Freelance Rate Calculator
Enter what you want to earn, your real billable hours and your costs — get the minimum rate you must charge. All maths runs in your browser.
Learn: how to use this well
- Billable hours are not working hours. A 40-hour week is rarely 40 paid hours. Admin, pitching and learning are unpaid — 20–25 billable hours a week is realistic for most freelancers.
- Add expenses before tax, not after. Software, internet, equipment and courses are real costs. A rate that ignores them is a pay cut you gave yourself.
- Tax comes off the top. The calculator grosses your rate up for tax so the number you quote already includes it. Never quote the pre-tax number.
- The result is a floor, not a price. Charge at least this. Charge more when the work is urgent, specialist, or for a client who can pay it.
- Re-run it twice a year. Expenses rise, tax rules change, and your skills improve. A rate from two years ago is almost certainly too low.
- Quote projects from the rate. Hourly rate × honest hours = project price. Add a buffer for revisions, then quote one number.
Pro tips
- If the hourly number shocks you, your billable-hours number is probably too high. Lower it and watch the rate become honest.
- Keep one "quiet month" in your maths: divide by 11 months of income, not 12.
- Never compete on being cheapest. Compete on being reliable — it pays for years.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my rate higher than I expected?
Because most people forget expenses, tax and unpaid hours. The calculator counts all three — that is why the number looks higher than a salary divided by 2,000 hours.
How many billable hours should I enter?
Start with 1,000 a year (about 20 a week for 50 weeks). If you consistently bill more, raise it — the rate will fall, honestly.
Should I charge this rate to every client?
Use it as your minimum. Big companies and urgent work can pay more; small favours for friends are your choice, not your rate.
Does this include holidays and sick days?
Yes, indirectly: fewer billable hours in the year already accounts for time off. That is exactly why billable hours matter more than working hours.
Earn: how this skill pays
This calculator is the skill itself: freelancers who price honestly earn more and burn out less. Pricing help is also a service — new freelancers pay for rate reviews, quote templates and pricing coaching. And the people who use a rate calculator are tomorrow's clients for web, video and writing services: they are already selling their own work.
Want help pricing your services? See services →