Turn a target annual take-home into minimum and recommended hourly rates with tax, overhead, billable hours, day rate, and optional project price. Free freelance rate calculator in your browser—no login.
Gross revenue needed ≈ (target annual net ÷ (1 − tax rate)) + annual overhead. Billable hours/year = hours/week × weeks/year × (1 − non-billable %). Minimum hourly = gross ÷ billable hours. Recommended hourly multiplies the floor by (1 + buffer %). Day rate assumes 8 × recommended hourly. Optional project hours × recommended hourly estimates a fixed fee.
Prospecting, proposals, bookkeeping, learning, admin, unpaid revisions, and marketing. Many solo freelancers run 25–40% non-billable. Underestimating this is the most common reason rate calculators feel “too high” compared with marketplace listings.
No. Enter a rough effective rate for planning only. Self-employment tax, deductions, and local rules vary. Confirm numbers with a qualified tax professional before filing.
Slow months, late pay, scope creep, equipment replacement, and health buffer make pure min rates fragile. A 15–25% buffer is a common starting point; raise it when work is volatile or benefits are self-funded.
Use this tool to set an hourly floor from lifestyle goals. Use Profit Margin Calculator when you already have a package price and want margin or markup on delivery cost. Chain both: rate → project estimate → margin check.
No. All inputs stay in the browser tab.
Pure numbers in any currency as long as every field shares that currency. Convert remote-client quotes with Currency Converter first if needed.
Vacations, sick days, and holidays reduce true working weeks. 46–48 is a realistic planning default for many full-time freelancers.
Yes. Free with no login on Power Tools.
Open the result in a second app or tab, compare against a small known-good sample, and only then send it to clients or commit it to git. Label units and assumptions next to the number. Spreadsheet or invoice consumers need context, not only a bare result. If something looks wrong, adjust one setting at a time and rerun rather than stacking multiple weak exports.
Browser memory and CPU bound large jobs. Close unused tabs, try a smaller fixture first, then scale up. Desktop browsers are usually more reliable than phones for heavy media or WASM paths. After finishing, clear Downloads and the tool workspace when files contain personal or customer data.
Skip it as the sole system of record when you need multi-user collaboration, enterprise audit trails, or legally certified processing. Use your approved platform for those cases, and treat this page as a fast local assistant. Keep authoritative masters outside the browser session.