Hidden Economics
Freelance Billable Rate Calculator
The hourly rate a freelancer or agency must charge to hit a target income, once you subtract the non-billable hours nobody pays you for.
Inputs
- Target take-home / year — What you want to earn after business costs.
- Business overhead / year — Software, taxes set aside, insurance, equipment.
- Billable hours per week — Hours you can actually invoice — rarely the full 40.
- Working weeks per year — 52 minus vacation, holidays, and sick time.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your target take-home, business overhead, billable hours per week, and working weeks.
- The result is the minimum hourly rate to hit your goal.
- Only billable hours count, and that's why the honest rate feels higher than you expect.
What each term means
- Billable hours
- Hours you can actually invoice, usually far fewer than hours worked.
- Utilization
- The share of your working time that's billable.
- Overhead
- Non-billable business costs: software, taxes set aside, insurance, tools.
Educational disclaimer: Outputs are simplified educational estimates built from the numbers you enter — they are not financial, legal, tax, or investment advice, and real decisions deserve verified figures and qualified professionals.