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//// Business · Project Billing

Scope Creep Cost Calculator

Scope creep is invisible until you do the math. Enter your original quote, scoped hours, and actual hours to see your real effective rate, how much you worked for free, and what to quote next time.

Corp Tax Rate21%
SE Threshold$400
FICA Cap 2024$168,600

Project Details

Revisions

Severe Creep31.0% rate degradation

You effectively worked 18.0 hours for free. Your rate dropped from $125.00/hr to $86.21/hr.

Original Rate
$125.00/hr
$5,000 ÷ 40 hrs
Actual Rate
$86.21/hr
$5,000 ÷ 58 hrs
Revenue Lost
$2,250
18.0 hrs worked free
Next Project Quote
$6,000
+20% scope buffer

Rate Comparison

$125.00/hr
Expected Rate
40 hrs scoped
$86.21/hr
Actual Rate
−31.0% rate drop

You worked 18.0 hours for free on this project. At your target rate of $125.00/hr, that's $2,250 in unbilled time.

Extra revision rounds alone cost $750 in unbilled time (2 rounds × 3 hrs × $125.00/hr).

Next Project — Scope Buffer

For a similarly-scoped project, quote $6,000 instead of $5,000 — adding a 20% scope buffer of $1,000.