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Calculate your minimum, suggested, and premium hourly freelance rate based on desired income, expenses, and billable hours.
Minimum Rate
$99.40/hr
Break-even
Suggested Rate
$119.29/hr
20% buffer
Premium Rate
$149.11/hr
Target rate
Gross Income Needed
$119,286
Annual Billable Hours
1200 hrs
Freelance Rate Calculator reverse-engineers your minimum, suggested (20% buffer), and premium hourly rate from your desired net annual income, effective tax rate, annual expenses, billable hours per week, and weeks worked per year.
Find the right hourly freelance rate to hit your income goals after taxes, expenses, and realistic billable hours.
Gross income needed = desired net income ÷ (1 − effective tax rate) + annual expenses. Total billable hours = billable hours/week × weeks worked/year. Minimum rate = gross income needed ÷ total billable hours. Suggested rate = minimum × 1.2 (20% slow-period buffer). Premium rate = minimum × 1.5. The 30% effective tax rate is a conservative US estimate combining self-employment tax (15.3% on 92.35% of net SE income) plus federal and state income tax. Actual rates vary by income level, deductions, and state.
Minimum rate = (desired net income ÷ (1 − tax rate) + annual expenses) ÷ (billable hours/week × weeks/year). Most freelancers bill 20–30 hours per week even if they work 40, due to admin, marketing, and unpaid tasks.
US freelancers should generally set aside 25–35% of gross income for taxes. This covers self-employment tax (15.3% on 92.35% of net SE income) plus federal and state income tax. Contribute to a SEP-IRA to reduce taxable income.
On average, full-time freelancers bill 20–30 hours per week. The rest goes to client communication, invoicing, marketing, professional development, and non-billable project work.
Raise rates at least annually to keep pace with inflation (3–5% minimum). Raise rates significantly (20–50%) when you have a waitlist of clients, when you acquire specialized expertise, or when moving up-market.
Convert any hourly wage to annual, monthly, bi-weekly, and weekly salary instantly.
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