Hourly, Project, or Retainer? Picking the Perfect Pricing Model for Your Figma Work
Randall Carter
Hourly, Project, or Retainer? Picking the Perfect Pricing Model for Your Figma Work
The Simplicity of Hourly Rates
Pros: Flexibility and Guaranteed Pay for Time Spent
Cons: Punishing Efficiency and Capping Your Earning Potential
Best For: Ongoing support, projects with undefined scopes, and initial client engagements.
The Clarity of Project-Based Fees
Pros: Rewarding Efficiency and Clear Budgets for Clients
Cons: The Risk of Underpricing and Scope Creep
Best For: Well-defined projects with clear deliverables, like a 5-page website design or a logo package.
The Stability of Retainer Agreements
Pros: Predictable Income and Stronger Client Relationships
Cons: Requires Consistent Work and Can Be Hard to Secure
Best For: Clients with consistent, ongoing design needs, such as marketing material updates, social media graphics, or regular website maintenance.
Hybrid Models: The Best of Both Worlds
Project Fee + Hourly for Overages
Retainer for Access, Project Fees for New Work
References
Hourly, Project, or Retainer? Picking the Perfect Pricing Model for Your Figma Work
Choosing the right pricing model is fundamental to a successful freelance career. The structure you choose—hourly, project-based, or retainer—impacts your income stability, client relationships, and workflow. After you've mastered setting your freelance rates, the next step is to select the model that best fits your services. A clear understanding of these models will also help you when it comes to negotiating your design contracts with confidence.
Think of pricing models like choosing the right tool for a design project. Just as you wouldn't use the same approach for every design challenge, different client situations call for different pricing strategies. Whether you're just starting out or looking to optimize your existing business, understanding these models inside and out will transform how you work with clients. Many top Figma designers actually use a mix of all three, adapting their approach based on the client and project at hand.
The Simplicity of Hourly Rates
Charging by the hour is a straightforward approach that's easy for clients to understand and simple for you to track. It's often a starting point for new freelancers.
When you bill hourly, there's no guesswork involved. You work for an hour, you charge for an hour. This transparency makes it incredibly easy to explain to clients, especially those who might be new to working with freelancers. You simply track your time, multiply by your rate, and send the invoice. No complex calculations or negotiations needed.
For Figma designers specifically, hourly billing works well because design work often involves exploration and iteration. You might spend time experimenting with different layouts, testing color schemes, or refining typography. With hourly billing, all that exploration time is compensated fairly.
Pros: Flexibility and Guaranteed Pay for Time Spent
The main benefit is that you are compensated for every minute you work, which is ideal for projects with unclear scopes or those prone to frequent changes.
Let's say a client comes to you with a vague idea for a dashboard design. They know they want something "modern and clean" but haven't figured out the specifics yet. With hourly billing, you can dive right in without worrying about defining every single detail upfront. As the project evolves and the client adds features or requests changes, you're covered.
This model also protects you during those inevitable revision rounds. When a client says "actually, can we try a completely different approach?" you don't have to stress about working for free. Every exploration, every iteration, every "quick change" that turns into a two-hour redesign—it's all billable time.
Hourly rates also give you the freedom to be thorough. You can take the time to properly organize your Figma files, create comprehensive component libraries, and document your design decisions without feeling like you're eating into your profit margin.
Cons: Punishing Efficiency and Capping Your Earning Potential
This model doesn't reward you for working faster or smarter. The more efficient you become, the less you earn for the same task. It can also cause clients to worry about the final cost.
Here's the frustrating reality: as you get better at Figma, you'll complete tasks faster. That landing page that used to take you eight hours might only take three once you've built up your component library and mastered auto-layout. But with hourly billing, your increased skill translates to decreased income for the same deliverable.
Clients can also become clock-watchers with this model. They might question why a "simple" design took four hours or ask for detailed time breakdowns. Some clients get anxious watching the hours (and costs) add up, which can strain the relationship. You might find yourself in awkward conversations defending your time logs instead of focusing on the design work.
There's also a natural ceiling to what you can earn. You only have so many billable hours in a day, and raising your hourly rate too high can price you out of opportunities. This limitation becomes more apparent as you grow your skills and want to scale your income.
Best For: Ongoing support, projects with undefined scopes, and initial client engagements.
