How to price your first freelance project

Your first quote does not need to be perfect. It needs to cover the work you will actually do, say what is included, and be written down before you start. Here is a plain eight-step method, a worked example, and a free calculator that does the math with your own numbers.

This page explains a method. It does not tell you what to charge. Rates vary by field, location, experience and client, and you set your own.

The eight steps

1. List the deliverables with counts. “Five product photos, edited, delivered as JPG” beats “some photos.” If you can’t count it yet, ask more intake questions first.
2. Estimate hours for each deliverable. Think through the real steps: research, drafts, exports, uploads.
3. Add the hidden hours. Kickoff call, emails, file wrangling, invoicing. New freelancers often forget these, and they add up.
4. Price revision rounds on purpose. Decide how many rounds are included and what one round means (for example, “one batch of written notes”). Add the hours for those rounds.
5. Add a buffer for unknowns. A first job with a new client usually has surprises. Pick a buffer percentage you’re comfortable with and write it into your own notes, not the proposal.
6. Choose your hourly target. This is your number. Look at what similar work is listed for on job boards in your field and at public freelancer rate surveys, then decide. The method below works with any rate.
7. Turn hours into a price the client can read. A fixed project price (with scope and rounds listed) or an hourly rate with a cap. Either is fine; just be clear which one it is.
8. Set payment terms before you start. When the invoice goes out, the due date, and whether there’s a deposit. Put the due date in writing.

Worked example (made-up numbers)

The rate below is a placeholder so the math is visible. It is not a recommended rate.

Job: 4 blog posts, ~1,000 words each, 1 revision round each

Writing:           4 posts x 3.0 h  = 12.0 h
Research/outline:  4 posts x 1.0 h  =  4.0 h
Revision round:    4 posts x 0.75 h =  3.0 h
Calls + email + invoicing           =  2.0 h
Subtotal                            = 21.0 h
Buffer for unknowns (15%)           =  3.2 h
Total estimate                      = 24.2 h

Placeholder rate: $40/h  ->  24.2 x 40 = $968
Rounded project price: $970 for 4 posts, 1 revision round each.
Extra rounds or posts: quoted separately.

Run your own numbers in the free project price calculator. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

How to write the price in your proposal

Price: [AMOUNT] for [DELIVERABLES WITH COUNTS], including [N] revision round(s) per deliverable (one round = [DEFINITION]).
Not included: [OUT OF SCOPE]. Extra work is quoted before I start it.
Payment: [DEPOSIT, if any] on acceptance; balance due [DATE / N days after delivery].
This quote is valid until [DATE].

Then drop it into the free one-page proposal outline and the scope of work template.

Common first-project pricing mistakes

• Pricing only the “creative” hours and none of the calls, email and admin.
• Unlimited revisions, or never saying what one round means.
• No out-of-scope line, so every new request looks like part of the deal.
• Starting before a due date and payment terms are written down.
• Saying a number on a call and never confirming it in writing.

Want the worksheets?