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Free hourly rate calculator
What to charge per hour to hit your income goal. Free, no signup.
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Related definitions
Most freelancers undercharge, and the reason is arithmetic: they divide their salary goal by 2,080 hours and forget expenses, taxes, and all the unbilled hours. This calculator builds your rate from what you actually need to earn and the hours you can actually bill.
The formula, in plain English
Hourly rate = (income goal + annual expenses) ÷ (billable hours per week × working weeks per year). Everything you need to bring in, divided by the hours clients actually pay for.
Worked example
You want $80,000 take-home, your business costs $10,000 a year, and you can realistically bill 25 hours a week for 48 weeks. Billable hours = 25 × 48 = 1,200. Rate = 90,000 ÷ 1,200 = $75.00/hour.
Tips
- Be honest about billable hours. Between admin, quoting, and chasing payment, 25 billable hours a week is realistic for most freelancers — 40 is a fantasy that produces a rate too low to live on.
- Put real numbers in expenses. Taxes, insurance, software, equipment, health coverage — if it comes out of the business, it belongs in the rate.
- Round up and revisit yearly. Costs rise; your rate should too. Clients expect an annual adjustment far more than they expect a surprise mid-year hike.
Also free
salary calculator, profit margin calculator, service price calculator — and the free invoice generator when it is time to bill.
Frequently asked questions
Why not just divide my salary goal by 2,080 hours?
Because 2,080 assumes every working hour is billable and ignores business expenses. Real freelancers bill a fraction of their hours and pay their own costs — both push the true rate higher.
What counts as a business expense here?
Anything the business pays: taxes, insurance, software, equipment, phone, home office costs, professional fees. If you are unsure, add it — underestimating expenses is the classic way to underprice.
How does my hourly rate relate to invoices?
Your rate times hours worked is the core of every time-based invoice. Set the rate with this calculator, then bill it cleanly with our free invoice generator.
Is this calculator really free?
Yes. Unlimited calculations, no signup, no watermark, no catch — like all of Billia's free tools.
Turn the number into an invoice
Ran the numbers? Bill it with Billia's free invoice generator — no signup, no watermark.