Salary to Freelance Rate: What Hourly Rate Matches Your Salary?
If you earn a salary today and want to go freelance, the tempting shortcut is to divide that salary by 2,080 working hours. That number is a trap. For the same take-home pay, a freelancer typically needs about 2.5 to 3 times the hourly rate, because tax, costs, time off and unpaid work all land on you.
The table below shows the real numbers for six countries, calculated with each country's 2026 income tax and self-employed contributions.
Salary to freelance rate: the table
Each row asks: what is the lowest hourly rate that lets a freelancer keep this much a year, after tax and business costs? The last two columns show the naive salary ÷ 2,080 figure and how many times higher the real rate is.
| Country | Yearly take-home | Minimum hourly rate | Salary ÷ 2,080 | Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States (federal) | $50,000 | $62 | $24 | 2.6× |
| $75,000 | $97 | $36 | 2.7× | |
| $100,000 | $134 | $48 | 2.8× | |
| United Kingdom | £35,000 | £42 | £17 | 2.5× |
| £50,000 | £64 | £24 | 2.7× | |
| £70,000 | £97 | £34 | 2.9× | |
| Israel | ₪150,000 | ₪188 | ₪72 | 2.6× |
| ₪240,000 | ₪353 | ₪115 | 3.1× | |
| ₪360,000 | ₪587 | ₪173 | 3.4× | |
| Australia | A$60,000 | A$72 | A$29 | 2.5× |
| A$90,000 | A$114 | A$43 | 2.6× | |
| A$130,000 | A$174 | A$63 | 2.8× | |
| India | ₹1,000,000 | ₹978 | ₹481 | 2.0× |
| ₹2,000,000 | ₹2,211 | ₹962 | 2.3× | |
| ₹4,000,000 | ₹4,981 | ₹1,923 | 2.6× | |
| Netherlands | €40,000 | €47 | €19 | 2.5× |
| €60,000 | €85 | €29 | 2.9× | |
| €90,000 | €139 | €43 | 3.2× |
Assumptions for every row: 40 hours a week, 60% of them billable, 6 weeks off (1,104 billable hours a year), business costs of 8% of take-home, a single person with no other income and no extra deductions. These are the calculator's defaults, so you can reproduce any row there. Canada, Germany and Brazil are left out of this table because they need extra inputs (provincial tax, health insurance, or your tax regime): use the calculator for those.
A worked example: US freelancer, $75,000 take-home
| Step | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Federal tax and self-employment tax | on profit of $101,139 | $26,139 |
| Profit after tax | $101,139 − $26,139 | $75,000 |
| Add business costs | $101,139 + $6,000 | $107,139 revenue |
| Divide by billable hours | $107,139 ÷ 1,104 | about $97 an hour |
The salary shortcut gives $75,000 ÷ 2,080 = about $36. The real minimum is roughly 2.7 times that. State tax would push it higher still.
Why the multiple grows with income
Income tax is progressive, so each extra dollar you want to keep needs more than a dollar of revenue. In Israel the multiple climbs from 2.6× to 3.4× as take-home rises, and in the Netherlands from 2.5× to 3.2×. India's multiple is lower because the first 12 lakh of income is tax-free under the new regime, so a ₹10 lakh goal owes no income tax at all.
What moves your rate the most
- Billable share. Dropping from 60% to 40% billable raises the rate by half. New freelancers who are still finding clients should plan with a lower share.
- Weeks off. Every unpaid week is revenue you must earn in the other weeks.
- Where you pay tax. The same take-home needs a different rate in each country. Our guide shows the formula step by step.
- Not yet modelled. State or provincial tax, health insurance and pension contributions all raise the rate further.
Get your own number
Choose your country, enter the take-home you want and see your minimum rate in seconds, with a 15% buffer suggested.
Open the free calculatorFrequently asked questions
Should I use my gross salary or my take-home pay?
Use take-home pay, meaning what you actually keep each year. The calculator then adds the freelance tax and costs on top. A gross salary includes employer-side tax and benefits that work differently when you are self-employed.
Is "double your salary rate" a good rule of thumb?
It is the right idea but too low. In every row above the real multiple is at least 2.0×, and for most mid-range incomes it is 2.5× to 3×. Doubling would leave you short once tax, costs and unpaid time are counted.
Why do these numbers differ from my calculation?
Your billable share, weeks off, costs and personal tax situation will differ from the defaults above. Change those inputs in the calculator to see your own rate.