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Work out your minimum rate, recommended rate, day rate, and monthly retainer fee — based on the income you actually want, not a guess.
Insurance, software, self-employment taxes, equipment, and any other cost of running your practice.
52 minus vacation, holidays, and time off for BD.
Hours you can actually bill a client — not hours spent on admin, BD, or delivery overhead. Shown as a % of a 40-hour week.
Buffer above break-even for reinvestment, slow months, and risk.
How this works
Start from your target annual income, add your annual business expenses (insurance, software, taxes, equipment), then divide by your realistic billable hours for the year — not your total working hours. Most consultants can only bill 50–70% of a standard work week once admin, business development, and delivery overhead are accounted for. Add a profit margin on top so you're building a business, not just covering costs.
It divides your required revenue — target income plus business expenses — by your realistic annual billable hours, then layers a profit margin on top. The result is a minimum rate (break-even) and a recommended rate (with margin), which it also converts into a day rate and a monthly retainer figure.
It converts your hourly rate into a monthly retainer figure based on your committed billable hours, then adjusts it to reflect the discount clients typically expect in exchange for guaranteed, recurring revenue.
Add your target salary to your annual business expenses to get your required revenue, then divide by your realistic annual billable hours — typically 50–70% of a standard work week once admin, BD, and delivery overhead are subtracted. That's your minimum rate; add a profit margin for your recommended rate.
Yes. Retainer engagements usually come at a 5–15% discount off your standalone hourly rate — you're trading some margin for predictable revenue and lower BD overhead. Project-based work usually carries a 10–20% premium, since it carries more scope risk and no guaranteed follow-on work. Toggle between the two above to see the difference on your own numbers.
Retainer helps you manage every client, proposal, and invoice at the rate you actually deserve.
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