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💼 Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
Calculate the hourly and day rate you need to hit your freelance income goals. Factor in expenses, billable hours, and profit margins.
Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
Price projects with confidence. Factor in your income goals, realistic billable hours, operating expenses, and the profit margin you want to keep reinvesting in your business.
Preset scenarios
Recommended hourly rate$122.76Based on 1,150 billable hours per year
Recommended day rate$613.81Assuming 5.0 billable hours per day
Monthly net income$8,750.00From monthly revenue of $11,764.71
Annual net income$105,000.00Required annual revenue: $141,176.47
Revenue breakdown
Take-home pay$85,000.00 · 60%
Fixed expenses$15,000.00 · 11%
Variable expenses$21,176.47 · 15%
Profit buffer$20,000.00 · 14%
Delivery insights
- Bill 1,150 hours (~230 focused days) each year to stay on track.
- Variable expenses absorb $21,176.47annually, leaving $105,000.00 for take-home and profit reinvestment.
- Your profit buffer adds $20,000.00 to personal income, boosting the effective net hourly rate to $91.30.
Proposal-ready snippets
Hourly rate blurb
My standard hourly rate for this engagement is $122.76, which covers delivery, communication, and project management time.
Day rate blurb
For dedicated days, I quote $613.81 per day based on 5.0 focused billable hours.
Retainer guide
To hit our agreed outcomes, budget $11,764.71 per month. This sustains a net freelancer income of $8,750.00.
How to use this tool
- Enter your income goal, expenses, and availability or apply a preset that matches your situation.
- Review the calculated hourly, day, and monthly figures plus the revenue breakdown.
- Copy the proposal-ready snippets or adjust variables to model retainer and project scenarios.
Common scenarios
- Re-price retainers after scope changes or contract renewals.
- Plan a transition from employment to freelance by modeling different billable hours.
- Stress-test budgets before hiring subcontractors or investing in new tools.
Pricing tips
- Keep variable expenses below 100% of revenue so the calculator can produce realistic results.
- Set profit margin above 0% to create a buffer for downtime, learning, and admin tasks.
- Revisit your numbers quarterly—small changes in billable weeks can dramatically affect rates.
FAQ
- Which currency does the tool use?
- Choose from the dropdown to switch currency formatting. Calculations stay the same regardless of currency symbol.
- Why do I see a "needs more data" notice?
- Make sure billable hours per week and working weeks are above zero and that variable expenses stay under 100% of revenue.
- Can I save my inputs?
- Use browser bookmarks with query parameters or keep the tab open. Dedicated saving is on the roadmap.
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