Billable hours calculator
Total hours worked and hours that earn money are different numbers. This works out your utilisation rate and what the week is actually producing.
Estimate only. Figures update as you type. Not tax advice — see the note at the bottom of this page.
Utilisation is the hidden constraint on freelance income
Two freelancers charging the same rate can earn wildly different amounts because one bills 20 hours a week and the other bills 32. Raising utilisation is often easier than raising rates, and it doesn't require a single difficult conversation with a client.
What realistic utilisation looks like
Solo freelancers handling their own sales, admin, and marketing rarely sustain much above 60 to 70% without burning out. Agencies often target similar figures for billable staff precisely because the remaining time is genuinely necessary work. Planning around 80% and then failing to hit it is a common source of income shortfalls.
The effective rate line is the honest one
Dividing weekly revenue by every hour worked, billable or not, gives the rate your working life actually pays. It's always lower than your quoted rate, and how much lower is the clearest measure of how much overhead your practice carries.
Where the non-billable time goes
Tracking it for a fortnight is usually revealing. Most freelancers find it concentrated in a few places: proposals that don't convert, admin that could be automated, and one or two clients who absorb disproportionate attention. Each of those has a different fix.
Common questions
What is a good utilisation rate?
For solo freelancers, 60-70% is a realistic sustained target once sales, admin, and marketing are accounted for. Consistently higher figures often mean unpaid overtime rather than efficiency.
Should I bill for admin time?
Generally not directly, since clients resist paying for it. It's usually recovered by setting a rate that assumes it exists, which is what the rate calculator does.
How is this different from the effective hourly rate calculator?
This one looks at a whole week's pattern. The effective rate calculator looks at a single project including its costs and tax.