{
  "slug": "photographer-day-rate",
  "title": "Photographer Day Rate Calculator",
  "heading": "Photographer Day Rate Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/photographer-day-rate",
  "summary": "The rate you must charge to hit a target salary after gear and taxes.",
  "description": "Shoot days are only part of the work. Editing, admin, and marketing consume unbilled hours, and gear, insurance, and software come out before tax. This reverse-engineers a sustainable day rate.",
  "formula": "Day rate = (target salary ÷ (1 − tax rate) + overhead) ÷ billable days.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=photographer-day-rate",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "salary",
      "label": "Target take-home salary",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 65000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "overhead",
      "label": "Annual overhead (gear, insurance, software)",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 14000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "shootDays",
      "label": "Billable shoot days per year",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 60,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "editHours",
      "label": "Edit hours per shoot day",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 8,
      "unit": null,
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "taxRate",
      "label": "Effective tax rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 26,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 55
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "rate",
      "label": "Required day rate",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "revenue",
      "label": "Annual revenue needed",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "hourly",
      "label": "Effective hourly (incl. editing)",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "hours",
      "label": "Total working hours per year",
      "format": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Target take-home salary: 65000 $",
      "Annual overhead (gear, insurance, software): 14000 $",
      "Billable shoot days per year: 60",
      "Edit hours per shoot day: 8",
      "Effective tax rate: 26 %"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Required day rate: $1,697",
      "Annual revenue needed: $101,838",
      "Effective hourly (incl. editing): $94.29",
      "Total working hours per year: 1,080"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter target take-home salary ($).",
      "Enter annual overhead (gear, insurance, software) ($).",
      "Enter billable shoot days per year.",
      "Enter edit hours per shoot day.",
      "Enter effective tax rate (%).",
      "Read your required day rate on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "salary": 39000,
        "overhead": 8500,
        "shootDays": 36,
        "editHours": 5,
        "taxRate": 16
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "salary": 65000,
        "overhead": 14000,
        "shootDays": 60,
        "editHours": 8,
        "taxRate": 26
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "salary": 104000,
        "overhead": 22500,
        "shootDays": 96,
        "editHours": 13,
        "taxRate": 42
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "Why is my effective hourly so low?",
      "a": "Because editing, culling, client emails, and travel are unbilled. A 10-hour wedding routinely carries 8 to 15 hours of post-production, which is why day rates look high relative to hourly work."
    },
    {
      "q": "Should second shooters come out of this?",
      "a": "Yes — add their cost to overhead or subtract it from the day rate before you compare rates with other photographers."
    }
  ],
  "related": [],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Photographer Day Rate Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/photographer-day-rate)"
}