Free Tool
Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
Work out the hourly and day rate you need to charge to hit your income goal, once you account for expenses, time off, and the hours in a week that never make it onto an invoice.
| Required gross revenue (income + expenses) | $0 |
| Total working hours per year | 0 |
| Billable hours per year (after non-billable %) | 0 |
Assumption: required gross revenue is simply income + expenses (this tool doesn't apply a tax set-aside — use the Tax Set-Aside Calculator separately on what you actually collect). Day rate is the hourly rate × the hours-per-day figure above.
How do I work out my freelance hourly rate?
Most freelancers set their rate by guessing, copying a competitor, or picking a number that "feels right." That usually backfires, because it ignores three things employees don't have to think about: you pay for your own equipment and software, you don't get paid for admin time, and you don't work every week of the year.
The right way to price your time starts from the income you actually want to take home, not from what sounds impressive per hour. Add back your annual business expenses — software subscriptions, insurance, a laptop replacement fund, coworking fees — to get the gross revenue you need to bring in. That's the number your invoices have to cover.
Next, figure out how many hours you can realistically bill. Take your working weeks per year (52 minus holidays and time off), multiply by your working days per week and hours per day, and you get total working hours. But not all of those hours are billable — proposals, admin, invoicing, marketing, and unpaid revisions all eat into the week. Most freelancers lose 25–40% of their time to non-billable work, so the calculator above lets you set that percentage yourself rather than assuming a fantasy 100% billable week.
Divide your required gross revenue by your billable hours per year, and you get your required hourly rate. Multiply that by your hours-per-day figure and you get a day rate for clients who prefer to pay by the day rather than the hour.
A few things worth knowing: this number is a floor, not a ceiling. If your market supports a higher rate, charge it — the extra margin is what funds slow months, rate negotiations, and the occasional client who pays late. It's also worth revisiting your rate every six to twelve months as your expenses, goals, and available hours change. And remember this calculator doesn't set aside anything for tax — that's a separate step once money actually lands in your account, which is what the Tax Set-Aside Calculator is for.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between a freelance hourly rate and a day rate?
Your hourly rate is what you charge per hour of billable work. A day rate is usually just the hourly rate multiplied by the hours in a working day (commonly 8), used for clients who prefer to book a full day rather than track hours.
How much of my time should I assume is non-billable?
It varies by freelancer and niche, but 25–40% is a common range once you account for proposals, admin, invoicing, marketing, and revisions that clients don't pay for directly. If you're new to freelancing, start around 30% and adjust once you've tracked a few months of real hours.
Does this calculator include tax?
No — this tool works out the gross rate you need to charge before tax. Once payments land, use a separate set-aside percentage (see the Tax Set-Aside Calculator) to reserve money for taxes; a tax professional in your area can tell you what percentage is right for your situation.
Should I charge exactly what the calculator says?
Treat it as a minimum, not a target. It tells you the rate you need to hit your income goal given your current hours and expenses — market demand, experience, and niche should usually push your actual rate higher.
Want the full system, not just this one number?
This calculator gives you one number. The Freelancer Finance Toolkit is a set of plug-and-play spreadsheets — rate calculator with a sensitivity table, project pricer, income/expense tracker, and invoice tracker — so you can price every project and track what actually gets paid, all in one place, in Excel or Google Sheets.
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