Lowcountry · Midlands · Upstate · Grand Strand
Construction estimating services in South Carolina
Takeoffs and priced estimates for South Carolina general contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, with coastal wind and impact-rated scope taken off as the drawings call for it.
- Charleston, Greenville, Columbia, Myrtle Beach
- Coastal and impact scope
- 24 to 48 hours
In short
Estimating in South Carolina at a glance
MassBid Estimation prepares quantity takeoffs and cost estimates for construction projects across South Carolina. Every trade on the drawings is measured, priced to the project's ZIP code and checked twice, and the package is typically delivered in 24 to 48 hours. Recent South Carolina work includes a fire station, a convenience store with impact-rated storefront near the coast, a car wash and a school addition.
- Markets
- Charleston and the Lowcountry, Columbia and the Midlands, Greenville–Spartanburg, Myrtle Beach, Rock Hill and Fort Mill
- Recent South Carolina work
- Fire station, convenience store, car wash, school addition
- South Carolina cost drivers
- Coastal wind and impact glazing, Charleston-area seismic design, flood elevation
- Strongest trade here
- Storefront, windows and door hardware, with several finished jobs to show
- Turnaround
- 24 to 48 hours on most projects
- Checked by
- A separate QA team, twice on every job
- Team
- 20+ in-house estimators, typically 7 to 10 years in the trade
- Quote
- Free, usually back in about 20 minutes
Grand Strand · Bid day
Two convenience stores, same footprint. On the coast the glass costs three times as much.
South Carolina is a small state with two very different sets of rules. Inland, around Greenville and Columbia, buildings are designed much like anywhere in the Southeast. Along the coast, wind-borne debris requirements put impact-rated glass in the openings, and Charleston adds earthquake design on top.
We have priced both sides of that line. Four things decide whether a South Carolina estimate holds.
Four things a South Carolina estimate has to get right
01 · The glass
Impact glazing priced as standard
Near the coast, storefront and doors are specified with large-missile impact glass and heavier frames. On one coastal convenience store we estimated, glazing ran $12.23 per square foot of building; on an inland fire station it was $3.59.
What changes
Each opening carries the glazing type from the schedule, with impact units on their own lines.
02 · The earthquake
Seismic design around Charleston
The Charleston area is one of the most seismically active on the East Coast. Structures there carry more reinforcing, anchorage and bracing than the same building in the Upstate.
What changes
Reinforcing, anchors and bracing are taken off where they are detailed, not assumed from a typical building.
03 · The water
Flood elevation in the Lowcountry
Raised floors, fill, piles and breakaway walls are routine on low-lying sites and add cost before the building starts.
What changes
Foundations and fill are measured from the structural and civil drawings as designed.
04 · The map
Charleston rates in the Upstate
Charleston labor runs above Greenville, Spartanburg and Columbia, and the suburbs near Charlotte price with that metro.
What changes
Labor and material are priced to the project's ZIP code.
South Carolina markets
Four South Carolina markets, priced separately
Code requirements and labor both change between the coast and the Upstate.
Charleston and the Lowcountry
Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Summerville, Hilton Head and Beaufort: port, hospitality, healthcare and residential work under coastal wind, flood and seismic design.
Greenville, Spartanburg and the Upstate
Manufacturing, automotive suppliers, distribution and downtown mixed-use along the I-85 corridor.
Columbia and the Midlands
State government, university, military and healthcare work around the capital.
The Grand Strand and the Charlotte suburbs
Myrtle Beach and Conway on the coast; Rock Hill and Fort Mill growing with the Charlotte metro.
Real South Carolina work
Sample takeoffs from South Carolina projects
Pages from finished South Carolina jobs. Client names, addresses and title blocks are removed; the quantities are as delivered. Click any page to enlarge.
Convenience store
Impact storefront takeoff for a coastal South Carolina store
Protects you fromImpact glass priced as standard.
Fire station
Glazing takeoff for a South Carolina fire station
Protects you fromWindows and hardware sets missed.
Car wash
Window and storefront takeoff for a South Carolina car wash
Protects you fromTunnel windows counted as one size.
School addition
Window takeoff for a South Carolina school addition
Protects you fromA small job nobody checked.
Every estimate is built to the client's own specification, so yours may be laid out differently. To see a past project in your own trade, ask for an example. Examples are finished work for other projects, not an estimate of yours; for pricing on your own job, send your South Carolina drawings for a free quote.
Real South Carolina figures
What glazing cost on recent South Carolina projects
Glazing trade costs from estimates we delivered on South Carolina projects. Storefront, windows and door hardware are the trade we have priced most often in the state.
The spread is the lesson. The coastal store with impact glass ran more than three times the inland fire station per square foot of building, and the car wash, which is mostly glass, ran more than eight times.
Figures are glazing trade cost before markups, from the delivered estimates. Per-square-foot figures are per square foot of building, not of glass. They are specific to those projects and are not a price guide.
Real jobs, not a price list. Each figure comes from one project, priced for its own ZIP code and that client's wages, overhead and profit. Prices change by region and over time. Yours will be priced for your location.
| South Carolina project | Glazing cost | Per sq ft |
|---|---|---|
| Car wash, Upstate, 3,700 sq ft | $116,033 | $31.23 |
| Convenience store near the coast, 5,200 sq ft, impact glass | $64,039 | $12.23 |
| Fire station, 11,000 sq ft | $39,284 | $3.59 |
| School addition, windows only | $7,702 |
Full sample
Read a full sample, page by page
We do not have a sample for exactly this scope online yet. This is the closest one. Storefront and glazing, from a finished job: a equipment rental building, 10,500 sq ft in North Carolina. Open it full screen, scroll through all 4 pages and zoom in on any line.
