Guide · Hourly rate for freelancers
You're thinking 300 kr/t.
You should charge 500.
Most freelancers calculate forward: "What will the market pay?" and work down from there. That's the wrong direction. Your hourly rate should be calculated backward, from what you want to earn.
Written 16 April 2026 by Mathias Søndberg-Madsen, founder of Timerr.
Why calculating forward is wrong
Ask Google what a freelancer charges per hour and you get the range 400-1.500 kr/t. It's accurate, and it's completely useless. The range tells you what other people bill. It doesn't tell you what you need to bill to make ends meet.
Your hourly rate isn't a market price. It's an equation. On one side is what you want to earn. On the other is everything your hourly rate has to cover: tax, holidays, sick days, running costs, and the hours you work without billing.
When you work backward from that number, you get a recommended minimum rate. Below that threshold you're working for free. That's not negotiation. It's math.
Forward calculation
"I saw a post-it saying designers charge 500 kr/t. So that's what I charge too."
Nothing set aside for time, tax, or costs.
Backward calculation
"I want to earn 30.000 net. So my hourly rate needs to be ~500 kr/t."
The equation is solved. The number is fixed.
The math, with real numbers
Let's take Morten. He's a freelance developer, wants to earn 40.000 kr after tax a month, and works 37 hours a week. His question is: what should my hourly rate be?
Morten's reverse calculation
The naive calculation
480.000 ÷ 1.776 = 270 kr/t
Yearly pay divided by working hours. Forgets tax, non-billable hours, and running costs.
The difference
731 - 270 = 461 kr/t
The rate per hour Morten missed if he calculated forward.
The moral: If Morten charged 270 kr/t, he wouldn't earn 40.000 a month. He'd earn around 14.000 kr/md after tax, and then he'd wonder why freelance life is so hard.
The four things your hourly rate has to cover
On top of your own pay. Understand these four and you understand why 270 kr/t isn't really 270 kr/t.
Tax and labour-market contribution
Around 45 % of your profit goes to the tax authorities before you see a krone. Your "gross income" isn't your income. It's just a number on the way to the real one.
Non-billable hours
In a 37-hour week, 10-12 hours typically go to emails, quotes, revisions, bookkeeping, and travel. Only ~70 % of your working time lands on an invoice. Your hourly rate still has to cover the rest. Read more about hidden hours here.
Holidays, sick days, and public holidays
As a freelancer you don't get paid holidays. Three weeks of summer, a week at Christmas, and a couple of sick days add up to roughly 4 weeks a year with no money coming in. That's 8 % of your year your hourly rate has to cover anyway. That's why we count 48 working weeks, not 52.
Running costs
Software subscriptions, a new laptop every three years, an accountant, insurance, a website, office space. For an office-based freelancer, typically 2.000-5.000 kr/md. It's not in the quote, but your hourly rate has to cover it anyway.
Calculate your own hourly rate
Three numbers. No login. No saved data. Just the math.
What you want in your account, every month.
The whole working week, not just client hours.
Software, insurance, accountant, gear.
Your recommended hourly rate
kr/t
Naive calculation
kr/t
If you forgot tax, holidays, non-billable hours, and running costs.
Yearly billing target
kr
Calculated with working weeks, 70 % billable time, and ~45 % tax.
The tax base varies with municipality, deductions, and business type. 45 % is a realistic rule of thumb for sole proprietors with 400-700 k in profit. For an exact calculation, talk to your accountant.
Four things you do once the number is there
Your recommended hourly rate is a floor, not a ceiling. Here's how to use it.
Stop comparing yourself to colleagues
The designer down the road might charge 600 kr/t. That's her number, not yours. She might have a partner with a steady income, no debt, or a lower tax rate. Your price is based on your life, not hers.
Negotiate up, not down
Your calculated price is the minimum. Market value, specialisation, experience, and rush jobs go on top. A strong portfolio or a niche can justify 50-100 % above the floor.
Say no to clients below your floor
If your calculated minimum is 500 kr/t and a client wants to pay 350, you're working the last 150 for free. That's not "good word-of-mouth". It's a loss, every single hour you deliver.
Measure afterward whether you're hitting the target
A calculated hourly rate is an estimate. The actual rate you end up with can be lower if your billable share is below 70 %, or if scope creep eats the time. Track it as you go and raise the price if reality drifts from the plan.
Keep reading
Guide
Effective hourly rate: charge 500, earn 300
The hidden time that eats your calendar. Find out what you really earn per hour after all the time nobody pays for.
Read the guideGuide
Fixed price vs. hourly rate: when does each win?
When a fixed price pays off, and when scope creep eats your earnings. With a break-even calculator.
Read the guideHow Timerr does it automatically
Set the price. Measure whether you hit it.
The calculation above gives you a number. Timerr tells you whether you're hitting it. Per project, per client, per week. Without opening a spreadsheet.
1.
Enter your target rate when you create a client or a project.
2.
Log your time, both billable and non-billable.
3.
See your real hourly rate vs. your target rate, in real time.
The Hobby plan is free forever. No credit card.