Hourly rates are perfect when the project's full scope isn't known upfront, making it a low-risk option for both you and the client.
Think about those clients who need ongoing design support but can't predict exactly what they'll need week to week. Maybe they're a startup that needs help with investor decks one week, social media graphics the next, and product mockups after that. Hourly billing gives both of you the flexibility to adapt as needs arise.
It's also ideal for those "discovery" or "exploration" phases at the beginning of larger projects. When a client wants to explore different design directions before committing to a full project, hourly billing lets you invest time in research and experimentation without the pressure of a fixed budget.
New client relationships often benefit from starting hourly too. It's a low-commitment way for both parties to test the waters. The client can see your work quality and communication style without committing to a large project fee, while you can assess whether they're a good fit for your business.
The Clarity of Project-Based Fees
With project-based pricing, you charge a single, flat fee for the entire project. This model is preferred by clients who want cost certainty.
Project-based pricing transforms you from a time-seller to a solution-provider. Instead of billing for hours spent, you're charging for the value of the complete deliverable. This shift in perspective can be powerful for both you and your clients.
Clients love this model because they know exactly what they're paying upfront. There's no anxiety about mounting hourly costs or surprise invoices. They can budget accurately and get approval from stakeholders without worrying about cost overruns. For you, it means fewer conversations about time tracking and more focus on delivering great design work.
The key to successful project pricing is clear communication about what's included. When you quote $5,000 for a mobile app design, both you and the client need to understand exactly what that covers—how many screens, how many rounds of revisions, what file formats you'll deliver, and so on.
Pros: Rewarding Efficiency and Clear Budgets for Clients
If you can complete the work faster than estimated, your effective hourly rate increases. Clients appreciate the predictable, fixed cost.
This is where your Figma skills really pay off. Remember that component library you spent weeks perfecting? With project pricing, it becomes a profit multiplier. Those auto-layout frames that save you hours of manual adjustment? That's money in your pocket. Every keyboard shortcut, every reusable component, every streamlined workflow directly increases your profitability.
Let's say you quote $3,000 for a website design that you estimate will take 30 hours. If you complete it in 20 hours thanks to your efficient workflow, you've just earned $150 per hour instead of $100. The client still pays $3,000 and gets their design on time—everyone wins.
Project pricing also positions you as a professional who delivers outcomes, not just time. You're selling a complete solution, which often allows you to charge more than you would hourly. Clients are often willing to pay a premium for the certainty and convenience of a fixed price.
Cons: The Risk of Underpricing and Scope Creep
The biggest danger is underestimating the time and effort required, which can lead to you working for free. A tightly defined scope is essential.
Every freelancer has a horror story about a "simple" project that spiraled out of control. What started as a five-page website somehow becomes fifteen pages with custom illustrations and three different responsive breakpoints. Without clear boundaries, you can find yourself working dozens of unpaid hours just to maintain the client relationship.
Estimating design work is genuinely difficult. That "quick logo design" might require twenty iterations because the client can't articulate what they want. The "straightforward dashboard" might need complex data visualizations you didn't anticipate. Even experienced designers sometimes dramatically underestimate the time required.
Scope creep is the silent killer of project-based pricing. It often starts innocently—"Could you just make this one small change?" But those small changes add up. Before you know it, you're doing twice the work for the same fee, and your profitable project has become a financial loss.
Best For: Well-defined projects with clear deliverables, like a 5-page website design or a logo package.
This model thrives on clarity. The more detailed your project scope, the more successful project-based pricing will be.
Project pricing works beautifully for standardized offerings. Think about creating packages like "5-page marketing website for $3,500" or "Brand identity package including logo, color palette, and typography for $2,000." When you can clearly define what's included and what's not, both you and the client know exactly what to expect.
It's also perfect for projects with natural boundaries. A mobile app with a defined number of screens, a pitch deck with a set slide count, or a social media template pack with specific deliverables—these all lend themselves well to project pricing. The clearer the endpoint, the easier it is to price accurately.
Experienced designers often develop a sense for which projects suit this model. If you can visualize the final deliverable and confidently estimate the effort required, project pricing can be highly profitable. Just remember to build in some buffer for the unexpected—because in design, the unexpected always happens.
The Stability of Retainer Agreements
A retainer is a recurring fee paid by a client to secure your availability for a set amount of work or hours each month. It's the key to predictable income.
