I've been freelancing for a few years now, I've worked at some small studios wearing many hats. My two cents from what I've learned over the years:

You should get a timer like Toggl to track your time regardless of the project. After doing this for a while, it will help you gauge future projects because you'll be able to compare time, and realize what areas and jobs take the longest.

You'll probably notice you estimate way too low, so double it haha. You should be accounting for if something goes wrong, so that if it does, you are still making money. If everything goes perfectly, you made more money on that job. Congrats, there's nothing wrong with being good and not needing 3 full rounds of X if the client loves round 1. And you can spend more time polishing up something you may usually have to rush through. Or, provide your client a bonus asset as a thank you. That usually goes a long way.

Time thinking about the project, time writing emails or any client communication, time spent writing SOWs and contracts, should all be accounted for. Even if you aren't timing every second, add that into your tracker after the fact. E.g. if you couldn't fall asleep and instead were thinking about a job, and came up with some discovery, add an hour to the timer the next day for that.

I like hourly because I'm not committing to a price if the scope creeps, or the client wants extra rounds/revisions. I usually balance several numbers when considering a job/prospect:

1. how much I think the job is worth
2. how much time I think it will take me
3. how much I want to make on the job

These don't usually equate to the same magic number for total cost of business, so I aim for the highest I think I can get based on the client. That's the fourth thing, weigh your client, not just your job. 4) how much the client can afford.

If I'm branding a mom and pop, and I'm branding a law firm: I might offer them similar packages, but the law firm is going to pay more for it. I'll prioritize their needs, and be more flexible with scope changes. If the mom and pop are getting a deal, I usually use that job as experience, and a chance to push for something more creative. I don't mind charging less for a fun job that helps someone local, and charging more for a larger business that can afford it.

Some jobs are valuable, but don't take much time. I'm happy to pad my hours to make the price work for my cost of living/overhead.

I use time estimates and hourly rates as a means of communication, not as a definition of my value or skill. I'm clear about the scope of the project, how many phases or rounds there are, and how I plan to spend my time on each phase. If the budget looks like it's getting wrecked early in the project because of scope creep or revisions, I let my client know that sooner than later. This will often make them realize they should be practical and consistent with feedback. This also prevents that awkward email, or invoice that is higher than agreed on. Good communication is always going to help.

If the project is complex, estimate things in phases and get paid by the phase. That way, if anything changes you can re-estimate a later phase once it's closer. Or if the client is difficult, you can finish a phase, and then choose not to continue working together for the remaining phases. You both hold that right.

Hope something in there helps.

I've been freelancing for a few years now, I've worked at some small studios wearing many hats. My two cents from what I've learned over the years:

You should get a timer like Toggl to track your time regardless of the project. After doing this for a while, it will help you gauge future projects because you'll be able to compare time, and realize what areas and jobs take the longest.

You'll probably notice you estimate way too low, so double it haha. You should be accounting for if something goes wrong, so that if it does, you are still making money. If everything goes perfectly, you made more money on that job. Congrats, there's nothing wrong with being good and not needing 3 full rounds of X if the client loves round 1. And you can spend more time polishing up something you may usually have to rush through. Or, provide your client a bonus asset as a thank you. That usually goes a long way.

Time thinking about the project, time writing emails or any client communication, time spent writing SOWs and contracts, should all be accounted for. Even if you aren't timing every second, add that into your tracker after the fact. E.g. if you couldn't fall asleep and instead were thinking about a job, and came up with some discovery, add an hour to the timer the next day for that.

I like hourly because I'm not committing to a price if the scope creeps, or the client wants extra rounds/revisions. I usually balance several numbers when considering a job/prospect:

1. how much I think the job is worth
2. how much time I think it will take me
3. how much I want to make on the job

These don't usually equate to the same magic number for total cost of business, so I aim for the highest I think I can get based on the client. That's the fourth thing, weigh your client, not just your job. 4) how much the client can afford.

If I'm branding a mom and pop, and I'm branding a law firm: I might offer them similar packages, but the law firm is going to pay more for it. I'll prioritize their needs, and be more flexible with scope changes. If the mom and pop are getting a deal, I usually use that job as experience, and a chance to push for something more creative. I don't mind charging less for a fun job that helps someone local, and charging more for a larger business that can afford it.

Some jobs are valuable, but don't take much time. I'm happy to pad my hours to make the price work for my cost of living/overhead.

I use time estimates and hourly rates as a means of communication, not as a definition of my value or skill. I'm clear about the scope of the project, how many phases or rounds there are, and how I plan to spend my time on each phase. If the budget looks like it's getting wrecked early in the project because of scope creep or revisions, I let my client know that sooner than later. This will often make them realize they should be practical and consistent with feedback. You want to prevent that awkward email, or invoice that is higher than agreed on because you waited too long. Good communication is always going to help, and don't blindsight clients with any cost changes.

If the project is complex, estimate things in phases and get paid by the phase. That way, if anything changes you can re-estimate a later phase once it's closer. Or if the client is difficult, you can finish a phase, and then choose not to continue working together for the remaining phases. You both hold that right.

Hope something in there helps.