Find your exact rate
Typical project work, moderate complexity.
Factor in AI tool subscriptions
Your Rate
Day Rate
$450
Project Est.
$2,200
Retainer
$8,350/mo
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Community Data
What do you actually charge?
Anonymous. Helps improve market benchmarks.
How Much to Charge Startups for Software Development
Startups typically pay $85–$150/hr for freelance software development, with MVP projects ranging from $15,000–$50,000. Rates can be higher than agency quotes because freelancers offer speed and direct communication — but expect tighter budgets and more scope negotiation than enterprise clients.
Floor
$85
per hour
Typical
$120
per hour
Premium
$150
per hour
Find your exact rate
Typical project work, moderate complexity.
Factor in AI tool subscriptions
Your Rate
Day Rate
$450
Project Est.
$2,200
Retainer
$8,350/mo
Was this helpful?
Community Data
What do you actually charge?
Anonymous. Helps improve market benchmarks.
What changes the price
- Startup stage — pre-seed, seed, Series A, or bootstrapped
- Whether they have a technical co-founder or need you to own architecture
- Urgency — pre-launch deadline vs. iterative roadmap
- Equity or deferred payment proposals (evaluate carefully)
- Budget ceiling — many early-stage startups have hard caps
- Potential for long-term engagement as they grow
- Technical debt tolerance and documentation requirements
Real quote breakdowns
Pre-seed MVP build
A two-person founding team needs a working MVP in 8 weeks to demo at an accelerator. Scope is tight: auth, core workflow, and a simple dashboard.
Breakdown
80 hours × $110/hr + $4,400 discovery sprint. Timeline premium adds ~$15/hr. No equity — founder can afford cash payment from personal savings.
Seed-stage feature sprint
A funded startup needs three key features added to their existing Rails app before a sales demo with an enterprise prospect.
Breakdown
60 hours × $150/hr. Rate reflects urgency and existing codebase ramp-up time. Delivered in 3-week sprint with daily standups.
Series A platform scaling
A growth-stage startup needs database optimization, API refactoring, and infrastructure scaling before a planned 10x traffic increase.
Breakdown
160 hours × $155/hr + $3,200 performance audit. Series A-funded client, budget approved via standard procurement.
Frequently asked questions
Should I take equity instead of cash from a startup?
Only consider equity as a supplement to — not replacement for — fair cash compensation. Equity from early-stage startups has a very high failure rate. If a startup offers equity in lieu of cash, it typically signals a cash constraint that may cause payment problems. Charge your full rate in cash; consider a small equity grant only from well-funded startups you'd join as an employee.
How do I protect myself when working with early-stage startups?
Require a deposit of 30–50% upfront before starting work, use short billing cycles (bi-weekly or weekly for long projects), and include a net-15 payment term. Startups can run out of money quickly — front-loading payment protects your exposure. Also retain IP rights until final payment is received.
Should I charge startups less than corporate clients?
Not necessarily. Startup work often demands more of you — faster pace, unclear requirements, multiple rounds of pivots — which can justify a rate equal to or higher than a stable corporate project. If you do offer a startup discount, make it explicit, time-limited, and tied to a long-term engagement commitment.
How do I handle a startup that runs out of budget mid-project?
Stop work immediately and assess what's been delivered. Invoice for all completed work to date. Negotiate a reduced scope for the remaining budget if the client wants to continue. Never work ahead of payment in good faith — it rarely ends well. A well-written contract with milestone payments limits your exposure significantly.