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Free Freelance Rate Calculator

Work out what to charge as a freelancer by the hour or by the day, after business expenses.

Choose how you charge clients, then enter your income goal and billable time to see the rate you need.

If you charge by the hour, use our dedicated Freelancer Hourly Rate Calculator.

Loading calculator

Required hourly rate NaN €, required revenue NaN €, billable hours per year 1150

Hourly rate
NaN €
Required annual revenue
NaN €
Billable hours per year
1.150

What is a freelance rate?

A freelance rate is the price you charge clients for your time, expressed as an hourly or daily fee. It should cover business expenses and deliver the income you need after those costs are paid.

How this calculator works

  1. Choose hourly or daily mode: Pick hourly if you track time in hours, or daily if clients buy full days of work.
  2. Enter income and expenses: Add your target annual income and the business costs you expect to pay during the year.
  3. Enter billable capacity: In hourly mode, enter billable hours per week and billable weeks per year. In daily mode, enter billable days per year and hours per day.
  4. Calculate required revenue: The calculator adds income and expenses to find the total revenue you need to bill.
  5. See your rate: Hourly mode returns one hourly rate. Daily mode returns a day rate and an equivalent hourly rate based on your hours per day.

Freelance rate formulas

Hourly: rate = (income + expenses) / (billable hours × billable weeks). Daily: day rate = (income + expenses) / billable days; hourly = (income + expenses) / (billable days × hours per day).

Both modes use the same required revenue. Daily mode splits that revenue across billable days and also shows the implied hourly rate for comparison.

Worked example (daily mode)

You want £64,000 income, have £8,000 in annual expenses, and can bill 220 days at 7 hours per day. Required revenue is £72,000. Your day rate is £72,000 ÷ 220 = £327.27. The implied hourly rate is £72,000 ÷ (220 × 7) = £72,000 ÷ 1,540 = £46.75.

When to use this calculator

Use it when a client asks for a day rate, when you want to compare hourly and daily pricing, or when you are updating rates for a new contract year.

For a focused hourly-only calculation, use the Freelancer Hourly Rate Calculator.

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Free Freelance Rate Calculator | TapBooks