Pricing is the part of freelancing nobody talks about honestly. How much should you charge? Should you quote hourly or per project? How do you handle clients who want to negotiate everything down to nothing? After 5 years of getting this wrong and slowly getting it right, here's exactly how I think about pricing my design work.
Fair warning: this is not a list of nice round numbers. Pricing is deeply contextual — it depends on the client, the market, the scope, and the value being created. What I'm sharing is my framework, not a price list.
The Mistake I Made Early On
When I started freelancing, I priced based on how long something would take me. A logo took me 10 hours, so I charged for 10 hours of time. This seems logical but it's completely wrong for one simple reason: as you get better, you get faster. The faster you work, the less you earn under hourly pricing. You are literally being penalised for improving.
I also significantly underestimated my own value. I compared myself to what other designers in Nepal were charging and stayed near the bottom of that range, afraid of losing clients. What I didn't realise was that charging more would actually attract better clients — ones who respect your work, pay on time, and don't disappear mid-project.
How I Think About Pricing Now
1. Value-Based, Not Time-Based
The right question isn't "how long will this take?" — it's "what is this worth to the client?" A logo for a street food stall and a logo for a startup raising investment are not the same project, even if they take the same hours. The value delivered is completely different, and the price should reflect that.
2. Project Pricing Over Hourly
I almost always quote a fixed project price rather than an hourly rate. This gives the client certainty (they know exactly what they'll pay) and gives me the benefit of working efficiently. If I complete a project in 12 hours that I quoted for 20, I've earned the difference — which rewards my skill and speed.
3. Scope First, Price Second
I never quote a price before I understand the full scope of the project. The conversation always starts with: What do you need? What's the timeline? What does success look like? Who are the stakeholders who need to approve the work? Only once I understand those things do I put a number together.
My General Pricing Ranges (Nepal Market)
These are rough ranges, not fixed prices. Every project is different.
| Service | Scope | Range (NPR) |
|---|---|---|
| Logo Design | 3 concepts, 2 revision rounds, full files | 15,000 – 50,000+ |
| Brand Identity | Logo + colour + type + brand guidelines | 40,000 – 1,50,000+ |
| UI/UX Design | Per screen / per flow, depending on complexity | 25,000 – 2,00,000+ |
| Social Media Graphics | Monthly package (12–20 posts) | 8,000 – 25,000/mo |
| Motion Graphics | 15–30 second animation, with revisions | 20,000 – 80,000+ |
| 3D Animation | Short sequence, character or product | 30,000 – 1,50,000+ |
How I Handle the "Too Expensive" Response
When a client says your quote is too expensive, there are exactly three possibilities:
- They genuinely can't afford it. In this case, I either reduce scope (not price) or politely let them know I'm not the right fit for their budget right now.
- They don't yet understand the value. This is a conversation problem, not a pricing problem. I explain what goes into the work and what they're actually getting.
- They're testing to see if you'll fold. Some clients negotiate as a matter of habit. If my price is fair, I hold it. Discounting without reason signals that your original price wasn't genuine.
What I almost never do: drop my price without reducing scope. If the budget is smaller, the project gets smaller. My hourly value doesn't change.
The Deposit Rule
I require a 50% deposit before starting any project. Always. Without exception. This protects me from clients who disappear, change their minds or simply never intended to pay. It also signals to good clients that this is a professional engagement — not a favour.
What I Wish I'd Known Earlier
- Price increases are easier than you think. Most clients don't leave when you raise your rates — the wrong clients do, which is fine.
- Write everything down. Scope, deliverables, revision rounds, timeline, payment terms — all of it in writing before any work begins.
- Revision rounds should be limited and specified. "Unlimited revisions" is a sentence that will haunt you.
- Your time outside the deliverable counts. Client calls, feedback rounds, file preparation, exporting assets — all of this is work and should be factored into the price.
- Rush fees are legitimate. If a client needs something in 48 hours that normally takes a week, that urgency has a cost.
Final Thought
Pricing is a skill, not a fixed formula. It takes experience, confidence and some trial and error to get right. The most important shift I made was stopping thinking about what the market would bear and starting to think about what the work was genuinely worth — and then charging that.
The clients who are right for you will understand. The ones who don't — you probably don't want them anyway.