PC/PS allowance benchmark
Prime cost and provisional sum allowances are where cheap quotes hide their cheapness. Type the figures from your quote and see which ones are set up to become variations.
Type the allowance figures from your quote. Leave blank anything the quote doesn’t show — a missing allowance is a finding in itself.
Supply-only allowance per m². Builders’ range covers standard porcelain; stone and large-format run higher.
Basin + shower + bath set, mid-range. $600 “allowances” force a top-up at selection time.
Standard new-build kitchen, laminate to stone. Under $15k usually means flat-pack assumptions nobody mentioned.
Per power/light point at fit-off. Watch quotes that also cap the number of points well below your plan.
Flat suburban block, standard cut-fill. Sloping or rocky sites blow through low PS figures fast.
How to read your result
A red flag doesn't mean the trade is dishonest — it means the allowance won't survive contact with a tile shop, and the difference lands on you as a variation or a forced cheap selection. Take every red line back to the contractor and ask them to re-quote it at the realistic figure before you sign; an honest trade will adjust it, and the quotes will suddenly be comparable.