I am building a computer for someone at work, not a mate, just a bloke. What is the going rate for a build?
parts + £20 + 5-10% (this is variable to try make it a good deal) is what i do for a build and full set up.
Depends if you do any cable management and set up the OS, that takes hours to do properly, I've only ever built PCs for friends and family and I just call in favours as and when.
Don't forget any "warranty" service etc. especially if you're installing anything volatile like windows
Honestly, unless it's a close friend or family, you shouldn't be building it at all. But seeing as you've already committed... Either do it for free or for a bottle of your favourite poison. When I was in college/uni I would often get asked to help someone fix/build their computer and also receive a ton of phone calls about some mystery 'virus' that had take over their computer. It got to the point that unless it was a close friend or immediate family, I would just say no. At that point I would start getting offers of £30-£50, but even then it's still not worth it. Between picking up their computer, taking it home, working on it and then bringing it back, the time commitment was insane - and more often than not, it wouldn't end there. You would essentially become their first point of call and if anything else goes wrong, typically beginning with the dreaded "I didn't have that problem before you fixed it...". Basically, being good with computers it like being a car mechanic - don't tell anyone unless you're happy being known as that guy.
I'd be insanely worried about bending pins on someone else's motherboard so I'd flatly refuse to do it. However, since you've agreed to do it, I reckon £10 per hour should suffice.
£10-20 an hour, depending on how much effort you're going to put into getting everything tidied up/set up for him. I've only ever done builds for friends and family members who have given me a budget to work with, just 'some bloke', well...
I dont really mind working on computers, virus' or whatever. I get about 1 - 2 computers a week normally to fix, and I get all that business through word of mouth and a few local adds. I normally just charge £25 for anything, software related, hardware related (but then +parts as well). customer builds, as said above, i take £20 + 5-10%. With regards to worry about bending pins etc. Every custom build I do, I buy from scan and get scan sure - therefore removing that stress. the 5-10% is there because often the more expensive the machine, the more work is involved. I think my prices are completely fair. Not enough to live off certainly - but I work as an IT technician, specifically software repair etc. so I relish any experience to learn. And normally - removing a virus isnt terribly difficult. With even the most deeprooted virus, it would only take about 15 minutes of actual input, the whole rest of the time is taken by scans, and, i dont sit and watch those, just move onto the next job or whatever I want to do with my time. With regards to custom builds, I quite enjoy building custom computers. I have had vinyls made for branding and I enjoy delivering premium products to people.
Its exactly the opposite though. If people need an rma etc, they simply return the computer to me. I sort out the rma, replace the part = £25. So really, its only a problem, if you dont want to do the work. But i guess i not building for friends and family.
I recently did a friend's computer for £20 ubder the terms that he returns anything if it goes wrong. He is capable of a lot on his own, so won't ask me about the smallest thing. I also put on the OS and MSE.
