LegalCalculatorTools

Flat Fee Pricing Calculator

Price a flat fee from your internal cost, a target margin and a risk buffer, and see how far the matter can overrun before it stops covering cost.

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Free · No sign-up · Runs in your browser

Flat fees fail in one of two ways: priced from the rate card, they are too high to win the work; priced from optimism, they lose money on every matter that runs long. Both come from pricing against the hourly rate rather than against cost.

This calculator prices from the loaded cost of doing the work, applies a risk buffer for the matters that overrun, and adds the margin you actually want. The most useful output is the headroom figure - how far the matter can run over before the fee stops covering cost.

Your numbers

Results update as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Result

Flat fee

$5,386

Hours of overrun headroom

19.1

Base cost
$2,810
Risk buffer
$422
Gross profit
$2,154
Margin achieved
40%
Implied hourly rate
$299.21
Break-even hours
37.1

This tool performs arithmetic on the values you enter. It does not provide legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.

The headroom figure is the point of a flat fee: it shows how far the matter can overrun before the fee stops covering cost.

Cost per hour means your loaded cost - salary, benefits and overhead divided by realistic working hours - not the rate you charge.

How to use the flat fee pricing calculator

  1. Enter the hours you expect the matter to take.
  2. Enter your loaded cost per hour - salary plus benefits plus overhead, divided by realistic working hours.
  3. Add expenses, then set a risk buffer for overrun and the margin you want.
  4. Read the fee, the implied hourly rate and the hours of headroom.

What people use this for

  • Pricing a fixed fee for a repeatable matter type.
  • Deciding whether a flat fee a client has proposed is viable.
  • Understanding how much overrun a fee can absorb.
  • Comparing flat-fee pricing against the equivalent hourly estimate.

Worked examples

Every figure below is produced by running this calculator against the example inputs, so the numbers always match the tool.

A repeatable matter

18 hours at a $145 loaded cost, $200 of expenses, a 15% risk buffer and a 40% target margin.

Flat fee
$5,386
Hours of overrun headroom
19.1
Implied hourly rate
$299.21

A less predictable matter

The same work with a 35% risk buffer to reflect greater uncertainty.

Flat fee
$6,323
Hours of overrun headroom
25.6
Break-even hours
43.6

Cost per hour is not your rate

The loaded cost is what an hour of that person’s time costs the firm: salary, employment taxes, benefits, and a share of rent, technology, insurance and support, divided by the hours they realistically work.

It is invariably far below the rate card, and using the rate card instead is the most common flat-fee pricing error. It produces a fee that is uncompetitive and a margin calculation that is meaningless.

Headroom is the whole point of a flat fee

A flat fee transfers overrun risk from the client to the firm. That is why clients like them, and it is only sustainable if the price includes enough buffer that a normal overrun does not eliminate the margin.

The headroom figure - the difference between break-even hours and estimated hours - is the number to check before agreeing. If a matter can only overrun by two hours before losing money, the fee is too tight for anything but the most predictable work.

Methodology and assumptions

What this calculator does, and what it deliberately does not do.

  • Base cost = estimated hours × loaded cost per hour, plus expenses. The risk buffer is applied to that base.
  • The fee is set so that the margin percentage is achieved on the buffered cost.
  • Break-even hours divide the fee by the loaded cost per hour; headroom is that figure minus the estimated hours.
  • The tool performs arithmetic or date counting on the values you enter. It does not interpret a rule, a statute or a contract.
  • Nothing you type is transmitted or stored - the calculation runs entirely inside your browser.

This website provides general informational and productivity tools and does not provide legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship.

The date and deadline tools count days exactly as you instruct them. They do not interpret court rules, statutes of limitation, filing requirements or any other legal authority, and they do not know the rules of your jurisdiction.

Always verify any date, fee, or calculation against the governing rule, the court calendar and your own professional judgement. If you need legal advice, consult a lawyer licensed in your jurisdiction.

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate loaded cost per hour?

Total annual cost of employing the person, including a share of overhead, divided by the hours they realistically work in a year. It is usually a third to a half of the rate card.

What risk buffer should I use?

It should reflect how well you know the matter type. Repeatable work with a defined scope needs very little; anything with an unpredictable counterparty needs considerably more.

Do flat fees make more or less money than hourly?

On predictable work, usually more, because efficiency gains stay with the firm rather than reducing the bill. On unpredictable work they can lose heavily.

Should the flat fee include expenses?

Either way works provided the engagement letter is explicit. Excluding disbursements is common and avoids the fee moving with third-party costs you do not control.

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