- Work out your minimum rate from your income goal, costs, tax and realistic billable hours.
- Include platform fees by dividing, not adding: price = what you want ÷ (1 − fee).
- Fixed price pays more when you're fast and the scope is clear; hourly protects you when it isn't.
- Your minimum is a floor. Price above it for skill, speed and results.
Step 1: Find your floor
Your floor is the lowest rate that still pays your life and your business. Below it, every project makes you poorer. To find it you need four numbers:
- Your income goal — what you want to take home each month.
- Your business costs — internet, software, equipment, Connects, subscriptions.
- Tax — the share you'll pay on what you earn.
- Billable hours — the hours a client actually pays for.
The last one is where most people go wrong. In a 40-hour week you also answer messages, fix your profile, write proposals and do revisions you don't charge for. For many freelancers only 60–75% of working time is billable.
Minimum hourly rate = (yearly goal ÷ (1 − tax) + yearly costs) ÷ (1 − platform fee) ÷ billable hours
Enter your goal, costs and hours — the calculator does the rest.
Step 2: Price in the platform fee — correctly
If you want $100 from a Fiverr order, charging $120 doesn't work: Fiverr takes 20% of $120, which is $24, and you get $96. Fees are a percentage of the final price, so divide instead:
Price = amount you want ÷ (1 − fee rate)
$100 ÷ 0.80 = $125 on Fiverr. On Upwork at a 10% fee, $100 ÷ 0.90 = $111.11.
Works backwards from the money you want — in dollars or rupees — to the price you should list.
Step 3: Choose hourly or fixed price
Both can be right. The question is who carries the risk if the work takes longer than planned.
| Hourly | Fixed price | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Ongoing work, unclear scope | Clear deliverables you've done before |
| Who carries the risk | The client | You |
| How you earn more | More hours | Working faster |
| Main danger | Clients watch the clock | Scope creep |
Before accepting a fixed price, estimate the hours honestly and add a buffer for revisions. If the job would take longer than the break-even point — the fixed price after fees divided by your hourly rate after fees — you're better off hourly.
Compare an offer against your hourly rate, including the extra time projects usually take.
Step 4: Package your work
On Fiverr, three packages (Basic, Standard, Premium) do more than offer choice: they anchor the buyer. Many buyers pick the middle option, so make Standard your main offer, Basic a lighter entry point, and Premium the full version with faster delivery or extras.
- Make the difference between packages obvious: pages, revisions, delivery time, source files.
- Put your most common request in Standard.
- Use gig extras (faster delivery, extra revision) to raise the order value without new clients.
Step 5: Charge for value, not just time
A landing page that brings a client ten new customers a month is worth more than the hours it took. Once you have proof — results, reviews, a strong portfolio — start pricing on the outcome. Ask clients what the project is worth to them, and quote a price that's fair for that result.
When and how to raise your rates
- When you're consistently busy, your price is too low.
- Raise rates for new clients first; give existing clients notice.
- Increase in steps of 10–20% and watch how buyers respond.
- Recheck your floor whenever your costs, tax or platform fees change.
Turn tasks and hours into a client-ready price with buffer, rush fee and deposit.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my freelance hourly rate?
Add your yearly income goal (grossed up for tax) and yearly business costs, gross that up for platform fees, then divide by your realistic billable hours.
Should beginners charge low prices?
Charge at or near your minimum rate to win early reviews, then raise prices as reviews and results build up. Don't go below your floor.
How much should I add for Fiverr's fee?
Divide by 0.8 instead of adding 20%. To keep $100, charge $125.
Fees, limits and rules change. We check them regularly and date every update, but always confirm the final number with the platform, your provider or an adviser before you rely on it.