Create a quotation with line items, VAT and validity date, and download it as a PDF.
Hourly Rate Calculator
Turn your income goal, costs, time off and billable hours into an hourly and day rate.
Runs in your browser — nothing you enter is sent to our servers
How it works
- Billable hours per year = hours per week × (52 − weeks off) × billable share.
- Revenue needed = (target income + business expenses) × (1 + buffer).
- Hourly rate = revenue needed ÷ billable hours. Day rate = hourly rate × hours in a billable day.
Treat the result as your minimum. Value, specialist skills and market rates may justify charging more.
Example
You want R600,000 a year, have R60,000 of business costs, work 40 hours a week, take 6 weeks off and bill 65% of your time, with a 10% buffer. That is 1,196 billable hours and R726,000 of revenue — a minimum of R607 per hour or about R4,856 per day.
Ready to price a project? Put your rate into the quote generator.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my hourly rate so much higher than my old salary per hour?
As a freelancer you pay for your own leave, equipment, software, admin time and quiet months. Only part of your working time is billable, so each billable hour must also cover the unbillable ones.
What billable percentage should I use?
It varies by person and type of work, because time goes on admin, sales, quoting and learning. Track your time for a month to get a realistic figure, and use this calculator to test different assumptions.
Does this include income tax?
Enter your target income before tax. Tax depends on your structure and circumstances — the Salary Calculator can give a rough South African estimate for individuals.
Should I add VAT to my rate?
Only if you are a registered VAT vendor. In that case your rate here is VAT-exclusive; add VAT on your invoices.
Related tools
Total an invoice with quantities, line and invoice discounts, VAT-inclusive or exclusive prices, and deposits.
Price a product from materials, labour, overheads and sales fees to hit a target margin, with or without VAT.
Add up start-up and running costs to see monthly spend, first-year cost and cash runway.
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