Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator
Enter your income goal and working hours — get the rate you need to charge.
Parameters
Result
Recommended hourly rate
€64.70
per hour
Minimum (break-even) rate
€53.91
Day rate (8 h)
€517.57
Weekly rate
€1,617.39
Target annual revenue
€74,400.00
Billable hours / year
1150 hrs/yr
To earn €60,000.00 working 46 weeks a year at 25 billable hours/week, you need to charge at least €53.91/hr to break even. With a 20% safety buffer, your recommended rate is €64.70/hr.
Disclaimer: This calculator estimates gross revenue needed before personal income tax. Results are for planning purposes only and do not constitute financial or legal advice.
How is a freelance rate calculated?
A sustainable freelance rate starts with your income goal and works backwards. First, add your annual business expenses (software, equipment, accounting) to your desired take-home income — this is your target revenue. Then divide that number by your total billable hours per year, which is your weeks worked multiplied by your billable hours per week. The result is your break-even rate: the minimum you must charge to cover your costs and hit your income goal.
How to use this calculator
- Target annual income — the amount you want to keep after business expenses but before personal income tax.
- Weeks worked per year — subtract vacation, public holidays, and sick leave from 52 to get your working weeks. A typical value is 46–48 weeks.
- Billable hours per week — not all working time is billable. Admin, sales, and learning usually take 25–40% of your week. A common range is 20–30 billable hours out of a 40-hour week.
- Annual business expenses — include software subscriptions, hardware, accounting fees, professional insurance, and any other direct business costs.
- Safety buffer — adds a percentage on top of the break-even rate to account for slow months, late payments, and unpaid client work. 15–25% is a common choice.