Accountants Billable Hours (Hourly) Calculator
Estimate monthly and annual fee revenue from your hourly rate, available work hours, billable utilization and working days.
Overview
Use this Accountants Billable Hours (Hourly) Calculator to estimate the fees your practice could bill each month and year. Enter your average hourly rate, daily work capacity, expected billable utilization and working schedule to model chargeable hours and gross billings.
How it works
The calculator first multiplies available work hours by your billable utilization percentage to estimate daily chargeable time. It then multiplies that figure by working days to calculate monthly billable hours. Monthly billable hours are multiplied by your hourly rate to estimate monthly billings, and the selected number of working months is used for the annual estimate. These figures represent gross billings rather than profit or cash collected.
How to use this calculator
- 1Enter the average hourly rate you charge clients.
- 2Add the work hours you have available on a typical day.
- 3Set the percentage of that time you expect to bill to clients.
- 4Enter your average working days per month.
- 5Review the estimated billable hours and gross monthly and annual billings.
Example Calculation
Hourly billing rate
$150
Available work hours per day
8
Billable utilization
65%
Working days per month
20
Working months per year
12
Estimated monthly billings
$15,600
At 65% utilization, 8 available hours per day and 20 working days per month, the practice estimates 104 billable hours and $15,600 in monthly billings. Over 12 months, this is approximately $187,200 before expenses and taxes.
Frequently asked questions
What are billable hours for an accountant?
Billable hours are time spent on client work that can be charged under an hourly engagement, such as accounting, tax preparation, advisory work or client meetings.
What is billable utilization?
Billable utilization is the percentage of available work time that is charged to clients. The remaining time may include administration, business development, training, internal meetings and leave.
Does this calculator show accounting practice profit?
No. It estimates gross billings from chargeable hours. To estimate profit, subtract staff costs, software, rent, insurance, marketing, taxes and other business expenses.
How can I increase estimated billings?
Estimated billings rise when the realized hourly rate, available working time, billable utilization or number of working days increases. Consider capacity and service quality when setting targets.
Why might actual billings be lower than the estimate?
Actual results may be lower because of unpaid invoices, fixed-fee work, discounts, write-offs, holidays, slower demand or more non-billable work than planned.
Should I use my advertised or realized hourly rate?
Use your average realized hourly rate where possible. This reflects the rate actually achieved after discounts, write-offs and differences between service lines.
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Assumptions and warnings
Assumptions
- Billable utilization represents the share of available work hours that can be charged to clients.
- The hourly rate is assumed to be the average realized rate for all billed work.
- The estimate assumes a consistent number of working days, hours and utilization each month.
- Billings are shown before operating expenses, discounts, write-offs, taxes and uncollected invoices.
- Results are estimates and do not account for changes in client demand or pricing.
Warnings
- This calculator provides a business planning estimate only and is not financial or tax advice.
- Actual revenue can differ because of client mix, collection timing, write-offs, leave and non-billable work.