How much does a carpenter charge in Adelaide?

Published 28 October 2026

Carpenter hourly rates in Adelaide

An Adelaide carpentry and handyman rate card

The only Adelaide rate card we found, checked 28 October 2026: a handyman business that lists carpentry (doors, windows, skirting, shelving and deck repairs) first among its services. Its homepage is undated.

By our arithmetic, with 10% GST added, that’s $165 for the first hour ($150 × 1.1) and $1,100 for a 7-hour day ($1,000 × 1.1).

National carpenter rates and call-out charges

Carpenter hourly, day and call-out rates (national)

Two national guides, checked 28 October 2026. The Quote Yard’s rate guide (published 18 March 2026) says its rates “include standard overheads but not materials” and doesn’t state GST. What’s The Damage’s October 2026 figures include GST. Neither gives a separate Adelaide figure.

Why most carpentry is priced per job

An hourly rate says little about the final bill: the time a job takes depends on the house, the access, and what turns up once old timber comes off. For a defined job, a written price for the whole job lets you compare quotes on what you’ll actually pay. Hourly charging suits work whose extent isn’t known until it’s opened up. A carpentry quote should spell out:

• the scope: exactly what’s built, replaced or repaired
• the materials, and who supplies them
• whether old timber and offcuts are taken away
• whether the job needs PlanSA approval
• whether GST is included
• the contractor’s name and BLD licence number

Carpentry prices for common jobs in Adelaide

Prices for the jobs people price on their own, each from its published source, checked 28 October 2026. The Quote Yard is a quote-comparison marketplace whose South Australian guides don’t state GST.

• Decks: $200 – $350 per m² for a new deck installed (Bella Carpentry, Unley)
• Pergolas: $2,550 – $8,000 for an open 3 m × 4 m pergola installed (SA Quality Home Improvements)
• Door installation: $150 – $320 to supply and install a hollow-core internal door (The Quote Yard, SA guide)
• Skirting boards: $15 – $30 per metre fitted for pre-primed pine (The Quote Yard, SA guide)
• Built-in wardrobes: $1,800 – $3,800 for a standard fitted reach-in robe (The Quote Yard, SA guide)
• Sash windows: $180 – $450 per window to replace a single sash cord (The Quote Yard, SA guide)
• Floorboards: $80 – $220 for each board replaced (The Quote Yard, SA guide)
• Timber fences: $150 – $250+ per metre installed (Calabria Fencing Adelaide)

What changes a carpenter’s price

Materials

Hourly rates usually leave materials out: The Quote Yard’s rates exclude them, and The Complete Handyman charges them at cost. Doors, boards, robe systems and trims are priced on top.

The age of the house

Older homes have frames that have moved and walls that aren’t square, which adds fitting time. In a house built before the mid-1980s, asbestos.sa.gov.au says to check for asbestos before repairs or renovation: see asbestos before renovating in SA.

Access and waste

Carrying materials through a side gate or up stairs takes time, and old timber and offcuts have to go somewhere. Check that removal is in the price.

Written quotes and contracts from $20,000

Many carpentry jobs cost less than $20,000, the line for “minor domestic building work” in SA. That figure only decides the paperwork. From $20,000, the contract must be in writing with the contractor’s licence number and the prescribed notice, the deposit can be no more than 5%, and there’s a cooling-off period of five clear business days. Below it, put the price and scope in writing anyway. See how to check a builder’s licence in SA.

Questions about carpenter rates