Know your real income before you set your rates.
Your headline hourly rate isn't your annual income. Holidays, bank holidays, admin time, and the reality of part-time working all eat into the numbers. This free calculator shows your actual annual earnings potential based on how you really work.
Enter your hourly rate, billable hours per day, working days per week, and holiday weeks. Click Calculate for your real income breakdown.
Freelance Rate Calculator — How Much Should I Charge?
Enter your hourly rate, how many billable hours you work per day, your working days per week, and how many weeks holiday you take. This calculator works out your real annual income potential — accounting for UK bank holidays, weekends, and your own holiday allowance.
Why your headline rate isn't your real income
A £100/hour rate sounds impressive. But if you work 3 hours a day, 4 days a week, and take 5 weeks holiday, your actual annual income is around £52,000 — not the £208,000 you might calculate if you assumed 40 hours a week all year. This tool shows you the real number.
How many working days are there in a year?
A standard UK year has 260 working days (52 weeks x 5 days). After deducting 8 bank holidays and a typical 4 weeks holiday, you're left with around 232 billable days. This calculator adjusts for your specific working pattern.
- How do I work out my day rate from my hourly rate?
- Multiply your hourly rate by the number of billable hours in your working day. If you charge £150/hour and work 6 billable hours, your day rate is £900. This calculator shows your day rate automatically in the results.
- Should I charge VAT as a freelancer?
- If your taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 per year you must register for VAT. Below that threshold you can register voluntarily. Use our VAT Calculator to add 20% to your rates when invoicing VAT-registered clients.
- How much should a business coach charge per hour?
- UK business coaching rates in 2026 typically range from £100 to £300 per hour depending on experience, specialism and client type. Executive coaches and C-suite specialists can command significantly more.
- What is a good day rate for a UK consultant?
- Day rates for UK management consultants range from around £400/day for junior consultants to £900+ for senior specialists. Independent consultants with niche expertise often command premium rates above employed equivalents.
- How do I work backwards from an income target?
- Decide the annual income you need, then divide by your actual working days (after holidays and bank holidays) to get your required day rate. Divide the day rate by your billable hours per day to get the hourly rate you need to charge. This calculator helps you sense-check both directions.
- Should I register for VAT as a freelancer?
- You must register for VAT if your taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 in a 12-month period. Below that you can register voluntarily — this may be beneficial if your clients are mostly VAT-registered businesses who can reclaim it. Use the VAT Calculator on this site to add 20% to your day rate when invoicing.
- How much should I charge to match a PAYE salary?
- A useful rule of thumb: your freelance day rate should be at least your equivalent PAYE annual salary divided by 200 (not 260, because as a freelancer you won't bill every working day). So to match a £60,000 PAYE salary you'd need a day rate of around £300 minimum — and higher to account for employer pension contributions, sick pay, and holiday pay you no longer receive.