What we're shipping, and what we're learning
Product updates, plus practical guides on running an Australian trades business — written by people who've had to do it.
Guide
Charge-out rate calculator for tradies
Work out the hourly rate your business needs from your own pay, overheads and billable hours, with a calculator and a worked example.
Do sole traders pay super, workers comp, BAS and GST?
Plain answers for sole trader tradies on super for yourself and your workers, workers compensation by state, BAS, PAYG instalments and GST.
Tradie tax deductions for 2026–27: tools, ute, phone and more
What employee tradies and trade businesses can claim: tools, protective gear, the ute, cents per kilometre, the $20,000 instant asset write-off and the records you need.
TPAR for tradies: who lodges and what to report
Who in building and construction must lodge a taxable payments annual report, which contractor payments to include, the 28 August deadline and how to keep the records.
Oneflare has closed: where to find a tradie now
Oneflare was retired on 30 June 2026 and now redirects to Airtasker. Your other options for finding a tradie, and how to check them.
How much deposit can a builder ask for? Limits by state
The legal deposit cap, the written contract threshold and the insurance threshold for home building work in every state and territory, in one table.
Win more work by answering enquiries faster
Get every enquiry into one inbox, acknowledge fast and quote properly, ask for what you need first time, and follow up the quotes.
Going paperless: the technology a trade business needs
A work phone, one place for every job, quotes and invoices from the job, connected accounting and records you can find in five years.
How to check a tradie's licence in Australia
Which work needs a licence, where each state lets you look one up for free, what the result should show, and what a licence doesn't tell you.
How to compare quotes from tradies
Give everyone the same brief, line the quotes up on scope, exclusions, materials and the total with GST, then check the business behind the price.
When a tradie has to register for GST
The $75,000 threshold, the two rolling tests the ATO uses, the 21-day deadline, and what registering late really costs.
Scheduling a small trade business without the chaos
Book jobs not times, estimate visits honestly, group work by area, match the job to the person, and keep one schedule everyone can see.
What to put on a quote in Australia
Who you are, what you'll do and what you won't, the price shown the way consumer law expects, how long it stands, and how the customer says yes.
What job management software should do for a trades business
Eight questions to ask before you pay for software, what BizzMate does on each, and the four things it doesn't do.
What the ATO expects on a tax invoice
The seven things a compliant Australian tax invoice has to carry, what changes once it is over $1,000, and the mistakes that get an invoice sent back.
Pricing a job so you actually make money
Labour, materials, travel, overhead and margin — and the four costs most trades leave out of a quote entirely.
One email a month. No fluff.
What shipped, what's coming, and one practical thing you can use in your business this week.