Freelancers search this after a client asks “can you just give me a number?” Time-overrun tables show what extra hours do to a fixed rate. This page puts the same hours next to hourly at your target so you can see both bills before you send either one.
Open the Quote Margin Check calculator and keep your own price, hours, and target rate. The table below uses the page defaults: $2,400 quoted, 24 delivery + 5 admin + 6 revision hours, $180 overhead, $300 subcontractor, $75/hour target.
As quoted, $480 of direct costs leaves $54.86/hour and a $705 gap below the $3,105 target price. Hourly at that same target would bill $3,105 — $705 more than the fixed quote. That is not “should send hourly.” It is the cash difference if the client paid the supplied target rate for the same hours.
| Extra time | Hours | Fixed effective rate | Hourly bill | Hourly minus fixed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| planned | 35.00 | $54.86/hour | $3,105.00 | $705.00 |
| +10% | 38.50 | $49.87/hour | $3,367.50 | $967.50 |
| +25% | 43.75 | $43.89/hour | $3,761.25 | $1,361.25 |
| +50% | 52.50 | $36.57/hour | $4,417.50 | $2,017.50 |
A $2,000 quote for 10 hours at a $100 target with no direct costs already bills $1,000 more than hourly ($2,000 vs $1,000). Extra hours still grow the hourly bill while the fixed price stays put. The table will show a negative “hourly minus fixed” rather than hiding that the fixed quote is the higher bill.
Enter the numbers from your own estimate. This page does not recommend a billing model, write a proposal, or claim a quote is profitable.
Compare the same hours and direct costs both ways. A fixed quote stays the same if the work runs long; hourly bills those hours at your target rate plus the same costs. On the calculator example ($2,400, 35 hours, $480 of direct costs, $75 target), hourly at planned hours would bill $3,105 — $705 more than the fixed quote.
Yes for hourly, no for the fixed price. At +50% hours (52.50 hours) the fixed effective rate falls to $36.57/hour while hourly would bill $4,417.50 — $2,017.50 more than the $2,400 quote. The extra hours are eaten on the fixed path and billed on the hourly path.
No. The table is arithmetic on the figures you typed. It does not recommend a billing model, write a proposal, or claim a quote is profitable. You decide what to send.