Free tool from VANA
What Should You Actually
Be Charging?
Stop guessing. This free calculator walks you through your real expenses, your actual billable hours, and your income goal — so you land on a rate you can stand behind with confidence.
Step 1 Your expenses
Step 2 Your hours
Step 3 Your rate
What do you want to earn?
Start here — your income goal drives everything else
Full expense breakdown
4 categories • 30+ line items • Most VAs find $3,000–$8,000 in missing costs
Members only
Essential tech & tools
Internet • Phone • Software • Equipment • Storage • Website • more
Business & professional
Accounting • Legal • Insurance • Bank fees • Contractors • more
Marketing & growth
Email provider • Ads • Memberships • Training • Conferences • more
Personal business costs
Health insurance • Dental • Retirement savings • Home office • more
Are you sure you’re including everything? Most VAs forget health insurance, retirement contributions, and software subscriptions — that’s often $3,000–$8,000/year that should be built into your rate.
Join VANA to unlock full breakdown
How many hours can you actually bill?
Not every working hour earns money — let's find your real number
2,080
Total hrs
→
165
Less time off
→
573
Less admin
→
1,342
Billable
New to VA work? Allow 30% for admin, marketing, and onboarding. More experienced VAs typically run at 70–75% billable. Be honest with yourself here — this number matters!
Compare a second income scenario
What if you changed your goal or hours?
Your hourly rate
Calculated from your real numbers above
Your minimum hourly rate
$40.08
per hour
$50,000
Income goal
$6,720
Annual expenses
1,342 hrs
Billable/year
—
Half-day (4 hrs)
—
Full day (8 hrs)
—
20-hr retainer/mo
This is your floor, not your ceiling! This covers your real costs and income goal. Your niche, experience, and the results you get for clients can justify charging 20–40% more. You've got this!
Trusted by 100,000+ freelancers worldwide since 2003
Your rate is just the starting point.
As a VANA member you get the complete version of this pricing tool — the full 4-category expense breakdown with 30+ line items so your rate is built on your real numbers, not a guess. Plus everything you need to actually land clients who’ll pay it.
Private Community
27,000+ topics and 155,000+ posts in a safe, members-only space. Post a question, get real answers from VAs who’ve actually been there.
Direct Access to a VA Coach
Get real support from Tawnya Sutherland, a VA industry pioneer with 20+ years in the trenches — answering your questions and sharing insights inside the community with you.
Monthly Challenges + Weekly Action Steps
Clear direction every single week. No more guessing what to work on next — just consistent, focused progress toward your goals.
Training Replays + Live Sessions
Monthly live sessions packed with practical strategies, all recorded and waiting in your dashboard whenever you need them.
Exclusive Member Perks
Special discounts and member-only offers on products, tools, training, and resources from VANA and our Premier Partners.
VANA Seal of Approval
Display it on your website to instantly signal to potential clients that you’re backed by the most established VA network in the world.
$9.70/month
Monthly membership
Cancel anytime
or
Best value
$97/year
Annual membership
Less than two coffees a month
Join the VANA Community Today
Already a member? Log in here