Why is the answer higher than what clients around me pay?

The floor is arithmetic: target take-home plus costs, divided by hours someone actually invoices, with 30% held for taxes. When that lands above local going rates, the message is not "lower the number" but "change an input": more billable hours, lower target, or clients who pay published-benchmark rates. The math just delivers the news early.

Where do the market anchors come from?

From our rates benchmark dataset: published sources like the EFA rate chart and BLS data, each figure cited and dated on the per-role pages. The quiz adjusts the role's typical rate by your experience level (0.8x starting out, 1.3x in demand).

Should I quote hourly or per project?

Use this number as your internal floor either way. For projects, estimate hours honestly, multiply, then add a buffer for revisions and scope drift; the project price calculator does exactly that. Clients buy outcomes, but your calendar still runs on hours.

Rates & pricing

What should I charge?

Two numbers decide your rate: the floor your income goal demands, and what the market already pays people like you. This quiz computes both, takes the higher one, and tells you which side did the deciding. Benchmarks come from our sourced rate dataset.

Six inputs

What do you do?

Benchmarked roles use our sourced rate data; anything else gets a needs-based answer.

Experience level

Target annual take-home

What you want left after taxes and business costs.

Billable hours per week

Hours you can invoice, not hours you work. 20-30 is realistic full time.

Weeks off per year

Vacation, holidays, sick days, dry spells.

Annual business costs

Software, insurance, gear, coworking; everything the business spends.

Your number

Charge at least$90per hour

Day rate (8h): $720
Your income floor: $90

Your income goal set this number: the market anchor for your role sits below what your target take-home requires, so the floor wins. Charging less means missing the goal by definition.

Estimate

workingfigures.com/calculators/freelance-rate-quiz

The formula

Floor = (target take-home + business costs) ÷ (1 − 30%) ÷ billable hours per year. Market anchor = the role's typical sourced rate × experience factor. Recommendation = the higher of the two, rounded up to the next $5.

What this assumes

A 30% combined tax set-aside (compute your real one with the tax set-aside calculator), an 8-hour billable day, and US-market benchmarks. Experience factors are our editorial judgment: 0.8x, 1x, 1.3x.

FAQ

Why is the answer higher than what clients around me pay?: The floor is arithmetic: target take-home plus costs, divided by hours someone actually invoices, with 30% held for taxes. When that lands above local going rates, the message is not "lower the number" but "change an input": more billable hours, lower target, or clients who pay published-benchmark rates. The math just delivers the news early.
Where do the market anchors come from?: From our rates benchmark dataset: published sources like the EFA rate chart and BLS data, each figure cited and dated on the per-role pages. The quiz adjusts the role's typical rate by your experience level (0.8x starting out, 1.3x in demand).
Should I quote hourly or per project?: Use this number as your internal floor either way. For projects, estimate hours honestly, multiply, then add a buffer for revisions and scope drift; the project price calculator does exactly that. Clients buy outcomes, but your calendar still runs on hours.