INDEPENDENT WORK / PRICING TOOL
Price the retainer around your life, not an arbitrary hourly rate.
Turn your income goal, real billable capacity, operating costs, and scope buffer into a minimum hourly rate and a client-ready monthly retainer.
YOUR FLOOR
$0
minimum sustainable hourly rate
Does this retainer actually reach your income goal?
Clearing the hourly floor and reaching the goal are different questions. The floor is the rate that works if the whole month sells. This block prices the part nobody quotes: the hours still unsold.
Their offer against your floor
The floor is the price that covers your take-home, costs, and buffer. Their number is just a number. This block is the gap — not a recommendation to accept or walk away.
If they use less — or more — than the block
The retainer is a fixed monthly price. Hourly is the same hours at your floor rate. Modeled usage, not a contract interpretation.
| If they use | Hours | You collect | Hourly would collect | Effective $/hr | Covers floor? |
|---|
If unused hours roll into next month
A light first month that rolls leftover hours into a full second month is unpaid delivery, not a courtesy. Modeled at 50% then 100% of the new block. Cap at the buffer or expire the leftover.
| If the agreement says | Hours rolled | Month 2 hours | Month 2 $/hr | Covers floor? | Unpaid gift |
|---|
Compare retainer sizes
Same income goal and capacity. Use a smaller package if the hours you typed will not fit this month.
| Included hours | Monthly price | Effective rate | Capacity left | Share of capacity | Choose package |
|---|
Why this is different from a basic hourly-rate calculator
A $75 rate means little if only 65% of your month is billable, your tools and taxes cost $1,800, and a vague retainer absorbs unplanned revisions. This calculator makes each assumption visible so you can change it before making a promise.
Common question: this clears my floor — so why am I still short?
Because the floor rate is your revenue target divided by your whole billable capacity: it is the rate that works if every one of those hours sells. On the default plan the $1,725 retainer clears a $75/hr floor and is still only 22% of a $7,800 target — the rest rides on 84 hours nobody has bought yet, at a fill rate of 96.4%. Enter what you already have committed and the share of the rest you honestly expect to bill, and the goal check above prices that assumption instead of hiding it. Why clearing your floor is not reaching your goal works through the numbers.
Common question: how many hours should a retainer include?
Start with a scope you can deliver inside your billable capacity, then leave the buffer intact. A retainer is a commitment of access and work, not permission for unlimited requests. Compare 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 hour packages on this page, or read the longer answer in how many hours a retainer should include. Put included hours, response time, and out-of-scope pricing in your agreement.
Common question: should I sell a retainer or stay hourly?
Price the block first, then look at real usage. If they typically use half the hours, the retainer collects unused-hour cash — and often does not renew. If they can blow past the included hours without billed overage, your effective rate falls below the floor. Retainer vs hourly at real usage walks through the default numbers.
Common question: should unused hours roll over?
A leftover hour that rolls into next month is work you deliver without a second invoice. On the default 20-hour block, a 10-hour first month plus unlimited rollover into a full second month is 30 hours for $1,725 — $57.50/hr, $750 below the floor. Cap rollover at the 3-hour buffer and month 2 stays at $75/hr. See expire vs cap vs unlimited rollover.
Common question: should I accept Net 30?
A monthly price is not cash in the bank. Invoicing at month-end plus Net 30 means about 60 days before the first payment. If you cannot float that month of take-home and costs from savings or other clients, ask for prepaid. See how payment terms change the cash you float.
Common question: should I use this or a paid tool like Bonsai?
Different jobs. Bonsai is a paid subscription for running a freelance business end to end — proposals, contracts, invoicing, and time tracking. This calculator answers the narrower question that comes first: what the retainer price should actually be, checked against your hourly floor. See this calculator vs. Bonsai.
Common question: should I use this or a paid tool like Harvest?
Different jobs. Harvest is a paid subscription for logging billable hours and invoicing for them after the work starts. This calculator answers the question that comes before any of that: what the retainer price should actually be, checked against your hourly floor. See this calculator vs. Harvest.
Common question: why not just divide my income goal by my hours?
That division skips two numbers this calculator adds: monthly business costs and a scope buffer. On the default plan it prices a 20-hour retainer at $1,153.85; this calculator, adding $1,800 in costs and a 15% buffer, prices the same block at $1,725.00 — $571.15 a month left uncovered by the income-only guess. See this calculator vs. pricing from income alone.
Common questions
Should I charge a monthly retainer or bill hourly?
A retainer usually pays you more when the client uses less than the included hours, and less when they use more than the break-even hours without billed overage. This calculator prices the retainer from your capacity, then shows both sides at 50%, 75%, 100%, and 125% of the block.
When does a retainer drop below my hourly rate?
Divide the monthly retainer by your hourly floor. That is the unpaid-overage break-even. On the default plan a $1,725 / 20-hour retainer covers a $75 floor up to 23 hours; a 25-hour month with no overage lands at $69/hr.
How many hours should a monthly retainer include?
Include only hours you can deliver inside your billable capacity, and avoid selling more than half of that capacity to one client. Compare 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 hour packages against the same income goal so you can quote a range instead of one number.
Should unused retainer hours roll over?
Only if the rolled hours still leave month 2 at or above your hourly floor. On the default $1,725 / 20-hour plan, a 10-hour first month plus unlimited rollover into a full second month is 30 hours for $1,725 — $57.50/hr, $750 of unpaid time. Cap rollover at the 3-hour buffer and month 2 stays at $75/hr.
Should I accept Net 30 on a freelance retainer?
Only if you can float the monthly revenue target for the days until first cash. Invoicing at month-end plus Net 30 is about 60 days. If you cannot float that amount from savings or other clients, require prepaid or 50% on kickoff.