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Consulting Rate Calculator

Turn a target annual income into an hourly, half-day, day-rate and engagement price for independent consulting work.

Share of consulting days that are actually billed.

Advanced options

For the rate-multiplier comparison only — leave 0 to skip.

Day rate
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Hourly rate
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Half-day rate
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5-day engagement
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10-day engagement
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Monthly retainer equivalent
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Rate multiplier vs. wage
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The rate multiplier compares your day rate to a comparable employee's hourly wage. There is no universally "correct" multiplier — it depends on how much unpaid overhead, risk and non-billable time you carry that an employee doesn't.

How it works

Formulas used

Billable hours = Days/year × Hours/day × Utilization Hourly rate = (Compensation + Overhead) / (1 − Reserve% − Margin%) / Billable hours Day rate = Hourly rate × Billable hours/day 5-day engagement = Day rate × 5   |   10-day engagement = Day rate × 10 Monthly retainer equivalent = Recommended annual revenue / 12

Worked example

$140,000 target compensation, $15,000 overhead, 150 consulting days/year, 6 billable hrs/day, 80% utilization, 10% reserve, 15% margin gives a day rate in the low-to-mid four figures — try the calculator above with your own numbers.

Limitations

This is a planning estimate for your internal break-even and target economics, not a statement of market rates for your specialty.

Related calculators

Project Pricing Calculator
Price a fixed-scope engagement with a risk buffer.
Margin vs. Markup Guide
Understand the difference before setting a target margin.
Service Pricing Calculator
The general-purpose version of this engine.

Frequently asked questions

How many consulting days per year is realistic?

Many independent consultants land between 120-180 billable days once travel, proposal writing and admin time are subtracted from ~250 working days.

What does the rate multiplier mean?

It shows how many times your day-equivalent hourly rate is above a comparable employee wage — useful context, not a target to hit exactly.

Choose the right consulting unit

Hourly, daily, project and retainer prices solve different buying problems. Use the calculator to establish an economic baseline, then select the unit that best matches the scope, decision cycle and level of access the client needs.

Match price to engagement

  • Use a day rate for workshops, on-site work or clearly bounded advisory sessions.
  • Use project pricing when outcomes and deliverables are clearer than the hours required.
  • Build retainers around access, cadence and capacity rather than an unlimited-hours promise.

Before sending a proposal

  • Separate reimbursable travel and specialist costs from your professional fee.
  • Price preparation, follow-up and stakeholder coordination even when they happen off-camera.
  • Add a scope-change mechanism so new deliverables do not silently reduce your effective rate.