Freelancer pricing is one of the biggest challenges when starting out. If you’ve ever wondered how to price yourself as a freelancer or track your time properly, you’re in the right place.
The Best Way to Track Your Time as a Freelancer
You know that moment when you send an invoice, and a tiny part of you panics, wondering, Wait… did I actually charge enough for that? Or worse, Did I completely undercharge and now I’m basically working for free?
Yeah. Same.
Freelance pricing is one of those things that sounds simple but turns into a nightmare when you sit down and try to figure it out. And let’s be honest—most of us just guess in the beginning.
The thing is – pricing yourself properly is the difference between thriving and constantly scraping by. And a massive part of that? Tracking your time properly so you actually know what your work is worth.
I’ve been through all the options… manual tracking in Google Sheets (good but faffy), random guessing (bad), and now, using Timely, which has been a game-changer for actually knowing where my time goes.
So let’s break it down: how to price yourself properly, track your time without losing your mind, and make freelancing work for you.
Step 1: Figure Out How Much You Need to Earn
This is the boring but necessary part. Before you decide your rates, you need to know how much you need to make.
Here’s a simple way to figure it out:
| Expense Type | Monthly Cost (£) |
|---|---|
| Rent/Mortgage | £______ |
| Bills & Utilities | £______ |
| Food | £______ |
| Software & Subscriptions | £______ |
| Insurance (if you have it) | £______ |
| Taxes (Set aside 20-30%) | £______ |
| Savings & Emergency Fund | £______ |
| Fun Money (Yes, you need this) | £______ |
| TOTAL MONTHLY EXPENSES | £______ |
💡 Pro Tip: If you’re not saving at least 30% of your income for taxes, future-you is going to hate current-you.
Once you have this number, add an extra 30-50% on top of it for profit and buffer. That’s what you need to earn each month.
Step 2: Work Out How Many Hours You Want to Work
This is where freelancers get caught out. We assume we’ll be working 40-hour weeks. Spoiler: You won’t.
A realistic breakdown looks more like this:
| Hours Per Week | Work Type |
|---|---|
| 10-15 hrs | Client Work (Billable) |
| 5-10 hrs | Admin (Invoicing, Emails, Marketing) |
| 5 hrs | Professional Development (Learning, Networking, etc.) |
| 5 hrs | Wasted Time (Scrolling, Thinking, General Procrastination) |
| TOTAL | 25-35 hrs |
Realistically, you’ll only get paid for about 15-20 hours a week.
Unless, of course, you are a 24/7 kinda freelancer, in which case – I pray for you 🙏🏻
Step 3: Set Your Rates Based on Reality
Once you know how much you need and how many hours you can realistically work, here’s how to price yourself:
💰 Formula:
(Monthly Target Income ÷ Billable Hours) = Hourly Rate
Example:
- You need £2,500 per month
- You can only bill 60 hours per month
- £2,500 ÷ 60 = £41.66 per hour
So £40-£45 per hour is what you should be charging.
But What If You Don’t Work Hourly?
Good question. Here’s a breakdown of different pricing models:
| Pricing Model | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly Rate | Easy to calculate, good for retainer clients | Caps your earnings, penalises efficiency |
| Project-Based | Clients like it, clear upfront pricing | If you underestimate time, you lose money |
| Value-Based | You get paid for results, not hours | Harder to sell to new clients |
| Retainers | Predictable income, stability | Can feel like a job, needs clear scope |
What I Do:
- Hourly rate for VA work (Retainers make it easier to predict income)
- Flat fee for branding & website projects (Because time tracking every tiny thing is a pain)
- Extra fees for out-of-scope revisions (Because otherwise, clients will keep tweaking forever)
Step 4: Track Your Time (Without Losing Your Mind)
Ok, here’s where Timely comes in.
I used to manually track everything in Google Sheets. It worked but was a massive hassle when it came to invoicing. Timely changed everything.
Why I Love It:
✅ Tracks everything automatically – You install a tool called Memory, and it logs all your computer activity for you.
✅ Helps when you task-hop – If you, like me, jump between tasks 500 times a day, you can go back later and sort out what time belongs to what project.
✅ Less admin, more actual work – Instead of stopping every 5 minutes to start/stop a timer, Timely does it for you.
The Downsides:
⚠️ Doesn’t track “thinking time” – If you spend an hour staring at your ceiling working through a design problem, Timely won’t log that unless you manually add it.
⚠️ Doesn’t track phone activity – If you message clients via WhatsApp, answer emails on the go, or take calls away from your laptop, Timely won’t catch it.
⚠️ Not free – It’s a paid tool, but honestly? Worth it if you bill by the hour.
How to Track Phone-Based Work
Since Timely’s Memory doesn’t log what you do on your phone, here’s how you can factor that in:
Option 1: Create a Manual Entry for Phone Work
At the end of the day, add an entry in Timely (or wherever you track time) for phone-based tasks.
- Example: If you spend an hour a day on WhatsApp messages, checking emails, or responding to clients, log that as “Client Communication” or “Admin & Comms” manually.
Option 2: Use Screen Time Data to Estimate Work Hours
iPhone: Settings > Screen Time > See All Activity
Android: Digital Wellbeing & Parental Controls
Check time spent on WhatsApp, Gmail, Slack, etc., then add that time manually to Timely.
Option 3: Block Out a Fixed Time for Client Messaging
If messaging takes up roughly the same amount of time each day, just add a recurring time block in Timely or your invoicing notes.
- Example: If you message clients for 5-6 hours across a month, add an extra 6 hours to your retainer invoice as Client Comms.
💡 Pro Tip: If you’re doing loads of client comms, consider charging a management fee rather than including it in your hourly work.
Final Thoughts:
Freelancing is about finding balance and not forgetting WHY you want to work for yourself. Yes, getting clients is great but you need to make sure you’re being paid properly for your work.
Step 1: Know how much you actually need to earn
Step 2: Be realistic about your billable hours
Step 3: Pick the right pricing model for your work
Step 4: Track your time properly (Timely = Life Saver)
If you’re sick of feeling like you’re always working but never making enough, take an hour today to figure out your numbers. Future you will thank you.
