How To Set Your Freelance Writing Rate in 2025

Writers often choose to freelance to gain more flexibility and control over their careers. As a freelancer, you get to decide how much you charge, the hours you work, and what projects you accept. 

However, if you’re just starting out, you may be unsure how to set your rates. And if you’ve been working for a while at the same rates, you might wonder if they’re still competitive!

Pay transparency can help you figure out how much you should make as a freelance writer. Sites like Glassdoor encourage employees to post their salaries for different companies, which can give you a base range for how much writers typically make in various industries, companies, and locations. Trade organizations for writing and editing often will research and share average rates with their members to help with fair compensation.

Read on to learn more about how to set your freelance writing rate in 2024. 

Assess your writing skills and experience

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When setting your freelance writing rates, you'll want to consider many different aspects, from your experience as a writer to the various types of writing you'll be doing. As a new freelancer, you may charge less to build your reputation and portfolio and earn positive reviews. You can raise your rates as you complete more jobs and gain experience.

Average writing service rates depend heavily on experience level, demand for services, and reviews on platforms like Upwork. If you've worked with big-name companies, have excellent writing samples, or are highly specialized in your field, you can often justify charging more in your profile. Some writing skills are in higher demand than others, which means clients will typically pay more for this service. 

Research industry standard rates

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Start by researching the average rates for your specific writing skill to help determine your base prices. Use those averages to structure your costs, adjusting higher or lower depending on your experience, reputation, and similar factors. 

If you've been freelancing for a while, take some time to research what other independent professionals in your field, like you, are charging clients hourly. Use this as a baseline to see if you're charging above, below, or at market value. It may be time to raise your hourly rate if you've been working steadily at this rate for a reasonable amount of time and have added to your portfolio.

Researching different writing skills and their industry standard rates will help you decide what you want to focus on as a writer and identify your niche. 

Consider the scope and complexity of the project

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All projects are not created equal. An article for one company may need much more research than an article for another. Making sure you have a project brief and understand the full scope of the project helps you know what to charge a client. 

Take into account the copy requirements along with the amount of research and background work needed, like interviews or meetings. A heavily researched technical e-book will be complex and require more time and thought than a creative or opinion-based piece.

Turnaround times and deadlines are other important factors to consider when figuring out how much to charge as a freelance writer. Some companies and clients will expect you to complete the copy in a short time frame or have a rush project that requires a same-day turnaround, and you'll need to charge more to prioritize it over other projects. It's common for freelance writers to have a "rush fee" and charge a premium for quick turnarounds.

Calculate your hourly rate

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On your Upwork profile, you’ll need to set your hourly freelance rate. This is the standard rate that clients will see when they look at your profile. When submitting a proposal, you may decide to increase or decrease your hourly rate depending on the project. Having an idea of what your base rate is makes it easier to negotiate with clients and set per-project rates. 

When calculating your target hourly rate as a freelancer, you want to start with the minimum you need to earn to maintain your current quality of life. This includes rent, utilities, health insurance, and any other recurring expenses that you have each month. 

The Freelance Rate Calculator can help you calculate your expenses and also takes into consideration how many holidays and sick days to account for. The tool will estimate the minimum hourly rate you’d need to charge clients along with the annual amount of hours billed to cover your expenses. 

Under “health insurance/other” you can include other monthly costs that you may have like retirement savings, work-related tools and subscriptions, accounting services, professional development expenses, and other equipment like your phone and computer. 

Keep in mind that as a freelancer, your billable hours may be different than your hours worked. You’ll need to factor into your rate the time you spend applying for jobs and doing administrative tasks like invoicing. 

A freelancer may decide to have different rates for content writing vs. copywriting. Something strategic like an ad or banner may have less copy but require just as much time as a short blog. Highly specialized services like grant writing or medical writing typically have higher average rates.

One of the main benefits of becoming a freelance writer is being able to work on projects that excite you. While you may have experience writing highly technical articles, if it’s not your passion, you may decide to charge more for that service and submit proposals for other types of writing that you enjoy more to build your portfolio. 

Factor in overhead costs and taxes

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Freelancers are self-employed. This means that when working on Upwork, income and other taxes are not withheld from your earnings. You’ll need to report the income you’ve made freelancing and possibly pay taxes on your earnings. Taxes can vary greatly depending on where you live and work. You can learn how to access your Upwork tax information and forms as you manage finances. 

You can use the Freelance Tax Calculator to help get an estimate of how much you’ll owe in taxes based on where you live and your projected income. When setting your freelance rate and managing your finances, you’ll want to take any overhead costs and taxes into account. 

Generally, finance professionals recommend that freelancers and other independent professionals save 20 to 30% of their income (after expenses) to cover taxes. You may also want to reinvest a percentage of your earnings into your freelancing business. On Upwork, you can set a reserve balance of up to $250 to pay for Connects and monthly membership plans. 

Consider your non-billable hours. You may work 40 hours a week but can only bill clients for 30 of those hours. The other time you spend marketing your business, submitting proposals, interviewing, and doing administrative work needs to be factored into your overall hourly rate. 

