Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator

Enter the amount you bill and the time the project took to get your hourly rate. You can also start from an hourly rate and the hours to get a quote.

Direction

Project total (the amount you bill; use either before-tax or after-tax amounts throughout)

Cost to deduct (optional; subcontractors, expenses and so on)

Time worked (hours plus minutes; minutes from 0 to 59)

hours

min

Rounding (to 2 decimal places)

The rate and the quote are rounded once, at the end. The default is to round to the nearest.

Hourly rate (amount billed ÷ hours worked) — per hour

Per minute—

Time worked—

The number copied is the large value (without commas). "Hourly rate" here means the amount billed divided by the hours worked. It is not an employee's wage cost (pay, benefits and so on).

What "hourly rate" means here

In this calculator the hourly rate is the amount you bill for a project divided by the time it took. Freelancers and contractors use it to see how well a project paid, or to set the rate in a quote.

It is not an employer's cost of an employee (salary, benefits and other costs). To convert a wage between hourly, daily, monthly and yearly figures, use the Hourly to Salary Calculator.
Taxes and similar charges are not included. Whether the rate includes tax depends on whether you enter the total before or after tax. Keep it the same throughout.

How it is calculated

Hourly rate from a total

Hourly rate = total ÷ hours worked.
If you enter a cost to deduct (a subcontractor, expenses and so on), the tool also shows the hourly rate after the cost = (total − cost) ÷ hours worked. If the cost is more than the total, it is a loss and the figure is negative.
The rate per minute is shown to 4 decimal places.

A quote from an hourly rate

Quote = hourly rate × hours worked.
To quote a staff cost, enter an hourly rate that already includes the extra costs you want to cover. The tool does not break those costs down.

Enter the time as hours and minutes (1 hour 30 minutes is 1 in the hours box and 30 in the minutes box). It is converted to minutes and calculated with whole numbers, and the amount is rounded to 2 decimal places once, at the end.

Examples

These use plain numbers; the currency does not matter.

A total of 3,000.00 over 40 hours gives a rate of 75.00 per hour (1.25 per minute).
A total of 3,000.00 with a cost of 600.00 over 40 hours gives 60.00 per hour after the cost.
A rate of 50.00 per hour for 12 hours 30 minutes gives a quote of 625.00.

Notes

Amounts are 0 or more, up to 9,999,999,999.99, with up to 2 decimal places. The currency is up to you; the results are in the same currency. If the time worked is 0, the rate cannot be calculated.
Decide beforehand whether the hours include meetings, revisions and travel. It makes rates easier to compare.
The rounding applies to the second decimal place. You can change it to round down or up.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between an hourly rate and a wage?

A wage is the amount paid to an employee per hour. The hourly rate here is the amount billed for a project divided by the hours it took, which is not a wage.

Is the rate after the cost my take-home pay?

No. Only the cost you entered is deducted. Taxes, insurance and your other expenses are not included.

How do I choose an hourly rate for a quote?

One way is to start from the income you want and the number of billable hours you can bill in a month. Multiply the rate you choose by the hours to get the quote (the "Find a quote from an hourly rate" option does this).