Freelancer Hourly Rate Calculator
Find the hourly rate that pays your target take-home after expenses, tax set-aside, unbilled time and platform fees.
Hourly rate
$74.78
Day rate (8h)
$598.26
Gross needed / year
$86,000.00
Gross / month
$7,166.67
Billable hours / year
1,150
Worked example
Target take-home $50,000, expenses $5,000, 25% tax set-aside, 25 billable hours × 46 weeks, working through a marketplace with a 10% fee: gross needed is $71,666.67 a year, so the rate is $69.24/hour ($553.95 per 8-hour day). Illustrative only.
How calculations work
Gross needed = target take-home ÷ (1 − tax %) + expenses. Hourly rate = gross needed ÷ (billable hours per week × working weeks) ÷ (1 − platform fee %). Day rate = hourly × 8.
Disclaimer: estimates for planning only, not tax or financial advice. The tax set-aside is a flat % you choose, not a calculation of what you owe.
FAQ
- Why is my required rate so much higher than a salary equivalent?
- Freelancers pay their own expenses, set aside tax and are rarely billable every working hour. Dividing gross need by billable hours — not total hours — is what raises the rate.
- How many billable hours should I assume?
- Use your own history. Admin, sales and unpaid revisions mean many freelancers bill well under 40 hours a week; enter a figure you can sustain.
- How are platform fees handled?
- If you work through a marketplace that keeps a % of each invoice, the rate is grossed up so you still receive your required amount after the fee. Set it to 0 for direct clients.
- Is the tax set-aside exact?
- No. It is a single flat % you choose to reserve from gross income. Real tax depends on your country and situation; check with a local adviser.