12.30 at twelve, on an identical drive.
Should I charge for shopping and travel?
Always. They are billable hours spent on that specific client, and they are the two most commonly absorbed parts of the job. An hour each way is two unpaid hours if it is not in the price.
Day rate or per portion?
Cost per portion even if you quote a day rate, or you cannot tell which bookings are worth taking. A day rate that looks generous on a twenty portion cook can be poor on a twelve.
What is a sensible minimum plan?
Whatever covers your travel and session at a rate you would accept, commonly ten to twelve portions for a local client and more for a distant one. Set a minimum size rather than a different rate; it is easier to explain.