Break-Even Rate Calculator
Use this to estimate a rate and monthly revenue that cover your fixed monthly costs and per-hour costs. Enter realistic billable hours; this is a break-even target and does not include extra costs or profit you have not entered.
Enter monthly costs and expected billable hours below. The break-even results update as you change them.
Monthly Break-Even Rate Calculator
Determine the minimum billable rate to cover overhead and variable project costs
Your break-even rate is the baseline price where revenue equals total expenses (zero profit, zero loss). Any billable rate below this figure produces an operational deficit.
Formula: Break-Even Rate = (Monthly Fixed Costs ÷ Billable Hours) + Variable Cost/Hr
Minimum hourly charge to cover all monthly overhead & variable costs
Break-Even Mechanics & Capacity
Divide monthly fixed costs by billable hours to find the overhead assigned to each hour. Add the per-hour costs to see the rate that covers the amounts entered:
Count only hours you expect to bill. Time spent estimating, traveling, picking up supplies, or handling administration reduces your available billable hours.
Worked Example
Illustrative monthly cost assumptions:
- Fixed Monthly Costs: $5,000.00 (Van note, insurance, shop space, software, phone)
- Expected Monthly Billable Hours: 100.0 hours
- Variable Cost per Hour: $20.00 / hr (fuel, tool maintenance, consumables)
Under these assumptions, $70 per billed hour covers the modeled $50 overhead allocation and $20 variable cost. Additional costs or taxes not entered here are not included.