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OZO Freelance Rate Calculator

Free Freelance Rate Calculator

Work out the hourly and day rate you need to charge to earn your target income after tax, expenses and unbillable time.

  • Free forever
  • No signup
  • Instant results

What you want to keep after tax.

Software, equipment, insurance, workspace, accounting…

%

Your rough overall rate on profit, including social security.

Hours clients pay for; admin isn’t billable.

Holidays, sickness, quiet spells.

Enter your target income to see your rate.

How to set your freelance rate

  1. 1

    Set your target income

    Enter what you want to take home in a year after tax.

  2. 2

    Add your expenses

    Include everything an employer would normally pay for: equipment, software, insurance, workspace, accounting and training.

  3. 3

    Be realistic about billable time

    Enter the hours clients actually pay for each week, and the weeks you won’t work.

  4. 4

    Read your minimum rate

    See the hourly and day rate you need, then price above it to allow for quiet months.

Why freelance rates must be higher

An employee's salary is only part of what they cost: the employer also pays for equipment, holidays, sick pay, pension and the hours spent on things other than client work. Freelancers carry all of that themselves, so the rate has to cover it. This calculator builds the rate up from your real numbers instead of guessing.

The formula

  • Revenue needed = take-home income ÷ (1 − tax rate) + yearly expenses
  • Billable hours = (52 − weeks off) × billable hours per week
  • Hourly rate = revenue needed ÷ billable hours
  • Day rate = hourly rate × hours in a working day

Ready to bill? Send a quote, then an invoice. Compare your rate with an employee's using the salary calculator.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate my freelance hourly rate?

Add your target take-home income (grossed up for tax) to your yearly business expenses, then divide by the hours you can actually bill in a year. For example, 60,000 take-home at a 25% tax rate is 80,000 before tax; add 10,000 of expenses and spread 90,000 over 1,150 billable hours to get about 78 an hour.

Why is my freelance rate so much higher than my old salary?

As a freelancer you pay for your own equipment, insurance, holidays, sick days and pension, and you can’t bill for admin, sales or gaps between projects. A rate of two to three times the equivalent employee hourly wage is common.

How many hours can I realistically bill?

Many freelancers bill 20–30 hours in a 40-hour week, because the rest goes on finding work, admin and learning. Start with 25 and adjust from your own records.

Should I charge hourly or per project?

Know your hourly minimum either way. For project or value-based pricing, estimate the hours, multiply by your rate as a floor, then price on the value to the client.

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