1. Timekeepers
From your billing system's timekeeper report for one period (a quarter or a year). Hours available is optional and gives utilization.
| Name | Hours recorded | Standard rate $/hr | Billed $ | Collected $ | Hours available |
|---|
2. Period and optional balances
Fill in the table, then click Calculate.
Result
By timekeeper (largest dollar loss first)
| Name | Standard value | Billed | Collected | Written down | Lost after billing | Realization | Collection | Yield | Effective $/hr |
|---|
What a better yield is worth, per year
Against your target
The arithmetic, and what it leaves out
- Standard value = hours recorded × standard rate. Realization = billed ÷ standard value. Collection = collected ÷ billed. Yield = collected ÷ standard value. Effective rate = collected ÷ hours recorded.
- Lockup days = unbilled time ÷ (standard value per day) + receivables ÷ (billing per day). Period days are months × 30.4.
- One point of realization = 1% of standard value, collected at your current collection rate, scaled to a year.
- Billing above standard (fixed fees, premiums) is allowed and shows as realization over 100%. Collected above billed is rejected as a probable period mismatch.
- Not included: costs, overhead, partner compensation, contingency or flat-fee profitability, trust-account balances, whether any fee is reasonable or permitted, and any benchmark for what a good yield is, because that varies by practice area and firm size and no figure here is a standard.
Common questions
What is a law firm's realization rate?
Realization is the share of the standard value of recorded time that actually gets billed: amount billed divided by hours recorded times standard rate. Collection rate is the share of what was billed that gets paid. Multiply the two and you get the yield, the share of recorded time that turns into cash. This calculator gives all three per timekeeper and for the firm.
Why rank timekeepers by dollars lost instead of by rate?
A low rate on a small number of hours can cost less than a mediocre rate on a full-time book. The calculator sorts by dollars of standard value that never became cash, and says when the lowest-yield person is not the biggest loss, so the first conversation is the one worth the most.
Where do the three numbers come from?
From reports most billing systems already print: the value of time recorded at standard rates (a WIP or timekeeper productivity report), the amount billed, and the amount collected, each for the same period and per timekeeper. No client or matter data is needed.
What is lockup?
Lockup is the days of work tied up between recording time and receiving cash: unbilled time (WIP) divided by recorded value per day, plus receivables divided by billing per day. Enter your balances to see it.
Is it a good idea to just raise the standard rate?
A higher standard rate only helps if the extra reaches the client invoice and gets paid. Check the yield first: if a third of recorded value is already trimmed or never collected, a higher rate can increase the write-down by the same amount. The target section shows whether your gap is hours or yield.
Is my firm's data uploaded?
No. The calculation runs in your browser tab, a test in the code asserts there are no network calls, and nothing is stored except opt-out-able anonymous feature counts on your own device.