How MeetMeter estimates meeting cost

MeetMeter produces directional estimates—not payroll calculations. Every major assumption is explained here.

MeetMeter Editorial Team
Reviewed November 1, 2026

The formula

Room cost per hour = country salary reference × meeting-level factor × 1.25 ÷ 2,080 × attendees.

Live cost divides this hourly room cost into seconds and multiplies it by elapsed meeting time. Cost per attendee divides accumulated live cost by attendee count. The 25% allowance represents employer costs beyond base salary, while 2,080 represents 40 hours across 52 weeks.

Country references

The selector uses rounded annual wage references in local currency to establish an appropriate order of magnitude across labor markets. National averages cannot describe every industry, city, profession or company. Organizations making budget decisions should substitute their own loaded labor-cost model.

Meeting-level factors

• Team: 0.78 for meetings mainly involving individual contributors.
• Leadership: 1.35 for managers and directors.
• Executive: 2.25 for vice presidents and senior executives.

These are modeling factors, not salary claims. Mixed rooms should select the level representing most participants and treat the result as a broad range.

Annualized cost

The annualized figure estimates a one-hour meeting with the selected attendee mix repeated weekly for 52 weeks. It does not extrapolate the current timer duration. A 30-minute weekly meeting would cost roughly half; a 90-minute meeting roughly one and a half times the displayed value.

What is excluded

The estimate excludes preparation, follow-up, context switching, facilities, travel, consultants, delayed project work and the value created by decisions or risk reduction. That last limitation is essential: cost is visible, while value requires judgment.

Responsible use

Use MeetMeter to redesign recurring meetings and make time commitments explicit. Do not use a broad estimate to rank employees, infer salaries or shame participants. Questions and correction requests can be sent to contact@meetmeter.org.