Keep in mind your operational costs. This may include the software you use to perform your work, certifications you need to keep active, and buying Connects to submit proposals and run ads. As a freelancer, you’re responsible for finding your clients and marketing your services, but these aren’t hours you can directly bill clients for. 

When working as an independent professional, you don’t receive benefits like a full-time employee would. You’re responsible for covering your own healthcare, insurance, retirement planning, and any time you take off for sick days or vacation is unpaid. Freelancers also have to provide the tools they need to perform a service like a computer, internet, and software. 

Decide on a pricing model (hourly, per word, or per project)

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As a freelancer, you get to decide on your pricing model—how you will charge your clients. This can vary from contract to contract. Some clients prefer to pay for a freelance writer’s time and engage in hourly contracts. They can assign their freelancer many different tasks at once, all under one contract, and let the freelancer log their hours. Other clients prefer to pay a set price upfront, either per word or per milestone.

You can explore different pricing models to determine which works best for you. 

By hour

Many clients like to hire freelancers on an hourly contract, either logging hours manually or using a time tracker. Hourly contracts are helpful when there are various writing tasks to complete or for long-term engagements. Instead of trying to figure out how much time each individual writing piece will take, you can simply track your hours spent writing overall.

On Upwork, you can use the Time Tracker in the desktop app to automatically track your time or input it manually if the contract allows. The Time Tracker records activity like mouse clicks and keystrokes and also takes random screenshots. It logs these into your Work Diary so your clients can see what you're working on.

Advantages of hourly freelance writing rates

• Easier to price multiple projects
• No "unpaid hours" or earning less due to underestimating how much time a project will take
• Paid for editing, revisions, and changes
• Feel less rushed to complete work
• Clients pay for meetings or extra work 
• Typically preferred for enterprise clients

Disadvantages of hourly freelance writing rates

• As you learn to write for a client faster, you earn less
• Does not include time spent submitting proposals or admin work
• Hourly rate may sound high to clients even when you may earn the same when charging by project
• Articles may take less time as you work with repeat clients
• Manual time tracking can be a hassle
• Client may not want to deal with an undefined final cost

What is the average freelance hourly rate? 

• Technical writer. $20-$45
• Content writer. $15-$40 
• Copywriter. $19-$45
• SEO writer. $15-$35
• Resume writer. $25-$65
• Grant writer. $35-$60
• Blog writer. $15-35

By word

Charging by word is convenient for articles with a strict word count and for estimating the price for batches of work. Many clients who need SEO or blog articles prefer paying by word. Charging by word can be helpful for pieces that may seem harder to quote, like websites, landing pages, or social media copy. Copywriters typically bill per word for sales and advertising materials.

Advantages of by-word freelance writing rates

• High return for longer pieces that require minimal research
• Experts or specialized writers can typically charge more
• Quick and easy to give price quotes to clients
• Clients may be intimidated by an hourly rate but feel more comfortable paying by word (even when the earnings are the same)

Disadvantages of by-word freelance writing rates

• Have to factor in revisions and research
• Can be difficult to predict an article's final length
• Hitting a specific word count can be challenging
• Lower ROI for shorter pieces that may require lots of time, like headlines or SMS copy

Average price per word for freelance writers

Beginner. $0.05-$0.10 per word

Intermediate. $0.30-$0.50 per word

Advanced. $1-$1.50 per word

How to calculate per-word freelance writing rate

Start by deciding how much you would charge for a 1,000-word article for each different type of writing you do. Your rate for a technical article will most likely be higher than a creative blog. Next, divide each of those rates by 1,000; that is your per-word rate for each category.

Example: You charge $100 for a 1,000-word article

100/1000 = 0.10

If you charge $100 for a 1,000-word article, your per-word rate is $0.10.

By project 

Many clients like to hire freelance writers by project, paying a flat rate for their services. Paying by project is often easier for clients looking for one-off jobs or if they have a strict budget. They know exactly what they're paying, and there shouldn't be any surprises. On Upwork, you can search for hourly or fixed-price writing jobs.

As a freelancer, you may earn more by charging a flat rate for certain projects, especially as you gain experience and grow more efficient. While you may still make the same amount for an article, charging a flat rate of $300 for a piece that takes you two hours is reasonable, but a client may be put off if you ask for the same amount hourly ($150 per hour).

