Your numbers
What a consultant should include in expenses
Typical costs include software, insurance, travel, professional development and networking. Add your own and keep receipts for tax time.
Where unbilled time goes
Consultants commonly lose billable hours to business development, proposals and unpaid discovery calls. Count these when choosing your billable hours per week.
Pricing models
Common choices are day rates, project fees and monthly advisory retainers.
Tip: Business development can consume much of your week; keep billable-hour assumptions low.
The math
Gross revenue = ($120,000 + $8,000) ÷ 0.72 = $177,778. Billable hours = (52 − 5) × 20 = 940. Minimum rate = $177,778 ÷ 940 = $189 per hour. See the methodology. Example inputs are illustrations, not market data.
General hourly rate calculator · Tax set-aside · Retainer pricing · All professions
Frequently asked questions
What should a consultant charge per hour?
It depends on your target income, costs and billable time. With $120,000 take-home, $8,000 expenses, a 28% tax set-aside, 5 weeks off and 20 billable hours a week, the minimum comes to about $189 per hour. These are example inputs, so enter your own.
How many billable hours does a consultant really have?
Many freelancers bill fewer hours than they work because of business development, proposals and unpaid discovery calls. The example uses 20 billable hours a week; track your own time to find your number.
How should a consultant price work?
Common models are day rates, project fees and monthly advisory retainers.
Is this the rate I should quote?
No. It is the minimum that meets your targets. Add margin for demand, specialty and risk.