Estimate what a new business website should cost to build
Built for US freelancers, consultants, and solo creatives who set their own rates.
Freelance Rate Estimator
Estimate a freelance hourly rate that covers the income you want, your business costs, and your taxes. Nemin.io works backward from your take-home goal to the number you should charge per hour.
Your Results
Enter your details and click calculate.
Turn your income goal into an hourly number
Reach for it when you're quoting a fresh client, weighing whether a long-term retainer is worth your time, or checking that last year's rate still keeps up with rising expenses.
- Pricing a new client project or written proposal
- Deciding whether to raise your rate for the coming year
- Comparing a salaried job offer against staying independent
- Setting a floor rate you refuse to drop below
- Planning for taxes and slow months before they arrive
Who This Calculator Helps
This tool is useful for freelancers, consultants, and creative professionals who want a defensible number before they quote a client.
How to price your time in four steps
- Enter the annual income you want to take home.
- Add your yearly business expenses and a tax buffer percentage.
- Set your billable hours per week and working weeks per year.
- Read your suggested hourly rate and revenue targets.
Planning NoteYour real rate hinges on things this estimate can't see: unbillable admin and sales time, scope creep, client mix, what your local market will bear, and how many weeks you genuinely invoice. Treat the figure as a starting floor and revise it as your booked hours and overhead shift through the year.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does the Freelance Rate Estimator calculate?
It suggests an hourly rate that supports the take-home income you want after covering business costs and taxes, then shows the annual and monthly revenue you'd need to hit and the billable hours that assumes.
Who should use this rate calculator?
Solo freelancers, consultants, and creatives who bill by the hour or build project quotes from an hourly figure. It's especially useful if you're pricing work for the first time or leaving a salaried role.
How is my suggested hourly rate worked out?
The tool combines your target income with your yearly expenses, grosses that total up by your tax buffer, then divides by your annual billable hours (weekly billable hours times working weeks). Fewer billable hours or heavier expenses push the rate higher.
Will this rate hold up in the real world?
Think of it as a planning baseline rather than a market quote. It assumes you bill every hour you enter, so if admin, revisions, or quiet weeks eat into that time, your effective rate lands below the number shown.
Should I enter fewer billable hours than my full working week?
Usually, yes. Almost no freelancer invoices a full 40 hours once sales, admin, and breaks are subtracted, so a realistic 25 to 30 billable hours tends to produce a rate you can actually sustain.