How do you calculate retainage?

Multiply the billed amount by the retainage rate. On a $10,000 draw at 10% retainage, $1,000 is held back and you receive $9,000 now. The held amount is released when the job is complete.

What is a typical retainage percentage?

Retainage is commonly 5–10% of each progress payment. The exact rate is set by the contract, and several states cap retainage on public and/or private work.

free tool

Construction retainage calculator

See exactly how much a customer holds back as retainage on a draw — and what you actually take home now — so you can plan cash flow around the money that's parked until completion. No signup.

Your draw

Draw / contract amount$Retainage%usually 5–10%Number of equal drawsoptional — for whole-job total

Held back vs. paid now

You receive now

Billed

Held this draw

Retainage

10.0%

That $0is your money — it's just held until the job (and punch list) is complete. On long jobs the held-back total ties up real cash, so plan your draws around it.

Sevyn tracks retainage held vs. released across your jobs, so you always know how much of your cash is parked in retainage and when it's due.

Start free →

What is retainage?

Retainage (or retention) is a percentage — usually 5–10%— that a customer withholds from each progress payment until the job is complete, as a guarantee you'll finish and handle the punch list. It's your money; it's just held back temporarily.

Why it matters for cash flow

Across a long job, the held-back total adds up and can squeeze your cash even when the job is profitable on paper. Knowing what's held — and when it releases — is part of not running busy but broke. Learn more in the retainage glossary entry, or see how the whole job nets out with the job profit calculator.

Retainage rules and caps vary by state and contract; this calculator is a general planning tool, not legal or accounting advice.