I typically calculate the cost of engineering hours as about 2x their salary costs. This captures the additional employer-paid taxes, benefits, etc, as well as

I typically calculate the cost of engineering hours as about 2x their salary costs. This captures the additional employer-paid taxes, benefits, etc, as well as ensuring that I don't under-value the cost, which is typically the bigger threat when providing estimates. I know good SREs (fancy sysadmin plus some devops, but with more class) on the scale from around $120k/yr up to about $300k/yr. This is in the USA. Everyone I know started in SF but since the COVID diaspora, they are all around the US now. $250/hr estimate -> $125/hr salary -> roughly $250k/yr My estimate might have been a big high, but really what I'm trying to drive home is that people are almost always more expensive than hardware.