How to use this calculator
- Enter or choose participants.
- Enter or choose training days.
- Enter or choose learning hours per day.
- Enter or choose trainer fee per day.
- Enter or choose venue and equipment per day.
- The total cost updates as you type. Use Copy result or Share to keep it.
Method
Direct = (Trainer + Venue) × Days + (Materials + Catering × Days) × Participants + Development; Time = Participants × Days × Hours × Pay; Per learning hour = Total ÷ (Participants × Days × Hours)
- Learner hours
- participants × days × learning hours per day
Worked example
- Trainer and venue = (1,500 + 500) × 2 = 4,000; materials 20 × 150 = 3,000; catering 20 × 2 × 30 = 1,200; development 2,000. Direct = 10,200.
- Time = 20 × 2 × 7 = 280 learner hours × 40 = 11,200.
- Total 21,400 ÷ 20 = 1,070 each; ÷ 280 hours = 76.43 per learning hour.
The two-day workshop costs 21,400 including participants’ time: 1,070 per person or 76.43 per learning hour.
What the result means
Cost per learning hour lets you compare a workshop with e-learning or a conference fairly. Development cost falls per person when the course is run again, so try a larger number of participants to see the effect.
Assumptions and limits
- Every participant attends every day.
- Benefits (productivity, retention) are not estimated here; compare the cost with your own estimate of the return.
Questions
Should participants’ time be included?
For internal decisions, yes: it is often the biggest cost. Leave the pay rate blank to report direct spend only.
What goes in development cost?
Designing the content, building materials or e-learning, and pilot runs, spread over the cohorts you count here.