Estimate what remains from a freelance scope after direct project costs and a tax reserve. The calculator starts with the revenue attached to the scoped work, subtracts costs you assign to that work, and then reserves a user-selected percentage of the remaining profit.
This helps when comparing differently sized scopes or checking whether a proposed fixed fee still produces acceptable earnings after subcontractors, software, travel, or other direct costs. Because the tax percentage is only a planning assumption, the result is best treated as estimated net earnings for pricing decisions rather than a statement of final tax liability.
1. Enter the scope revenue
Use the fee or revenue tied to the defined piece of client work.
2. Add direct costs
Enter project-specific costs such as subcontractors, paid assets, travel, or dedicated software.
3. Set a reserve percentage
Choose the percentage of pre-reserve profit you want to hold back for taxes.
4. Review net earnings and margin
Check both the dollar result and its share of revenue before agreeing to the scope.
The model applies the entered reserve rate only after direct project costs. Other overhead not entered here can reduce true business profit.
The main result is the estimated amount left from the scoped work after entered direct costs and the selected tax reserve.
Results depend on the assumptions you enter; use realistic inputs and update them when workload, costs, or pricing conditions change.
Given:
Calculation:
Profit before reserve = $6,800 − $1,240 = $5,560
Tax reserve = $5,560 × 0.26 = $1,445.60
Estimated net earnings = $5,560 − $1,445.60 = $4,114.40
Net earnings margin = $4,114.40 ÷ $6,800 × 100 = 60.5%
Result:
Estimated net earnings: $4,114.40.
The figure shows what remains after the entered direct costs and reserve, but before any unallocated overhead or personal expenses.
Usually this calculator treats your compensation as what remains in net earnings, so your own labor is not entered as a direct project cost. If you are analyzing a multi-person business, you may model labor costs differently.
The simplified tool stops at that point because it is designed for positive-margin scope planning. A loss-making scope should be analyzed separately with the full negative profit shown.
It is based on revenue after the entered direct costs. That keeps the reserve from being applied to money already assigned to those project costs.
It makes scopes of different sizes easier to compare. A high dollar result can still represent a weak margin if the project requires substantial costs.
No. It is a project-level estimate and may omit shared overhead, depreciation, financing costs, and other accounting or tax adjustments.