How this calculator works
Most freelancers set their rate by guessing what the market will bear, or worse, by converting their old salary to an hourly number. Both approaches ignore the three costs that make freelancing fundamentally different from employment:
- Taxes are on you now. There is no employer quietly paying half your contributions. Depending on your country, 25–35% of what you bill will go to income tax and social charges.
- Your expenses are on you too. Laptop, software subscriptions, insurance, accounting, co-working — a typical freelancer spends several thousand dollars a year just to be able to work.
- You can't bill every hour. Prospecting, proposals, invoicing and admin consume 30–50% of a real working week. If your rate assumes 40 billable hours, you are underpricing by a third before you even start.
This calculator works backwards from the income you want to keep: it grosses your target up for tax, adds your expenses, and divides by the hours you can genuinely bill. The result is a floor, not a recommendation — charge more when your specialisation, results, or market position justify it (they usually do).
Want the full reasoning, with worked examples and scripts for raising rates on existing clients? Read our guide: How to set your freelance rate.