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Freelance vs Full-Time Developer in 2026: The Math Nobody Does
For the first six months of my freelance career, my hourly rate was $11.40. I remember the exact number because I had produced it with a spreadsheet and a straight face. I took the monthly income I wa
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Proof Over Promises.
The walk from $11.40 down to roughly $6.50 net is the part people should copy into their own sheet. Once you take out the 20% of non-billable time and the 30% for taxes and tools, the headline rate stops meaning much. Splitting it into four lines (true hourly, benefits, utilization, volatility) also makes the full-time offer comparable instead of just a bigger round number.