Freelance & Solopreneur Rate Calculator: Europe
What you'd need to charge as a freelancer in 🇬🇧 United Kingdom to match your salaried take-home, after income tax, social contributions, and VAT. Switch countries instantly.
Last updated: Maintained by Notwen Editorial
England 2024/25 rates. Personal allowance £12,570 tapered above £100k. Class 4 NIC 6% / 2%. VAT registration mandatory above £90k turnover.
£60,000
Share of working hours you actually bill
EU norm: 20 to 30 vacation days + 8 to 12 public holidays
Why isn't it just salary / 2080?
Seven factors separate salaried take-home from what you must bill as a freelancer in United Kingdom. Five are assumptions you can override (); two are fixed by tax law ().
Paid leave + public holidays
EU statutory minimum is 20 days vacation + public holidays. Most countries grant 25 to 30 days vacation in practice. Freelancers do not get those days off, and the rate must absorb the unbilled time.
Employer social contribution
Your gross salary is not what your employer spends on you. Employer social contributions vary by country: ~13.8% UK NI, ~21% Germany, ~42% France, ~30% Italy, ~30% Spain, ~7% Ireland, ~12% Netherlands. As a freelancer, that money has to come from your billable rate.
Self-funded benefits
Even with statutory health insurance, freelancers in most EU countries self-fund disability cover, supplemental pension, professional liability insurance, and equipment. Default 8% of salary.
Bench time
European freelancers typically bill 60 to 75% of available hours. The remaining 25 to 40% is sales calls, scoping, admin, learning, and gaps between projects. Your rate must absorb this.
Business overhead
Software, accountant fees (€600 to €2,000/yr), business banking, coworking, and tools that salaried workers expense at work. Default 8%.
Sole trader (Class 4 NIC)
England 2024/25 rates. Personal allowance £12,570 tapered above £100k. Class 4 NIC 6% / 2%. VAT registration mandatory above £90k turnover.
VAT (20%)
Above £90,000 annual revenue you must register for VAT and charge 20% on top of your services. Below the threshold, registration is optional in most countries (KOR / Kleinunternehmer / forfettario / franchise en base).
Your rate card
What the client pays, what you keep, after income tax + social contributions + overhead.
An invoice at this rate
This is exactly how Notwen would format it for a United Kingdom client, including VAT handling and Net-30 terms.
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Frequently asked questions
About this calculator
Last updated: 2026-05 (Tax year 2024).
Method: Reverse-engineers freelance gross revenue from your salaried take-home in United Kingdom, modelling the country's income tax brackets, employee and employer social contributions, and the self-employed regime (Sole trader (Class 4 NIC)). VAT is added to the sticker rate above the United Kingdom registration threshold.
Disclaimer: Estimates only, not tax advice. We do not model: regional surtaxes (Spain autonomic, Italy regional IRPEF, French CSM), spouse credits or family quotient (France parts, UK Marriage Allowance), retirement contributions, deductible expenses beyond the simple overhead %, and country-specific niche regimes (Germany Gewerbe, Spain Beckham law for inbound workers, Netherlands 30%-ruling). Talk to a local accountant for filing-grade numbers.
Calculating from a different country?
Each version models the local tax model and currency from the ground up.