Day rate to salary calculator (UK)
A day rate looks great until you multiply it out — and most people multiply it wrong. There aren't 260 paid days in a freelancer's year once holiday, admin and gaps between contracts are removed. Enter your rate and realistic billable days to see what it actually adds up to.
Gross annual billings
£88,000
220 billable days at £400/day
- Per month (gross)
- £7,333
- Per week (gross)
- £1,692
- Annual income before costs
- £88,000
Gross billings, not an equivalent employment package
Day rate to annual income: common examples
Annual gross income = day rate × billable days. At £400 a day for 220 days, that is £88,000 a year, or about £7,333 a month averaged over 12 months.
| Day rate | 200 days/year | 220 days/year |
|---|---|---|
| £150 | £30,000 | £33,000 |
| £200 | £40,000 | £44,000 |
| £250 | £50,000 | £55,000 |
| £300 | £60,000 | £66,000 |
| £350 | £70,000 | £77,000 |
| £400 | £80,000 | £88,000 |
| £450 | £90,000 | £99,000 |
| £500 | £100,000 | £110,000 |
| £600 | £120,000 | £132,000 |
| £750 | £150,000 | £165,000 |
These are gross invoices before costs and tax, excluding VAT. Monthly averages do not predict when invoices will be paid. To work backwards, divide your target annual billings by your expected billable days: £60,000 ÷ 220 ≈ £272.73 per day.
Sources, assumptions & calculation methodsHow to use this result
The leap from a day rate to 'so what do I earn?' trips up almost every new contractor. Four hundred pounds a day sounds like £104,000 a year if you multiply by 260 weekdays — but that figure assumes you never take a holiday, never get sick, never spend a day chasing the next contract and never have a quiet month. Strip those out and the honest number is the one that matters when you're planning a mortgage or deciding whether to go freelance at all.
This calculator multiplies your rate by realistic billable days rather than the full calendar. The default of 220 is an example allowance for holidays and other non-billable days; nudge it up if you're consistently booked or down if your pipeline is lumpy. The headline is your gross annual billings, with the monthly and weekly equivalents underneath for budgeting.
Finally, resist comparing gross billings directly to a permanent salary. A salaried role bundles in employer pension contributions, paid holiday, sick pay and stability that your billings have to cover themselves. List and value those costs individually before comparing an offer. A fixed percentage discount cannot make the two arrangements equivalent.
Frequently asked questions
- Why not just multiply my day rate by 260 weekdays?
- 260 is a simple 52-week × 5-day baseline, not a promise of paid work. Subtract the days you expect not to invoice: holidays, sickness, admin and gaps between contracts. Avoid counting bank holidays twice if they are already included in your holiday allowance. Self-employed billable days depend on your contracts.
- Where does the default of 220 come from?
- 220 is an illustrative assumption: 260 weekdays minus 28 days off and 12 other non-billable days. It is not a statutory entitlement or a forecast. Enter your own expected paid days.
- Is the day rate the same as a salary?
- No — they're not like-for-like. As a contractor you fund your own pension, holiday, sick pay and equipment, and you carry the risk of empty weeks. A like-for-like permanent salary is usually meaningfully lower than your gross billings once those employer-provided benefits are valued in.
- Does this account for tax, IR35 or expenses?
- No. It shows gross billings — money invoiced before tax, National Insurance, corporation tax, accountancy fees or expenses. Your take-home depends on your IR35 status and how you operate (umbrella, sole trader or limited company), so treat this as the top-line figure.
- How do I turn billings into a comparable salary?
- There is no universal percentage. Start with expected billings, then estimate business costs and the benefits you would need to replace, including employer pension contributions. Compare tax and employment arrangements separately. This calculator does not value those differences.
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