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//// Business · Pricing

Price Increase Calculator

How many clients can you lose and still make more money? Enter your current rate, proposed rate, and client count to find your break-even churn rate instantly.

Where this fits

This tool lives inside Going 1099 and is most useful for freelancers and employees.

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

Key insight

You can lose 1 clients and still make the same money

Break-even churn rate: 20.0% · Current revenue: $24,000/mo · Proposed: $3,750 (+25%)

Your pricing

$
$

What % of clients do you expect to leave after the increase?

%

What it costs to land one new client (ads, time, referral fee, etc.)

$

raise now

Even at your estimated 15% churn, you net $1,500/month more. You can absorb up to 20% churn before breaking even.

Revenue Change

+$1,500/mo

Annual Impact

+$18,000

Break-even Churn

20.0%

1 clients

Months to Recoup

0.1

if churn occurs

Increase scenarios (at 15% estimated churn)

Current (no change)
$3,000/client$24,000/mo
+7%$3,210/client
-$2,172/mo$21,828/mo
+15%$3,450/client
-$540/mo$23,460/mo
+25%$3,750/clientyour proposal
+$1,500/mo$25,500/mo

Best times to raise your prices

  • 1.At contract renewal — existing terms expire naturally, no awkward conversation
  • 2.January 1 — clients budget annually; a new-year increase is expected and respected
  • 3.After delivering a major win — your value is freshest in their mind
  • 4.When you are turning away work — demand > supply justifies a higher rate
  • 5.With 30–60 days notice — gives clients time to plan without feeling blindsided
1

Current monthly revenue

current price × active clients

$3,000 × 8

= $24,000

2

Break-even churn rate

1 − (current price ÷ proposed price)

1 − ($3,000 ÷ $3,750)

= 20.0%

You can lose up to 20.0% of clients and still earn the same revenue

3

Clients you can afford to lose

active clients × break-even churn rate

8 × 20.0%

= 1 clients

The key insight: a price increase creates a revenue buffer that absorbs some churn

4

Clients retained (at your churn estimate)

active clients × (1 − estimated churn %)

8 × (1 − 15%)

= 6.8 clients

5

New monthly revenue

retained clients × proposed price

6.8 × $3,750

= $25,500

6

Monthly revenue change

new revenue − current revenue

$25,500 − $24,000

= +$1,500

$18,000 annualized

7

Extra monthly revenue from price increase

retained clients × (proposed price − current price)

6.8 × $750

= $5,100

This surplus pays for replacing any lost clients

8

Cost to replace lost clients

lost clients × client acquisition cost

1.2 × $500

= $600

9

Months to recoup lost clients

replacement cost ÷ extra monthly revenue

$600 ÷ $5,100

= 0.1 months

Key insight

The break-even churn rate formula (1 − current/proposed) proves that price increases create a built-in churn buffer. A 25% price increase lets you lose 20% of clients and stay flat. Most freelancers overestimate churn and underestimate how much revenue the increase generates from retained clients.

#ShowYourWork

Estimates assume all clients pay the same rate. Actual churn varies by client relationship and market conditions. Use alongside qualitative signals like referral volume and utilization rate.