Freelance Rate Calculator
Calculate your ideal hourly or project rate.
Excluding vacation.
Productive hours only.
Billable Reality Check
Most freelancers only bill 20-30 hours per week. The rest is spent on admin, marketing, and learning. Be realistic with your numbers!
Required Hourly Rate
$NaN/hr
MONTHLY REVENUE GOAL
$0
ANNUAL GROSS REVENUE
$0
Market Context
Setting Freelance Rates That Cover Real Costs
Overview
New freelancers consistently undercharge — they look at their old salary, divide by 2000 hours, and quote that as their hourly rate. The math is wrong: a salary covers ~50 weeks of paid work, while a freelancer must pay self-employment tax, health insurance, retirement contributions, vacation, sick days, equipment, and unbillable time for sales/admin/learning. A $100k salary roughly translates to $130–$150 freelance hourly to maintain the same lifestyle. This calculator does the math properly: start from desired take-home, add overhead, subtract realistic billable hours, get a defensible hourly rate.
How It Works
Enter target annual net income (what you want to keep after taxes). Add annual business expenses (software, equipment, office, etc.). Set realistic billable hours per week (industry average is 20–30 hours of billable work in a 40-hour week — the rest is sales, admin, learning). The tool computes: required gross revenue = (net + expenses) / (1 − tax rate), then divides by billable hours × weeks worked to give your hourly rate. It also shows monthly revenue target.
When to Use This
Setting initial rates as a new freelancer. Raising rates after a few years (cost of living increased, your skills grew). Pricing project-based work (multiply rate × estimated hours, add buffer). Comparing freelance offer vs. full-time offer (run both through the calculator). Negotiating: when a client says 'that's too high,' you can point to specific costs you must cover.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's a realistic billable hours percentage?
20–30 hours billable in a 40-hour week is realistic for solo freelancers. The rest goes to client communication, sales calls, invoicing, taxes, learning new tools, and just downtime. New freelancers often plan for 35+ hours and burn out within months.
How much should I budget for taxes?
In the US: ~25–35% (self-employment tax ~15% + income tax 10–20%). Other countries vary — UK ~30%, Canada ~25%, Australia ~30%, Germany ~35–40%. Check your local situation; this tool defaults to a reasonable assumption you can adjust.
Hourly vs. project-based pricing?
Hourly is safer for new freelancers and unclear scope; project-based often pays more once you know the work well. Most experienced freelancers use project-based with hourly as fallback for vague tasks.
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