How to price your Minecraft work

Pricing is the part most people in the Minecraft community learn the hard way. Charge too little and you resent the work. Charge too much with no track record and nobody replies. Here is a way to get it about right.

Hourly or fixed

Hourly suits work where the scope will move: ongoing development, maintenance, and "help us with whatever comes up". Fixed pricing suits a clear task with a clear end. Most commissions are better as fixed, because the person asking knows the cost up front, and you are rewarded for being efficient.

Estimate before you quote

1. Break the task into parts small enough to estimate: commands, storage, menus, configuration, testing.
2. Estimate hours for each part, then add time for the things that always take longer: testing on a real server, fixing edge cases, and talking to the client.
3. Multiply by your hourly rate.
4. Add a margin for the unknown, 15 to 30 percent for a task you have not done before.
5. State what is included, and what would be extra.

Use the guide as a reference, not a rule

The rate guide shows common hourly rates and fixed prices. Use it to check you are in a sensible range. Your own price should reflect your experience, how fast you work and how much demand you have.

Say what is included

• The number of revisions you will do.
• Whether you support new Minecraft versions, and for how long.
• Whether the buyer gets the source code or only the compiled plugin.
• Whether setup on their server is part of the price.

Most price arguments are really scope arguments that were never written down.

Raise your price when

• You are booked solid, or turning work away.
• People accept your quotes without asking questions.
• You have a run of good reviews. They are on your profile for everyone to read.
• The work needs a skill that few people have.

Make your prices easy to find

List what you offer as services, each with a starting price and delivery time, so people can see what to expect before they message you. When someone asks for a quote, answer with a price and a time, and note what you need from them. Quick, clear replies win work.

Get paid

Minebit does not handle payment, so agree it before you start. For bigger work, split it: part up front, part at a clear midpoint, the rest on delivery. Do not hand over the final build until you are paid for it, and do not pay or work for people who refuse to agree anything in writing.