CalcStack — free, instant, no signup. The interactive calculator loads automatically.
The goal is not the rate — it is the hours you can actually sell.
A $300,000 year at $250/hour means 1,200 billable hours — but at a realistic 70% utilization a 40-hour week only yields 1,344 of them. This calculator works out the required hours, compares them against your true capacity, and shows the weekly pace you must hold — before you promise anyone the number.
Law associates use it to see whether the firm's hours target is even reachable at their utilization. Solo consultants use it in January: revenue goal ÷ rate ÷ honest utilization, then they find out what the year actually requires before booking anything.
Law firm associates are often targeted at 1,800–2,000 billable hours per year, which implies 75–85% utilization of a 40-hour week — and most report working far more than 40 hours to get there. Solo consultants and freelancers typically land at 50–65%: the rest goes to sales, admin, invoicing, and marketing. Plan with 60–70% unless your numbers prove otherwise.
A 40-hour week for 48 weeks is 1,920 worked hours; at 70% utilization that is 1,344 billable. The BigLaw 2,000-hour standard requires roughly 2,700–3,000 total hours — which is why it is described as a lifestyle, not a schedule.
Three levers: raise the rate, raise utilization (better admin discipline or productized services), or add leverage (junior staff, subcontractors). Cutting vacation weeks is the fourth lever, and it is the one most people quietly pull first — the calculator makes that trade visible.