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I was asked to make a small company a website. Considering im not a pro yet, but have an in depth knowledge of web development with javascript and php and design with CSS, how much should i charge them when i'm done with the project?

asked Apr 18 '10 at 11:57

Str83dg3's gravatar image

Str83dg3
958

edited Apr 20 '10 at 22:45

Randell's gravatar image

Randell ♦♦
1.6k1529

3

How many pages are you working on? How complex are features that require PHP/DB? How long do you think you can deliver the project, including all minor change requests?

(Apr 19 '10 at 00:25) leypascua leypascua's gravatar image

Three factors to consider:

  1. How much can you get away with? Or, to put it more mildly, how much is the project worth to the client?
  2. What's the market rake for projects of this type and size? Consult elance.com and oDesk.com for reference rates.
  3. How much will it cost you to do this? Use your overtime rate, then add some because you'll be using your own equipment, electricity, and network to build this project.

Obviously, you should not charge lower than #3. If do your research and you're sales-savvy you can get away with #1. If not, then you will have to settle with charging a figure that corresponds to #2.

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answered Apr 19 '10 at 10:37

radamanthus's gravatar image

radamanthus
1.1k110

Target monthly income / 160 = Hourly rate

(Hourly rate * Number of hours the project requires) + Extra expenses = Project rate

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answered Apr 20 '10 at 07:53

simoncpu's gravatar image

simoncpu
772

What does the magic number (160) stand for?

(Apr 20 '10 at 16:22) Randell ♦♦ Randell's gravatar image

yeah what's that ? :D

(Apr 20 '10 at 21:04) katz katz's gravatar image

160 = 8 hours a day x 5 days a week x 4 weeks

(Apr 20 '10 at 22:37) Greg Moreno Greg%20Moreno's gravatar image
1

160 stands for "I want to live life normally! I want to have fun on weekends! I'm not a robot who doesn't need rest!" :p

(Apr 21 '10 at 12:12) simoncpu simoncpu's gravatar image

LOL simoncpu that made me laugh lol

(Apr 22 '10 at 00:58) Str83dg3 Str83dg3's gravatar image

I'd want to land a job like that if I could. xD

(May 02 '10 at 01:03) Jonn Jonn's gravatar image
showing 5 of 6 show all

For consulting rate, I follow this formula:

rate, $/hour = (current annual salary x 1.3) / 2000, rounded to the nearest $5 increment where 2,000 is approximate number of hours worked in a year

Now for a shameless plug, I have a short blog post on dollarizing your time here http://gregmoreno.ca/dollarize-your-time/

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answered Apr 20 '10 at 22:40

Greg%20Moreno's gravatar image

Greg Moreno
397110

You are not a pro (meaning you don't have much experience) but what is your speed or how long do you work projects or tasks?

I have worked with 20 year-olds who work faster than those who are more experienced. And yes, they charge higher! Gifted kids.

Have you tried ODesk? I have been working via ODesk and you get nearly exactly what you deserve there :D Overtimes are paid but usually the time it takes for you to "think" or reflect on how you're going to solve a problem isn't. Review time isn't paid depending on client expectations.

Try psychological costing. I am financial management grad (with 7 years experience in web development) but I don't believe in conventions and most of their advice on pricing. It is not what you incur due to the project but what you expect to get from it based on your confidence and quality of your work.

For me, it's this simple:

Your hourly rate = Your budgeted income (expected income) from that project for the month/week divide by no. maximum no. hours devoted to that project per month/week

Which is the same as the answer above - targeted monthly income/ hours.

If I'd follow Greg's formula, I'd get a frustrating result. For consulting and ODesk projects, it's the result from Greg's formula * 2 :D

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answered Apr 22 '10 at 23:25

katz's gravatar image

katz
90612

edited Apr 22 '10 at 23:42

Usually 40-60k per month for working on a software or web service from scratch. It can go cheaper though, especially if we are just talking about static websites. This is as per candidates that I've interviewed who do freelance. :)

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answered May 06 '10 at 01:53

Karen%201's gravatar image

Karen 1
191

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Asked: Apr 18 '10 at 11:57

Seen: 1,219 times

Last updated: May 06 '10 at 01:53