Average Hourly Rates: How Much To Charge Clients in 2026

What factors impact hourly rates?

To determine how much to charge for your services, consider the factors that influence average hourly rates.

In the following sections, we’ll explore the most important factors that affect the market rate, including:

• Industry,
• Location,
• Skills and experience,
• Education, and
• Gender and age.

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Average hourly rate for freelancers in 2026

US freelancers earn an average hourly rate of $47.71 in 2026, according to ZipRecruiter’s statistics, with most rates ranging from $24 to $62 per hour.

But the numbers depend on many factors that we will discuss next.

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Average hourly rates by industry

Being unaware of how much others in your field charge per hour typically leads to underpricing yourself relative to the market standard.

To help you maximize revenue by charging properly, here are the average hourly rates across industries in the US, according to Payscale.

Average hourly rates for accounting and finance:

• Financial controller — $34.49
• Accounting director — $36.46
• Accounting manager — $29.20
• Accountant — $24.89
• Universal banker — $19.74

Average hourly rates in the field of information technology:

• Data scientist — $40.84
• Software developer — $33.21
• Quality assurance engineer — $29.64
• System administrator — $28.36
• Web developer — $26.27

Average hourly rates in marketing and advertising:

• Content marketing director — $34.15
• Product development manager — $30.61
• E-mail marketing manager — $29.12
• Content marketing manager — $26.77
• Media buyer — $26.13

Average hourly rates in sales per role:

• Sales engineer — $28.48
• Account manager — $22.75
• Sales director — $22.22
• Financial service representative — $20.03
• Salesperson — $16.02

Average hourly rates by location

The world region and country you’re living in are some of the biggest factors that influence the average hourly rates.

Hourly rates by world region

Freelancer hourly rates vary drastically across different regions. Here's the full breakdown of freelancer median rates according to the data gathered by Jobbers:

• North America — $95
• Western Europe — $85
• Eastern Europe — $45
• Australia/New Zealand — $80
• Latin America — $35
• South/Southeast Asia — $25
• Middle East/Africa — $40

Hourly rates by country

Jobbers also uncovered rates across different countries. Take a look at the table below to see the median hourly rates of freelancers in various countries.

Let’s see some more examples of what the hourly rates look like for the same professions (mid-level) in different regions, according to Jobbers.

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Average hourly rates by skill level and years of experience

Skills and experience are vital factors in determining income. Let’s explore the average hourly rates for different professionals across various experience levels in the US (according to Payscale).

Entry-level (less than 1 year of experience)

Entry-level professionals have 1 year or less of experience in a specific type of work. As they lack an extensive professional background, their freelancing or consulting fees are typically lower.

Here are the average hourly rates for entry-level professionals in the US:

• Software developer — $26.28
• Project manager — $23.01
• Freelance writer — $22.09
• Accountant — $21.01

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Early-career (1–4 years of experience)

Early-career professionals usually have 1 to 4 years of experience, and make the following figures on average:

• Software developer — $31.85
• Project manager — $26.78
• Freelance writer — $29.12
• Accountant — $24.89

Mid-career (5–9 years of experience)

Mid-career professionals have 5 to 9 years of experience and make the following average figures:

• Software developer — $45.05
• Project manager — $32.80
• Freelance writer — $32.46
• Accountant — $25.68

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Experienced (10–19 years of experience)

Experienced freelancers with 10–19 years of experience make the following figures on average for their type of work:

• Software developer — $60.18
• Project manager — $37.58
• Freelance writer — $33.90
• Accountant — $26.52

Late-career (20+ years of experience)

Late-career professionals with 20 years of experience or more are typically at a stage of life that leads to retirement. Such freelancers make the following average figures:

• Software developer — $60.84
• Project manager — $38.99
• Freelance writer — $37.28
• Accountant — $27.95

Average hourly rates by education

Education is an important factor to consider when pricing consulting services. Academic qualification is also a priority for potential clients looking to hire a freelancer.

Here are average hourly earnings for 2025 based on education levels, according to the International Labour Organization:

• Early childhood education — $20.6
• Primary education — $23.2
• Lower secondary education — $22.5
• Upper secondary education — $29.7
• Short-cycle tertiary education — $37
• Bachelor’s or equivalent level — $53.2
• Master’s or equivalent level — $74.3
• Doctoral or equivalent level — $88.1

Average hourly rates by gender

According to the Global Freelance Gender Equity Study, female freelancers around the world earn 28% less than their male counterparts.

