What should US freelancers charge per hour? BLS wages converted to freelance rates

By SoloWOS teamPublished October 18, 2026

IN SHORT

To match an employee's full pay package, a US freelancer needs about 1.9 to 2.4 times the median hourly wage, depending on how much of a 2,080-hour year they bill. Using May 2025 BLS data, a graphic designer's median wage of $30.27 an hour becomes about $59 per billable hour at 75% billable time and $74 at 60%.

Prices and limits as of October 26, 2026.

Key takeaways

Equivalent freelance rate = median hourly wage / 0.685 / billable share, where 0.685 is wages' share of total pay for full-time private-industry workers (BLS, June 2026).
At 75% billable time the multiplier is 1.95; at 60% it's 2.43.
The table covers 19 occupations, from photographers ($21.47 median, $42 to $52 equivalent) to software developers ($65.38, $127 to $159).
These are break-even rates to match an employee, before business expenses. They are not survey data on what freelancers charge.
BLS wage data exclude self-employed workers, so the medians describe employees in the same occupation.

"What should I charge?" usually gets answered with someone's anecdote. This post answers a narrower question with public data: what hourly rate does a freelancer need to earn the same total package as the median employee in their occupation? It's the original-data page of our winning clients hub, and it uses the same logic as the freelance rate calculator.

How we got these numbers

Median hourly wage: from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which reports May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) medians. Where the Handbook gave only an annual figure for an occupation, we divided it by 2,080 hours, the convention BLS uses for full-time annual pay (marked with * in the table).
Benefits gross-up: in June 2026, wages and salaries were 68.5% of total employer compensation costs for full-time private-industry workers; benefits (paid leave, insurance, retirement and legally required benefits) were the other 31.5% (BLS ECEC). Dividing the wage by 0.685 gives the full package an employer pays for each paid hour.
Billable share: a freelancer is paid only for billable hours. We assume 2,080 available hours a year and show two cases: 75% billed (1,560 hours) and 60% billed (1,248 hours). Holidays, sales and admin sit in the unbilled share.
Formula: equivalent rate = median hourly wage / 0.685 / billable share, rounded to the dollar.

Why taxes look missing: legally required benefits in the ECEC include the employer's share of Social Security and Medicare. A self-employed person pays both halves as self-employment tax, 15.3% on most net earnings for 2026 (IRS Topic 554), with the Social Security part capped at a $184,500 wage base (IRS Topic 751). The gross-up therefore covers roughly the half an employee never sees. Income tax applies to both employees and freelancers, so it doesn't change the comparison.

Equivalent freelance rates for 19 occupations (May 2025 wages)

Median employee wage vs the freelance rate needed to match the full package. * hourly derived from the annual median / 2,080.
Occupation	SOC code	Median hourly wage	Freelance rate at 75% billable	Freelance rate at 60% billable
Software developers	15-1252	$65.38*	$127	$159
Data scientists	15-2051	$57.80	$113	$141
Web and digital interface designers	15-1255	$50.00*	$97	$122
Special effects artists and animators	27-1014	$49.06	$95	$119
Management analysts (consultants)	13-1111	$48.97	$95	$119
Web developers	15-1254	$44.54*	$87	$108
Technical writers	27-3042	$43.46	$85	$106
Accountants and auditors	13-2011	$40.23	$78	$98
Market research analysts	13-1161	$37.87	$74	$92
Editors	27-3041	$37.46	$73	$91
Writers and authors	27-3043	$36.98	$72	$90
Film and video editors	27-4032	$36.26*	$71	$88
Public relations specialists	27-3031	$35.94	$70	$87
Interior designers	27-1025	$32.31	$63	$79
Graphic designers	27-1024	$30.27	$59	$74
Interpreters and translators	27-3091	$28.93	$56	$70
Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks	43-3031	$24.36	$47	$59
Fitness trainers and instructors	39-9031	$22.67	$44	$55
Photographers	27-4021	$21.47	$42	$52

Wage sources: the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook pages listed at the end, all citing May 2025 OEWS data, checked October 18, 2026. Derived hourly figures: software developers $135,980 a year, web and digital interface designers $104,000, web developers $92,650 and film and video editors $75,420, each divided by 2,080. The market research analyst figure is the Handbook's profile; SOC 13-1161 in the OEWS also includes marketing specialists.

Worked example: a graphic designer

WORKED EXAMPLE

From $30.27 an hour to a freelance rate

Median wage: $30.27 an hour, or $62,960 a year. Full package with benefits: $30.27 / 0.685 = $44.19 per paid hour, about $91,900 a year. At 75% billable time (1,560 hours), the rate to earn that is $91,900 / 1,560 = about $59. At 60% (1,248 hours) it's about $74. Add $6,000 a year of software, equipment and insurance and the rates rise by about $3.85 and $4.81, to roughly $63 and $79.

