Freelance Client Profitability Calculator
Estimate how profitable a freelance client is based on your project fee, time spent, direct costs and revision workload.
Overview
The Freelance Client Profitability Calculator helps you estimate whether a client or project is worth taking on. Enter your project fee, expected work hours, revision time, direct costs and overhead rate to see your estimated net profit, effective hourly rate and profit margin.
How it works
The calculator adds your planned work hours and revision hours to estimate total time. It then subtracts direct project costs and an overhead allowance from your project fee to estimate net profit. Your effective hourly rate is calculated by dividing net profit by total hours, and your profit margin is net profit as a percentage of the project fee. It also estimates what fee you would need to charge to reach your target hourly rate after covering costs and overhead.
How to use this calculator
- 1Enter the total fee you expect to charge the client.
- 2Add your estimated work hours for delivery, meetings and admin.
- 3Include likely revision or change-request hours.
- 4Enter any direct project costs such as subcontractors or assets.
- 5Set your overhead rate and your target hourly rate.
- 6Review the profit, hourly earnings and fee needed to hit your target.
Example Calculation
Project Fee
$2,500
Estimated Work Hours
30
Revision Hours
5
Direct Project Costs
$150
Overhead Rate
15%
Target Hourly Rate
$75
Estimated Net Profit
$1,975
With a project fee of 2500, total hours of 35, direct costs of 150 and 15% overhead, the estimated net profit is 1975 and the effective hourly rate is about 56.43 per hour. To reach a 75 per hour target, the fee would need to be about 3150.
Frequently asked questions
What does this calculator estimate?
It estimates how much profit a freelance client or project may generate after direct costs and overhead, and how much that works out to per hour.
What is an effective hourly rate?
Effective hourly rate is your estimated profit divided by the total hours you spend on the client, including revisions and admin time you choose to include.
Should I include revision time?
Yes. Revision time can significantly reduce profitability, so including expected amends or scope changes gives a more realistic result.
What counts as direct costs?
Direct costs are project-specific expenses such as subcontractor fees, stock assets, printing, travel for that project or payment processing fees.
What is the overhead rate used for?
The overhead rate helps you allocate general business expenses to the project, such as software subscriptions, insurance, equipment or workspace costs.
Does this include taxes?
No. This calculator focuses on project profitability before your personal or business taxes.
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Assumptions and warnings
Assumptions
- Results are estimates based on the hours, costs and overhead rate you enter.
- Overhead is allocated as a simple percentage of the project fee.
- Taxes, late payments, bad debt and future upsell opportunities are not included.
- Time spent is assumed to cover all work related to this client, including meetings, admin and revisions.
Warnings
- This calculator provides an estimate only and is not financial advice.
- Actual profitability may change if scope, revisions, payment timing or expenses differ from your estimate.