Day & Hourly Rate Calculator

What it does

Works out the day rate or hourly rate that covers the income you want to keep, the tax on your profit and the cost of running the business, spread over the days or hours you can actually bill. Revenue needed = costs + take-home ÷ (1 − tax rate); rate = revenue ÷ billable days or hours.

What you'll need

• The take-home pay you want in a year.
• Your yearly business costs.
• Your effective income-tax rate on profit (0% if you entered a pre-tax figure).
• How many weeks you work, and how many days or hours a week are billed.

Steps

1. Pick Day rate or Hourly rate.
2. Enter what you want to keep, your yearly costs and your tax rate.
3. Enter your working weeks and the days or hours a week a client actually pays for.
4. Read the rate, and the rounded figure to put on a quote.

Reading the result

The rate is the minimum that hits your target if every billable day is booked. The breakdown under it shows where the money goes. VAT or sales tax goes on top of the rate, not inside it.

Tips

• Be honest about billable days: many full-time photographers shoot two or three days a week, because editing, admin and marketing fill the rest.
• Count gear replacement as a cost: a €3,000 camera replaced every four years is €750 a year.
• Use your effective tax rate (total tax ÷ profit), not your top bracket.

How do photographers work out their rate?

The reliable method works backwards: decide what you need to earn, add what the business costs to run and the tax on the profit, then divide by the time you can sell. Starting from what other photographers charge skips the part that tells you whether that price keeps you in business.

This calculator uses one flat effective tax rate that you enter. It doesn't know your country's tax bands, allowances or social contributions, so it's a planning tool, not tax advice.

Why photographers use it

Underpricing usually comes from dividing a salary by 52 weeks of five full shooting days. Once editing, admin, travel and quiet months are counted, the billable time is far smaller — and the rate that pays the bills is higher than it feels.

Common mistakes

• Counting every working day as billable. editing, emails, accounts and marketing take most freelance weeks; only the days a client pays for go in.
• Forgetting costs that come round once a year or less. insurance, software subscriptions, a new lens, a laptop.
• Putting VAT inside the rate. if you're registered for VAT or sales tax, add it on top of the rate this calculator gives.

Examples

FAQ

How much should a photographer charge per day?

Enough to cover your take-home, your costs and your tax over the days you actually bill. With €45,000 take-home, €12,000 costs, 25% tax and two billable days a week for 46 weeks, that's about €783 a day. Your own figures will give your own answer.

How do I turn a day rate into an hourly rate?

Switch to Hourly rate and enter billable hours per week. Dividing a day rate by eight assumes every hour of the day is billed, which rarely happens.

Does the rate include VAT or sales tax?

No. The rate is what you need before VAT or sales tax; if you charge it, it goes on top.

Which tax rate should I enter?

Your effective rate: the total income tax (and social contributions, if you want them in) divided by your profit. Enter 0% if your take-home figure is already before tax.

Is anything I type sent anywhere?

No. It's all worked out in your browser and nothing is stored.