Advantages of by-project freelance writing rates

• Freedom to work on your own schedule
• No time tracking required
• Hourly rate can increase with efficiency
• Encourages productivity

Disadvantages of by-project freelance writing rates

• If there's heavy editing or changes, you can end up making less per hour
• Can be harder to determine a fair price
• Clients may try to negotiate lower prices
• Scope creep can become an issue 

Average writing service rates by project

• White paper. The average freelance writing rate for a whitepaper depends on the length and the amount of research needed. Writers typically charge around $500 for a short whitepaper (1,000-2,500 words) and $5,000 or more for a longer one (3,000-5,000 words) that requires interviews or other background information. 
• Research article. A writer who is new to freelancing and doesn't have many reviews could charge less for the first couple of articles. The low end for a 1,000-word research article is around $75, while an experienced writer may charge closer to $250 or more. 
• Blog article. Less technical articles are often quicker to write, so you may want to charge less. A 1,000-word blog article averages around $50 at the lower end and $175 at the higher end.
• Social media captions. As a social media content writer, charging a set price for posts and letting clients pay per project is common. The rate depends on how long the captions are and how much time you estimate it will take. The average price for social media captioning ranges from $1 to $10 per post.
• Email. Determining your freelance copywriting rate for an email depends on the length of the email and the type of copy. If you need to create a long newsletter with statistics, it will require more time than an image-heavy product email. A short email can cost anywhere from $25 to $50, while freelance writers often charge $150 to $500 and more for longer emails.

Determining how much to charge for a flat-rate project

Your rates will change from project to project, depending on the requirements and scope, but you can determine how much to charge by estimating how long it will take you to complete. If you know how many words or pages you can typically write in an hour, you can use this to quote projects depending on what you decide is a fair hourly rate based on your skills and experience and the value you bring to your clients.

Depending on your process, you might consider adding the time it takes you to make edits, do additional research, and communicate with your client.

Adjust rates based on client type and budget

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The type of client and the involvement they expect are serious considerations in rate setting. A large company that frequently works with independent talent and provides detailed briefs might only need a quick conversation to get things started and a wrap-up after a project’s completion. A new business owner might need more guidance or expect to be more involved in the process. 

Some clients have a quicker review process and are relatively hands-off, while others need multiple revisions. If you have clients you know are easy to work with, you may want to keep their rates lower to encourage more work.

Building relationships with great clients is one of the keys to creating a steady workflow as a freelance writer. Many freelance writers charge more for one-off pieces and slightly less for ongoing work. If you have a predictable schedule that you can count on, you're spending more time working and earning and less time looking for new projects and clients. You may decide to charge $200 for a single blog article but only $750 for a package of four. 

When responding to job invites and submitting proposals, you’ll be able to see the client’s budget in the job description. Independent professionals can also look at a client's work history to see what they've paid other freelancers for past projects, as well as their overall average pay rates. 

Tips for negotiating rates with clients

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Part of being a freelancer is negotiating your rates with clients. When submitting a proposal, you’ll be able to include your hourly or per-project rate. Typically, you want this rate to be within the client’s budget. If you have a Freelancer Plus account, you’ll be able to see what other freelancers bid for the project, which can be helpful for determining your rate and negotiating. 

You can start the negotiation process in your proposal by explaining why you charge less or more than other freelancers. Newer freelancers may charge less in the beginning to build their reputation, and letting clients know this in your proposal can be helpful. Rates are often based on skills, experience, and quality. Clients may initially dismiss a proposal that has a lower rate, assuming that means poor work quality. Explaining that you’re doing this to win more work and gain feedback can be helpful.

If you charge a premium for your services, you’ll want to demonstrate the value that you bring to your clients and justify the higher rates. In your proposal, you can include a quick highlight of results you’ve achieved for other clients. 

Depending on the contract, you may be able to include a scheduled rate increase in your proposal. This is helpful for long-term hourly contracts. As you hit certain milestones, your hourly rate will automatically increase, so you stay competitive.

Clients may want to negotiate rates in the interview process. Know your key selling points and what benefits you’ll bring to the client. Prepare ahead of time so you feel confident. At first, negotiating can feel uncomfortable, but it’s important to make sure you’re being paid what you’re worth. 

Tips for a successful negotiation: 

• Decide on a minimum acceptable price. Before the interview, determine the minimum hourly or project rate you’ll be comfortable accepting.
• Know the market rate. Research industry standards so you can let clients know that what you’re charging is competitive and fair. 
• Demonstrate your value. Confidently communicate your key selling points (experience, positive feedback, skillset) and share some of your top client success stories. 
• Pitch a trial project. Offer to do a smaller paid test project for clients first before committing to a bigger project. 
• Consider adjusting scope. Work with clients to see what you can achieve within their budget by changing the scope of the project. 

Start working as a freelance writer!

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Embarking on your journey as a freelance writer means reimagining what a traditional work week might look like. An endless number of doors is just waiting for you to open them. Knowing how to set your rates is an important early step—after that, Upwork helps make finding your first freelance writing job easy. Set your freelance writing rate and begin building your reputation so you can work on projects that excite you.

If you’re already an accomplished writer, you want to check periodically that your rates are both competitive and fair. Upgrading to Upwork Freelancer Plus lets you see what other freelancers bid on a project to help strategize your pricing along with other benefits like more Connects each month and full access to Uma, Upwork’s Mindful AI.  

Complete jobs successfully to gain credibility, build your portfolio, and add reviews to your profile. It all starts by signing up on Upwork!‍

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This article is intended for educational purposes. Rates were pulled from the Upwork platform, represent averages, and were current at the time of writing. The rates given are provided as potential options, and each reader should set rates that are commensurate with their skills and experience, and appropriate to the industry and project.