Freelancer Hourly Rate Calculator
Enter your desired annual income, business expenses and billable hours to calculate the hourly rate you need to charge.
Freelancer Hourly Rate Calculator
Calculate the hourly rate you need to charge to hit your income goal after expenses and non-billable time.
Freelancers and independent contractors rarely bill 40 hours a week — time goes to admin, marketing and unpaid gaps between projects. This calculator divides your target income plus business expenses by your realistic billable hours per year to find the rate you actually need to charge.
Example
- With the default values shown above, this calculator returns: Hourly Rate to Charge ≈ USD 73.33.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why use billable hours instead of total working hours?
Only billable hours generate income — time spent on admin, proposals, marketing and unpaid downtime still has to be covered by the rate you charge on the hours that are billable.
Should I include taxes in my desired income?
This calculator does not add taxes automatically. Many freelancers build in an additional 25-35% on top of their target take-home income to cover self-employment and income taxes.