The data suggests that male freelancers are generally paid more across different fields of work. The difference is especially pronounced in software development, where men earn 35% more than women.

The overview of the gender pay gap among freelancers in different fields is in the table below:

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FAQs about the average hourly rate

Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about the average hourly rate for freelancers and consultants.

What are Upwork’s average hourly rates in 2026?

Let’s see what the average hourly rates are for freelancers on Upwork, one of the most famous work marketplaces for freelancers:

• Software developers — $55
• Programmers — $38
• Web developers — $32.5
• Project managers — $32
• Content writers and editors — $27.5
• Graphic designers — $25
• Bookkeepers — $18

The freelance consultants’ hourly rates on Upwork also vary across different niches:

• Business consultants — $63
• HR consultants — $52
• IT consultants — $21

The Upwork average hourly rate also depends on numerous factors, including skills, experience, and industry.

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Is there a link between different types of skills and average hourly freelance rates?

Yes, there’s a link between skill types and average hourly rates. Since certain professions may involve a wide range of skills, average hourly rates can vary depending on the type of skill the professional offers.

For example, here are the average hourly rates for graphic designers with different graphic design skills (in the US):

• Graphic designer with Adobe InDesign skills — $40.02
• Graphic designer with branding skills — $39.26
• Graphic designer with Adobe Illustrator skills — $33.88
• Graphic designer with Adobe Photoshop skills — $35.66
• Graphic designer with social media marketing skills — $27.69

🎓 How to Organize Yourself and Your Time as a Freelancer

How do I negotiate my freelance hourly rate?

Let’s take a look at some of the best pieces of advice on negotiating your freelance hourly rate:

1. Get familiar with the average hourly rates for your profession — it’s important to be aware of the pricing on the market to set a reasonable price.
2. Communicate confidently — after you’ve done your research and set your freelance hourly rate, share it with confidence and without hesitation.
3. Ask for a 20–30% higher hourly rate — this way, if the potential employer wants to decrease it, you’ll reach the realistic rate together.
4. Don’t settle — if the potential client offers a rate that’s too low or unrewarding, it’s okay to pass on the offer. These offers can be tempting at the beginning of your freelance career, but you shouldn’t accept them frequently.

A full-time freelancer working in strategic communications, Sloan Wyatt, never goes below her usual rate when negotiating with clients:

“I'm upfront about that rate, and I enter negotiations with a bottom line I know I'm unwilling to dip below. If I know the negotiations will be particularly difficult, I start at a higher-than-usual rate to give myself more wiggle room.”

What is a good hourly rate for a freelance artist?

According to ZipRecruiter, the average hourly rate for an artist is $28.57. The rates go as high as $43 and as low as $15.

How much is $70,000 a year hourly?

If you work 40 hours per week, $70,000 a year equals $33.65 per hour.

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Is $25 an hour a good rate?

Hourly rates vary across industries and regions. A good rate in one industry and region could be a low rate in another. Whether someone would find a specific hourly rate satisfactory depends on the expenses associated with the job and the cost of living.

Also, work experience plays a large role in how much a freelancer can expect to charge.

For illustration, an average entry-level accountant in the US earns $24.84 per hour. However, an experienced software developer in the US charges an average of $59.62 per hour.

Use Clockify by CAKE.com to track billable hours and calculate your earnings

It’s difficult to justify rate increases without tangible data. Even though you know you underpriced yourself, and that the rate increase is fair — clients won’t understand unless they see it all in black and white.

To negotiate better contracts with clients, document all billable hours and generate clear reports using Clockify!

Clockify by CAKE.com lets you track how much time you spend working on projects. This way, you’ll know how much time is being allocated to each project at all times — allowing you to spot potential scope creep early. Clockify automatically calculates your earnings based on your hourly rates.

You can set an hourly rate before you start tracking time for a specific project or apply the rate for all past and future time entries.

Once your project is complete, you can view the total billable hours and your earnings for each project.

Having information about cost and profit in one place helps you maximize billable utilization. You can also import billable hours and expenses and generate a professional invoice in no time.

All in all, Clockify lets you track work hours, invoice clients, and offer full pay transparency to your contractors, all in one place.

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