Definition
Variance is the gap between what was quoted and what was actually consumed at job closeout. Tracked by category (material, labour, finish) and overall. Positive variance means you spent more than quoted; negative means less. The pattern of variance across jobs is the single most important data point for improving pricing.
Example
Worked exampleJob J-1812 quoted material cost R 32,000; actual was R 33,400 — variance of +R 1,400 (+4.4%). Drilled in: oak overrun of 2.1 lin.m at R 480 = R 1,008 of the gap, plus R 392 of consumables not on the quote.
Why it matters
Most shops never run variance. Pricing assumptions stay stale. The shops that run weekly variance reviews see their margin drift to under 3% from typical 8–12%. Variance turns finished jobs into pricing-improvement data.