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Calcimator

Evaluation Plan Calculator

Estimate the budget and staffing for program evaluation based on design complexity, participant count, data collection methods, and project duration.

Inputs

Results

Total Evaluation Budget

$167,100.00

≈ 11 used cars

Annual Evaluation Budget

$55,700.00

≈ 5 years of state college

Eval % of Program Budget33.4%
Evaluator Personnel Cost$147,600.00
Participant Incentives$15,000.00
Tools & Software Cost$4,500.00
Total Evaluator Days123
Evaluator Days per Year41
Data Collection Days41
Analysis Days28
How to Use This Calculator
  1. Enter the Total Program Budget and Participant Count to benchmark evaluation spending.
  2. Select the Evaluation Design level (1 = process only, 4 = randomized controlled trial).
  3. Enter Data Collection Points, Number of Methods, and Project Duration in years.
  4. Indicate whether an External Evaluator will be used and enter the Evaluator Day Rate.
  5. Review Total Evaluation Budget and ensure it falls within the 5–15% of program budget guideline.

How the result changes with Evaluator Day Rate ($)

Evaluator Day Rate ($)Total Evaluation BudgetAnnual Evaluation Budget
1,000$142,500.00$47,500.00
3,500$450,000.00$150,000.00
6,500$819,000.00$273,000.00
9,000$1,126,500.00$375,500.00

What each input means

Total Program Budget ($)
Total program budget to benchmark evaluation spending against (5-15% is typical).
Participant Count
Number of program participants to be evaluated.
Evaluation Design (1-4)
1 = process only, 2 = pre-post, 3 = quasi-experimental, 4 = randomized controlled trial.
Data Collection Points
Number of times data is collected (baseline, midpoint, endline, follow-up, etc.).
Data Collection Methods
Number of methods: surveys, interviews, focus groups, observations, admin data review, etc.
Project Duration (years)
Total duration of the funded project.
External Evaluator (0/1)
1 = external evaluator (full rate), 0 = internal staff (estimated at 50% of external rate).
Evaluator Day Rate ($)
Daily rate for the evaluator. External evaluators typically charge $800-$2,000/day.

What each result means

Total Evaluation Budget
Total cost of evaluation over the project period.
Annual Evaluation Budget
Average annual evaluation cost.
Eval % of Program Budget
Evaluation cost as percentage of total program budget. 5-15% is typical for funders.
Evaluator Personnel Cost
Evaluator time cost (days times day rate).
Participant Incentives
Estimated incentives at $25/person/data collection point.
Tools & Software Cost
Data collection tools, survey platforms, printing, etc.
Total Evaluator Days
Total evaluator working days over the project.
Evaluator Days per Year
Average evaluator days per project year.
Data Collection Days
Days dedicated to data collection activities.
Analysis Days
Days dedicated to data analysis.

How this is calculated

Worked example, using the default values

  1. Identify Input Parameters
    4 parameters
    Total Program Budget ($) = 500000, Participant Count = 200, Evaluation Design (1-4) = 2, Data Collection Points = 3 = 8 input(s) provided
  2. Calculate Total Evaluation Budget
    Total Evaluation Budget = evaluatorCost + incentiveCost + toolsCost
    167100 = $167,100
  3. Calculate Annual Evaluation Budget
    Annual Evaluation Budget = totalEvalBudget / projectYears
    55700 = $55,700
  4. Calculate Eval % of Program Budget
    Eval % of Program Budget = totalProgramBudget > 0
    33.4 = 33.4%
  5. Calculate Evaluator Personnel Cost
    147600 = $147,600

Engine last updated .

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