Freelance Hourly Rate Calculator

Take-home income you want per year (₹)

Business expenses per year (₹, optional)

Tax rate on your earnings (%, optional)

Weeks you work per year

Billable hours per week

Billable hours in a full day (optional)

Billable hours are the hours you can actually invoice. Admin, sales calls, learning and gaps between projects are not billable, so 20 to 30 hours a week is common even for a full-time freelancer.

Why a freelancer cannot just divide salary by 2,080

A salaried person is paid for every working hour. A freelancer is paid only for billable hours, and has to cover expenses, tax, holidays and unpaid time out of the same income. If you charge what a job would pay per hour, you end up earning far less. This calculator works backwards from the income you want to the rate you need.

How the rate is worked out

Revenue needed = (take-home income + expenses) ÷ (1 − tax rate). Billable hours per year = weeks worked × billable hours per week. Hourly rate = revenue needed ÷ billable hours. The day rate multiplies the hourly rate by the billable hours in a full day.

Worked example

You want ₹12,00,000 a year to take home, expect ₹1,20,000 of expenses and pay 20% tax. You work 46 weeks and bill 25 hours a week.

Revenue needed is (12,00,000 + 1,20,000) ÷ 0.8 = ₹16,50,000, a month of ₹1,37,500. You bill 46 × 25 = 1,150 hours, so the hourly rate is ₹1,435. With 6 billable hours in a day, the day rate is about ₹8,609.

Frequently asked questions

Why are my billable hours lower than my working hours?

A large part of a freelancer's week goes to finding clients, writing proposals, invoicing and learning. Only the time you can invoice counts, and many freelancers manage 20 to 30 billable hours.

What tax rate should I use?

Use the share of your earnings that goes to tax, including GST filing costs if relevant. It depends on your income, regime and deductions, so check with an accountant. A rough effective rate is fine for this estimate.

What counts as a business expense?

Software, a laptop and its depreciation, internet, a co-working space, courses, accounting fees and insurance. Enter the yearly total.

Should I add a buffer?

It is wise. Raising the rate a little, or lowering billable hours, covers late payments, unpaid revisions and quiet months.

Is a project price better than an hourly rate?

Often yes for clients, because they know the total up front. Use this rate to check that a fixed price is worth your time: divide the price by the hours you expect to spend.

Results are estimates for information only and are not financial, tax or legal advice.