Skill tutorial

Set your hourly rate

You will work out a minimum hourly rate from your real costs, unpaid hours, platform fees and taxes, then check it against the market.

8steps

45minutes, about

Beginnerlevel

Updated October 30, 2026 · Built from the official sources listed at the end · How we research

What you’ll need

Your monthly costs (rough numbers are fine)
A calculator or the site calculator
Five profiles of freelancers in your field
45 minutes

45 minutes, about. Your progress saves in this browser, so you can stop and come back.

Where money leaves on the way to you. Drag to turn it.

Step 1 of 8

Write down what you need each month

Start with your own numbers, not with what others charge. List what you need to cover each month: rent share, food, internet, phone, software, a laptop fund and savings.

Upwork reminds freelancers that they cover their own business costs, and that rates should take expenses, cost of living and financial needs into account (Upwork Help).

Tip: Rough numbers are fine for now. You can update them in a month.

Checklist I listed my monthly living costs I listed my work costs, like software, internet and equipment I added a small amount for savings and emergencies

Step 2 of 8

Count the hours you can really bill

You will not get paid for every hour you work. Finding clients, writing proposals, learning, admin and messages all take time. This is called non-billable time.

Focus blocks: client work, phone away
Admin: messages, invoices, proposals
Buffers: for revisions and surprises
Empty: real time off

An example only. Build yours around your own hours.

Write down how many hours a week you can work in total. Then guess how many of those will be paid client work. When you are new, the paid share is often much lower than you hope, because finding work takes time.

Example: 30 working hours a week, but only 15 are paid work. That is about 65 paid hours a month.

Checklist I wrote my total working hours per week I estimated how many of those hours are paid client work I multiplied paid hours per week by about 4.3 to get paid hours per month

Step 3 of 8

Work out your base rate

Divide your monthly need by your paid hours per month. That is your base rate before fees and taxes.

You can do this on paper, or use the hourly rate calculator, which walks you through the same steps.

Example: Monthly need of $1,300 divided by 65 paid hours is a base rate of $20 an hour.

Checklist I divided my monthly need by my paid hours per month I wrote down my base rate

Step 4 of 8

Add the platform fee on top

Platforms keep part of what the client pays. Your rate must cover that cut, or you take home less than your base rate.

With a 20% fee, as an example. Fees differ by platform.

As of 2026, Upwork's freelancer service fee ranges from 0% to 15% per contract, and you see the exact fee before you send a proposal (Upwork Help). As of 2026, Fiverr freelancers keep 80% of the order amount, so Fiverr keeps 20% (Fiverr Help).

To keep your base rate after a fee, divide by what you keep. With a 20% fee you keep 0.8, so a $20 base becomes $20 divided by 0.8, which is $25. Check your own numbers with the fee calculator.

Checklist I found the fee for the platform I use I divided my base rate by the share I keep after the fee

Quick checkYou want to take home $20 an hour and the platform fee is 20%. What should you charge?

Show the answer

$25 an hour. You keep 80%, and $25 times 0.8 is $20. Upwork's own fee examples use the same method of grossing up the rate (Upwork Help).

Step 5 of 8

Set money aside for taxes

Freelancers usually pay their own taxes. Nobody takes them out of your pay for you. Rules depend on your country, so check your local tax office.

In the United States, for example, the self-employment tax rate is 15.3% as of 2026, and that is before income tax (IRS). Build a tax share into your rate and move that share into a separate savings account each time you are paid.

Tip: For more on this, see Invoicing and taxes for freelancers.

Watch out: Do not treat everything that lands in your account as spending money. Part of it belongs to the tax office.

Checklist I looked up how freelancers are taxed in my country I added a tax share to my rate I decided where I will save tax money each month

Step 6 of 8

Check your number against the market

Now compare your number with real people. Look at five to ten freelancers with similar skills, experience and location. Note their rates.

Set the fee to match your platform. Our fee table lists them. Before tax and payout fees. Not a promise of income: it only shows the maths. Try the full hourly rate calculator.

Upwork suggests checking profiles of freelancers with similar skills and experience to gauge market rates (Upwork Help). If your number is far above the market, find ways to lower costs or work more paid hours. If it is far below, you may be underpricing.

Checklist I noted the rates of five or more similar freelancers I compared my rate with that range

Step 7 of 8

Pick your rate and your minimum

Choose two numbers: the rate you will show, and the lowest rate you will accept. Write both down so you do not panic and drop your price in a negotiation.

Upwork warns to be careful when clients try to talk you below your personal minimum by saying a job is easy (Upwork Help). Try the price estimator below to test a few rates.

Checklist I chose the rate I will show on my profile I wrote down my minimum rate and will not go below it

Try itPrice this gig

Hours to deliver one orderHourly rate you want ($)Revisions includedPlatform fee (%)

Basic$95

Standard$190

Premium$330

Basic covers your hours plus revision time after the fee. Standard and Premium assume about two and three and a half times the work. Round to prices your market uses.

Quick checkA client says the job is easy and asks you to go under your minimum rate. What is the safest choice?

Show the answer

Politely keep your minimum or offer a smaller scope. Upwork warns freelancers to be cautious when clients push them below their personal minimum (Upwork Help).

Step 8 of 8

Review your rate every few months

Your first rate is a starting point. As you get reviews and better samples, raise it for new clients. Check your costs and paid hours every three months and run the numbers again.

Tip: Reviews help you charge more with confidence. See Get your first five reviews.

Checklist I set a reminder to review my rate in three months

Sources

Checked in October 2026. Platforms change their rules often, so follow the links for the latest version.

Upwork Help: Learn about the Freelancer Service Fee support.upwork.com
Upwork Help: How to submit a proposal on Upwork support.upwork.com
Fiverr Help: Growth Tools for Seller Plus help.fiverr.com
IRS: Self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare taxes) irs.gov