What’s inside the spreadsheet
4 sheets, 9 live formulas, 0 guesswork. Works in Excel and Google Sheets.
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Sheet 1 Start Here A 60-second walkthrough so you don’t wander into the numbers lost. Pre-filled example based on a typical week so you can see how it works before plugging in your own data.
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Sheet 2 Hourly Rate The math. Time buckets (shooting, editing, driving, admin, scouting) on one side. Revenue on the other. The formula spits out your true hourly rate and tells you whether it’s livable, survivable, or a crisis.
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Sheet 3 Honesty Mode A 12-question diagnostic that scores you on the hidden time costs most photographers don’t track: gear research, social media, quote writing, “free touch-ups.” The score is brutal. The fix is in the workbook.
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Sheet 4 What Changes This The 4 levers that actually move your hourly rate — and the 6 levers that don’t, no matter what the gurus tell you. This is where most of the real value lives.
true-hourly-rate-calculator.xlsx · Hourly Rate sheet
| Shoots per week | 4 |
| Average price per shoot | $250 |
| Total weekly revenue | $1,000 |
| On-site hours (per shoot) | 1.5 |
| Editing hours (per shoot) | 2.0 |
| Drive + admin hours (per shoot) | 1.5 |
| Total weekly hours | 20 |
| TRUE hourly rate | $50/hr |
| Reality check | ⚠ Fixable with systems |
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