What Is My Hour Really Worth?

How to calculate your real hourly rate

Most people divide income by the hours a client pays for. But when you work for yourself, there are hours nobody pays for: emails, extra revisions, finding clients, free consultations, bookkeeping. There are expenses and taxes too. Your real rate is what’s left after all that, divided by all your working hours.

The calculator works monthly: net income = (income − expenses) × (1 − taxes), and all hours = (paid + unpaid) × 52 ÷ 12.

A worked example

Income of $5,000 a month, $500 in expenses, taxes around 25%. Twenty-five paid hours a week and ten unpaid. It looks like your hour is worth about $46. In reality you keep $3,375 for about 152 working hours — roughly $22 an hour. The gap is more than half, and almost a third of your working time goes unpaid.

What to do with your number

Look at the unpaid hours: what could be built into your price, limited in your contract, or done less often? Sometimes one decision is enough — capping free revisions, for example, or charging for a consultation before a project starts.

If the number feels too low, it isn’t a verdict on your work — it’s a reason to revisit your price. Our article “What Your Work Is Really Worth” covers how to do that calmly. Taxes here are an estimate: exact rates depend on your country, state and business structure, so check them with an accountant.