Set a price per visit, then see whether a seasonal contract pays you more or less once you count the storms.
Angi's 2026 data, from 5,994 projects its pros reported, gives a national average of $126 a visit, with most homeowners paying $51 to $203. By pricing model, Angi lists $40 to $100 per visit for a driveway and front walk, $25 to $75 an hour, $75 to $200 per event for a whole property after a big storm, $10 to $30 per inch above the base depth, and $300 to $700 for a residential seasonal contract.
Driveway size moves the price most. Angi's table runs from $40 to $75 a visit and $300 to $400 a season for a single-car driveway, to $75 to $125 a visit and $400 to $600 a season for two cars, to $125 to $250 a visit and $600 to $1,000 a season for four. Commercial lots run $200 to $400 a visit and $1,000 to $2,000 a season.
HomeGuide, updated December 2024, is lower: $30 to $70 a visit for plowing an average driveway and $200 to $600 for a seasonal contract, with $40 to $80 extra per additional 100 feet of driveway. In Canada, HomeStars, updated August 2026, lists $30 to $90 a visit for standard plowing or shovelling, $115 to $230 for steep or difficult driveways and $350 to $1,000 or more for a seasonal driveway contract.
Per push and per visit mean the same thing for a driveway: one clearing, one charge. It pays you for every storm, and the customer carries the risk of a heavy winter. Customers in towns with a few storms a year prefer it.
A seasonal contract pays a fixed sum whatever the winter does. You get money in the bank before the first snow and a route you can plan, and you carry the risk. Divide the contract by your per-visit price: that is the number of storms the contract covers. A $500 contract against a $110 visit covers about four and a half storms, so a 12-storm winter pays you $392 for 12 visits after salt and fuel.
There are two ways to limit that risk. HomeGuide notes that many contracts cap the number of visits and charge extra past the cap, while Angi describes seasonal contracts as unlimited visits. If you sell unlimited, price it from your town's storm count, not from what a neighbour charges. The contract line that matches per-visit billing shows the figure.
Price per visit is your base price, plus the extra inches over your trigger depth times your charge per inch, plus your salt charge times the share of visits that get salt. Profit per visit takes off the salt you use on those visits and your fuel and wear.
Hourly rate divides the profit per visit by the minutes each driveway takes, drive included. On a contract, profit is the contract price minus salt and fuel for every storm, divided by the hours across the season. Route figures multiply by the number of driveways. Hours to clear your route shows how long the last customer waits after the snow stops, which is the first thing to fail when you sign too many.
The storm count is yours to set, and it drives every contract figure. Count the snowfalls that hit your trigger depth last winter and the winter before, and use the larger number if you sell unlimited visits.
The trigger depth is the snowfall at which you turn out without being called, and it belongs in writing in every contract. Set it too low and you clear a dusting for free on a contract; set it too high and customers wait while their neighbours are cleared.
HomeGuide lists per-inch pricing at $60 to $100 for the first 4 to 6 inches, then $3 to $10 for each extra inch, while Angi's 2026 table puts the extra at $10 to $30 an inch above the base. A deep storm can take twice as long as a light one, so a per-inch line keeps a big storm from turning into unpaid hours. Leave it at zero if you would rather keep a flat price.
Charge for it. Angi's 2026 figures put rock salt at $10 to $25 an application, calcium chloride at $20 to $40 and pet-safe de-icer at $20 to $40. HomeGuide prices salt spreading at $20 to $65 per application for 1,000 square feet, and bags of snow salt at $10 to $30.
For parking lots HomeGuide puts salting at $150 to $350 an acre, using 500 to 1,000 pounds of salt per acre, with bulk salt at $100 to $200 a ton. A salt spreader costs $150 to $300 on the same guide, and it pays for itself fastest on commercial work.
Slips and falls are the claim to plan for. When someone falls on ice on a property you were paid to clear, the property owner and the contractor can both be named in the claim. Write down in the contract what you do and what you do not do: the trigger depth, how soon after the snow stops you arrive, whether salt is included, and that you do not monitor the property between visits. This is general information, not legal advice; have a local lawyer or your insurer read your contract.
HomeGuide prices general liability for a snow plow business at $400 to $1,000 a year, a commercial auto policy at about $900 a year and a business owner's policy at about $400. Your personal car policy may exclude plowing for pay, so ask your insurer before you mount a blade.
Shovelling for neighbours is the version a teenager can run with a shovel and a phone. Our jobs for 14, 15 and 16 year olds guides cover what younger workers can do and how to price it.
Angi's 2026 data puts a single-car driveway at $40 to $75 a visit, a two-car driveway at $75 to $125 and a four-car driveway at $125 to $250. Seasonal contracts run $300 to $400, $400 to $600 and $600 to $1,000 for the same sizes. Add a charge per inch for deep storms and a charge for salt.
HomeGuide puts hand shovelling at $25 to $75 an hour per worker, or $30 to $70 a visit for an average driveway. Shovelling is slower than a blower, so price by the visit once you know how long your usual driveway takes, and charge more for walks, steps and steep or long driveways.
Angi's 2026 range for a residential seasonal contract is $300 to $700, and Angi's separate hiring guide puts annual contracts at $350 to $450. Before you set yours, divide the contract by your per-visit price to see how many storms it covers, and compare that with the storms your town gets.
HomeGuide lists commercial plowing at $50 to $150 an hour and snow hauling at $80 to $200 an hour, with salting at $150 to $350 an acre. Angi puts commercial lots at $200 to $400 a visit and $1,000 to $2,000 a season. Commercial work usually needs a truck plow, salt spreader and higher insurance limits.
Most snow contractors do not price driveways by the square foot, HomeGuide says; they charge by the visit, the hour or the season. Salting is the exception: HomeGuide lists $20 to $65 per application for 1,000 square feet. Measure square footage anyway, because it tells you how long a driveway takes.