Meeting Cost Calculator

Calculate the real cost of meetings based on attendees and hourly rate

What is it and how does it work?

Every meeting has a cost — it just rarely appears on anyone's expense report. A meeting cost calculator makes this visible: enter the number of attendees, their average hourly salary, and the meeting duration, and the tool calculates the real dollar cost of everyone's time spent in the room. A 10-person meeting with an average salary of $80,000/year costs approximately $385 per hour. Over a week of daily standups, that adds up fast.

The goal isn't to eliminate meetings — it's to make the cost explicit so meeting organisers default to smaller invite lists, shorter durations, and a clear agenda. Studies on workplace productivity consistently find that "too many meetings" is one of the top complaints among knowledge workers, with the average employee attending 62 meetings per month and considering half of them a waste of time. Putting a dollar figure on each meeting is one of the most effective ways to change meeting culture.

Common use cases

• Weekly all-hands audit: calculate the total annual cost of a 30-person weekly all-hands meeting at average salaries to see if the value justifies the spend — and whether async updates could replace it.
• Recruiting interview loops: a 5-person interview panel for 4 hours (plus preparation) for a $100k/year role costs more than you think — factor it into recruiting ROI calculations.
• Sprint planning and retrospectives: Scrum ceremonies have a reputation for running long — track costs to motivate timeboxing and ensure ceremonies end on time.

Frequently asked questions

What salary figure should I use if attendees have different salaries?

Use the weighted average: if you have 2 senior engineers at $150k, 3 junior engineers at $90k, and 1 manager at $130k, the weighted average is ($150k×2 + $90k×3 + $130k×1) / 6 ≈ $118k. For a quick estimate, using company-wide average salary is good enough.

Should I include employer costs (benefits, overhead) in the calculation?

For a fully loaded cost, multiply the base salary by 1.2–1.5 to account for employer taxes, benefits, and overhead. This gives a more accurate picture of the true cost to the organisation. A $100k salary typically costs the employer $130k–$150k all-in.

How do I calculate the hourly rate from an annual salary?

Divide annual salary by 2080 (52 weeks × 40 hours). A $100,000/year salary is approximately $48/hour. For part-time or contract roles, adjust accordingly.

What is a reasonable benchmark for meeting cost vs. value?

There's no universal threshold, but a useful heuristic is: if a meeting costs more than the decisions it produces, consider replacing it with async communication (a written proposal, a recorded video, or a documented decision). Regular meetings that don't result in action items are the highest-risk category.

Utility

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