How much does a meeting cost?
The maths, a worked example, and ways to cut it.
The short answer
A meeting costs the number of people, times their loaded hourly cost, times its length. Six people at $40 an hour for 45 minutes is $180 each time, or about $18,700 a year if it repeats twice a week. Those figures are an example, not a measurement.
Work it out
Count the people
Include everyone who attends, not only the organiser.
Use loaded cost
Salary plus overhead is higher than pay alone.
Multiply by length and frequency
Then compare with the value of the decisions made.
Ways to cut it
Replace status meetings with a written update in chat. Shorten agendas. Invite fewer people and share notes afterwards. Record decisions in a doc so nobody has to re-ask.
Try it
Our meeting cost calculator does the sum in your browser and sends nothing.
Questions
Is the example realistic?
It is an illustration. Use your own numbers.
Does a cheaper tool fix this?
No. Meeting cost is about time, not software.