This is one real job, shown as an example. It was built to that client's own specification: their wage rates, labor style, type of pricing, and overhead and profit. Prices also change by region and over time, so yours will be priced for your location.
Want a current sample in your own trade or specialty, or have a question? Use the contact form, email [email protected] or call (832) 356-4237.
Trades and cities
Services with South Carolina work to show
Storefront
Standard and impact-rated storefront, frame by frame.
Storefront estimatingWindows
Aluminum, clad wood and fixed units by type and size.
Window estimatingDoor hardware
Hardware sets counted against the door schedule.
Door hardware estimatingAll glazing
Storefront, curtain wall, windows and glass in one package.
Glazing estimating
South Carolina cities we price
- Charleston
- Columbia
- Greenville
- Spartanburg
- Myrtle Beach
- North Charleston
- Mount Pleasant
- Rock Hill
- Fort Mill
- Summerville
- Hilton Head Island
- Florence
- Conway
- Anderson
- Greer
- Aiken
Pricing data
How a South Carolina project is priced
Quantities are priced from our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. The estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of South Carolina.
Material prices change from region to region and from month to month, so a price book or a national average is out of date before the bid goes in.
Priced by ZIP code
Current local material prices for the place the job is built, not a national average.
Updated by vendors
Local vendors update their prices in the database as they change.
Labor as you bid it
Union, open shop, or Davis-Bacon and prevailing wage rates with fringes.
How it works
From South Carolina drawings to a finished estimate
Send the drawings
Plans, specifications and addenda, with the project address or ZIP code, the bid date and any bid form or template you have to fill in.
Free quote
We review the set and reply with a quote and a delivery date, usually within about 20 minutes.
Takeoff, pricing and two QA reviews
Quantities are measured on the drawings and priced to the project's ZIP code. A separate QA team checks the quantities against the plans, then the priced estimate.
Delivery and revisions
The package typically arrives within 24 to 48 hours. Addenda and revisions are free, with no limit and no time limit, and are handled on priority.
The work is done in-house by more than 20 estimators, typically with 7 to 10 years of industry experience.
What it costs
Estimating prices for South Carolina projects
- Single project
- From $199. Simple scopes typically run $100 to $250.
- Larger buildings
- Typically $200 to $500. Large or multi-building projects are quoted individually.
- Monthly plan
- From $1,499 for 10 to 15 projects, for contractors who bid every week.
Every job is quoted individually from the drawings, and the quote is free. See all pricing
After delivery
An editable Excel workbook and free revisions
- Formulas built in
An Excel workbook you can change yourself
The estimate arrives as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change a quantity, a rate or a markup and every total follows. Move overhead and profit from 25% to 30% and the whole bid recalculates on the spot.
- No waiting
Adjust your bid at the last minute
If something changes just before the deadline, you do not have to send the estimate back and wait. Open the workbook, change the number and submit. The control stays with you.
- Priority turnaround
Free revisions, with no limit
Addenda, scope changes and pricing updates are all free, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and typically come back within an hour to a few hours.
Questions
South Carolina construction estimating FAQ
Yes. We estimate projects in Charleston, Columbia, Greenville, Spartanburg, Myrtle Beach, Rock Hill and the rest of the state, each priced to the project's ZIP code.
On South Carolina projects we estimated, glazing ran $3.59 per square foot of building on an inland fire station, $12.23 on a coastal convenience store with impact glass, and $31.23 on a car wash that is mostly glass. All are trade cost before markups.
Yes. Each opening is taken off with the glazing type in the schedule, and impact-rated units are kept on their own lines. On one coastal store, seven impact-rated openings came to $64,039.
Where the structural drawings detail additional reinforcing, anchorage or bracing, it is taken off as drawn. We price what the engineer specified; we do not design it.
Yes. Every trade is covered, from site work and concrete to MEP and finishes. Glazing is simply the trade with the most finished South Carolina jobs we can show.
Tax is its own line at the rate for the project's county. The state rate is 6%, and most counties add local tax.
Both. General contractors get every trade on the drawings; subcontractors get their own trade isolated and returned in the GC's format. Suppliers get quantities only.
Yes. This page shows a full sample from a finished job (storefront and glazing, for a equipment rental building, 10,500 sq ft in North Carolina), which you can open full screen and read page by page. It is the closest sample we have online for this scope. It was built to that client's own specification, so the wage rates, pricing and overhead and profit are theirs. Ask us for a current sample in your own trade.
From our own pricing database, built with local vendors across the United States. An estimator enters the project's ZIP code and gets current material prices for that part of South Carolina, and vendors update their prices as they change. Labor is priced as union or open shop, or at Davis-Bacon rates with fringes on government work.
Yes. The estimate is delivered as an editable Excel workbook with the formulas built in. Change any quantity, rate or markup and the whole estimate recalculates. If overhead and profit was set at 25% and you want 30%, change that one cell and every total updates, so you can adjust your number minutes before the bid is due without sending it back to us.
As many as you need. Every revision is free, including addenda, scope changes and pricing updates, however many times you come back, and there is no time limit. Revisions are handled on priority and are typically returned within an hour to a few hours, depending on the size of the change.
Most packages are delivered in 24 to 48 hours. The quote is free and usually comes back in about 20 minutes.
A single project starts at $199, and simple scopes typically run $100 to $250. Larger buildings typically run $200 to $500. Every estimate is built to the client's own specification.
Other service areas and services
Bidding a South Carolina project? Send the drawings.
Free quote in about 20 minutes. Takeoffs and estimates typically in 24 to 48 hours, priced to the project's South Carolina ZIP code and built to your format, with free revisions with no limit.