Freelance rate calculator
Updated 23 October 2026
To find your freelance hourly rate, add the take-home pay you want to your yearly costs, tax and platform fees, then divide by the hours you can actually bill. For $50,000 take-home with modest costs, 25% tax and 60% of a 40-hour week billable, that's about $70 an hour. Change the numbers below to see yours.
How this freelance rate calculator works
It works backwards from the money you want to keep. First it adds back the tax you'll owe on your profit, then your business costs, then the platform's share, then a safety margin. That total is what you need to bill in a year. Dividing it by your billable hours gives the lowest hourly rate that still pays you what you planned.
Everything runs in your browser. Change any number and the results update straight away.
Why billable hours matter most
The biggest mistake new freelancers make is dividing a salary by 2,080 hours. You won't bill 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year. Time goes on writing proposals, talking to clients who don't hire you, invoicing, learning and the weeks when work is quiet.
- 50 to 70% billable is a realistic range for many freelancers.
- Holidays and sick days are unpaid, so take them out of your working weeks.
- Bidding takes time. On marketplaces, finding and writing proposals for projects is often the biggest unbilled job. Tools like our free proposal generator cut that time.
Platform fees: Freelancer.com, Upwork and Fiverr
If you work through a marketplace, part of every payment goes to the platform. At the time of writing, Freelancer.com takes 10% of fixed-price projects (or $5 if that's more) and 10% of hourly payments, Fiverr takes 20% of each order, and Upwork shows a fee between 0% and 15% on each contract. Fees change, so check each platform's own page.
See exactly what you keep on a project with our Freelancer fee calculator, Upwork fee calculator and Fiverr fee calculator.
From an hourly rate to a project quote
Most marketplace clients want a fixed price. To turn your rate into a quote:
- Break the project into tasks and estimate the hours for each.
- Add time for calls, revisions and testing, usually 15 to 30% on top.
- Multiply by your hourly rate and round to a clean number.
- Check it against the client's budget. If it's far above, offer a smaller first phase rather than cutting your rate.
Our guide on how to bid on Freelancer covers pricing inside a client's budget, and the free invoice generator helps you bill it.
When to raise your rate
- When you're booked out for several weeks ahead.
- When you've earned strong reviews and a portfolio in your niche.
- When your costs or taxes go up.
- For new clients first: keep loyal clients on their rate for a while, then give notice.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I calculate my freelance hourly rate?
- Add the take-home pay you want to your yearly business costs and the tax you'll owe, then divide by the hours you can actually bill in a year. Billable hours are usually well under your working hours, because finding clients, admin and learning aren't paid.
- How many billable hours does a freelancer have in a year?
- Fewer than most people expect. Someone working 40 hours a week for 46 weeks who bills 60% of their time has about 1,100 billable hours, not the 2,080 of a full-time job. That gap is why freelance rates look high next to salaries.
- Should I include platform fees in my rate?
- Yes. Marketplaces take a share of what you earn: at the time of writing Freelancer.com takes 10% (or $5 on small fixed-price projects), Fiverr takes 20% and Upwork's fee varies from 0% to 15%. Pick the platform in the calculator so your rate covers it.
- What is a day rate and how is it calculated here?
- A day rate is what you charge for a full working day. This calculator uses eight billable hours times your hourly rate. Many freelancers quote a day rate slightly below eight hourly rates as a small discount for booking whole days.
- Should I charge less when I'm starting out?
- A little, while you build reviews, but don't go below what covers your costs. Very low prices attract difficult clients and are hard to raise later. It's better to take smaller projects at a fair rate.
- Is my data saved anywhere?
- No. The calculator runs entirely in your browser and nothing you type is sent to us.
MoreGigs is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Freelancer.com. You're responsible for how you use your Freelancer account and for following Freelancer's own terms.