That's the floor for matching a median employee, not a target. A designer with a niche or a portfolio that wins larger clients should be above it; the table only shows the number below which freelancing pays less than the job down the street. For the rest of the pricing logic, see the guide to pricing a freelance project.

Why the multiplier is about 2x, not 1.3x

Benefits: an employer adds about 46 cents in benefits for every dollar of wages for full-time private workers (31.5 / 68.5, June 2026). A freelancer pays for all of it, including the other half of Social Security and Medicare.
Unbilled time: an employee is paid for all 2,080 hours, including holidays and admin. A freelancer who bills 75% of those hours has to earn the year's package in 1,560 hours.
Together: 1 / 0.685 / 0.75 = 1.95, and 1 / 0.685 / 0.60 = 2.43.

Limits of this analysis

Not what freelancers charge. OEWS surveys employers about employees and excludes the self-employed. Market rates for freelancers can be higher or lower than these break-even figures.
National medians. Pay varies widely by state, city and industry, and the gap between the lowest and highest 10% of earners in each occupation is large.
Two dates. The wages are from May 2025 and the benefits share from June 2026, the latest of each when we checked.
One benefits share for everyone. Benefits vary by occupation and employer size; we use the all-industry full-time average.
No expenses. Add your own business costs, as in the example, or enter them in the rate calculator.
Paid leave counted once, as money. If you take weeks off on top of the unbilled share, divide by fewer hours.

Download the data

CSV (copy into a .csv file)

occupation,soc_code,median_hourly_wage_usd,hourly_derived_from_annual,rate_75pct_billable_usd,rate_60pct_billable_usd,wage_reference_period,benefits_share_source
Software developers,15-1252,65.38,yes,127,159,May 2025,BLS ECEC June 2026 full-time private 68.5% wages
Data scientists,15-2051,57.80,no,113,141,May 2025,same
Web and digital interface designers,15-1255,50.00,yes,97,122,May 2025,same
Special effects artists and animators,27-1014,49.06,no,95,119,May 2025,same
Management analysts,13-1111,48.97,no,95,119,May 2025,same
Web developers,15-1254,44.54,yes,87,108,May 2025,same
Technical writers,27-3042,43.46,no,85,106,May 2025,same
Accountants and auditors,13-2011,40.23,no,78,98,May 2025,same
Market research analysts,13-1161,37.87,no,74,92,May 2025,same
Editors,27-3041,37.46,no,73,91,May 2025,same
Writers and authors,27-3043,36.98,no,72,90,May 2025,same
Film and video editors,27-4032,36.26,yes,71,88,May 2025,same
Public relations specialists,27-3031,35.94,no,70,87,May 2025,same
Interior designers,27-1025,32.31,no,63,79,May 2025,same
Graphic designers,27-1024,30.27,no,59,74,May 2025,same
Interpreters and translators,27-3091,28.93,no,56,70,May 2025,same
Bookkeeping accounting and auditing clerks,43-3031,24.36,no,47,59,May 2025,same
Fitness trainers and instructors,39-9031,22.67,no,44,55,May 2025,same
Photographers,27-4021,21.47,no,42,52,May 2025,same

Turn the rate into income

A rate only matters if the hours behind it get billed. Use the self-employment tax calculator to see what you'll owe on the result, and track billable hours for a month to replace the 60% or 75% assumption with your real share. In SoloWOS, each project carries its own hourly rate and invoices are built from the unbilled time; every tool is included in Solo for $15/month. Pages by profession: graphic designers, web developers, copywriters and photographers.

Questions

Is this what freelancers in my field actually charge?

No. It's the rate a freelancer needs to match the median employee's wage plus benefits, based on BLS employer data. BLS wage surveys exclude self-employed workers. Treat the figure as a floor to compare against, then look at your local market and your own win rate.

Why use 60% and 75% billable time?

They bracket a common range for solo freelancers once sales, admin and time off are counted. Below 60%, rates have to climb steeply; above 75% is hard to sustain. Track your time for a month and use your real share in the freelance rate calculator.

Does the rate include self-employment tax?

Roughly, yes. The benefits gross-up includes the employer's half of Social Security and Medicare, which is the part of the 15.3% self-employment tax an employee doesn't pay. Income tax isn't added because employees pay it too.

How often will this table be updated?

When BLS publishes new OEWS wage estimates (yearly, usually in spring) or a new ECEC quarter changes the benefits share noticeably. The reviewed date on this page shows when the figures were last checked.

Sources

Facts checked against these sources on October 18, 2026. Rules and amounts change, so confirm them at the source before you file or sign.

Last reviewed: October 18, 2026

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