Imagine knowing exactly how much money you'll make next month, and the month after that. That's the power of retainer agreements. Instead of constantly hunting for new projects or wondering where your next paycheck will come from, retainers provide the financial stability that lets you focus on doing great work.
Retainers fundamentally change your relationship with clients. You shift from being a vendor they hire occasionally to becoming a trusted partner in their business. This deeper relationship often leads to better work, as you develop a thorough understanding of their brand, goals, and challenges over time.
For Figma designers, retainers can cover a wide range of ongoing needs. Maybe you're maintaining and evolving a design system, creating monthly marketing materials, or providing continuous UX improvements to a product. The consistent engagement allows you to build momentum and create more cohesive, impactful designs.
Pros: Predictable Income and Stronger Client Relationships
Retainers provide a stable monthly income, allowing for better financial planning. They also foster long-term, collaborative partnerships with clients.
That predictable monthly income changes everything. You can confidently pay your rent, plan vacations, and invest in your business without the feast-or-famine cycle that plagues many freelancers. When you know you have $5,000 coming in each month from retainers, you can make better decisions about which additional projects to take on.
The relationship benefits go beyond just familiarity. When clients have you on retainer, they're more likely to involve you in strategic discussions and long-term planning. You become part of their team, attending meetings, contributing ideas, and shaping the direction of their design efforts. This insider status often leads to more interesting, impactful work.
Your efficiency skyrockets with retainer clients too. You already know their brand guidelines, understand their preferences, and have access to all their assets. No more onboarding time for each new project. You can jump straight into productive work, delivering better results faster.
Cons: Requires Consistent Work and Can Be Hard to Secure
You need to ensure the client has enough ongoing work to justify the retainer. Securing this level of commitment often requires a pre-existing relationship built on trust.
Not every client has enough consistent design needs to warrant a retainer. A small business that only needs occasional design work might balk at paying a monthly fee. You need to find clients with genuine, ongoing design requirements—otherwise, they'll feel like they're wasting money during slow months.
Landing retainer agreements usually requires proving yourself first. Clients rarely commit to monthly payments with someone they've never worked with. You typically need to complete a few successful projects before you can even suggest a retainer arrangement. This means investing time in building relationships before seeing the recurring revenue benefits.
There's also the challenge of defining what the retainer covers. Does $3,000 per month buy them 20 hours of your time? Unlimited revisions on existing designs? A certain number of new deliverables? Without clear boundaries, retainer relationships can become stressful for both parties.
Best For: Clients with consistent, ongoing design needs, such as marketing material updates, social media graphics, or regular website maintenance.
Retainers are ideal for turning successful projects into long-term partnerships.
The sweet spot for retainers is clients who need design work every single month without fail. Think about SaaS companies constantly updating their product, agencies who need support for their clients, or content-heavy businesses requiring regular visual assets. These organizations have predictable, recurring design needs that make retainers mutually beneficial.
E-commerce brands are often perfect retainer clients. They need product images edited, promotional banners created, email templates designed, and social media graphics produced on an ongoing basis. Marketing agencies also make great retainer clients, as they often need overflow design support for their various accounts.
The best retainer relationships often grow organically from successful project work. You complete a website redesign, and the client realizes they need ongoing help with landing pages and marketing materials. That successful app design project evolves into monthly UX improvements and feature additions. When clients see the value you provide, transitioning to a retainer becomes a natural next step.
Hybrid Models: The Best of Both Worlds
You don't have to stick to just one model. Combining approaches can offer flexibility and security.
The reality is that successful Figma designers rarely use just one pricing model exclusively. Your business likely includes different types of clients with varying needs, and a one-size-fits-all approach can limit your opportunities. By mixing and matching pricing models, you can optimize for both income and client satisfaction.
Hybrid models let you adapt to different situations while protecting your interests. You might use hourly billing for that unpredictable startup client, project pricing for well-defined website designs, and retainers for your long-term agency partnerships. This flexibility makes you more attractive to a wider range of clients while maximizing your earning potential.
The key is being strategic about which model you apply when. Consider factors like project clarity, client relationship, your current workload, and income goals. Sometimes the best approach is to start with one model and transition to another as the relationship evolves.
Project Fee + Hourly for Overages
Set a fixed price for a defined scope and charge an hourly rate for any work that falls outside of it. This protects you from scope creep.
This hybrid approach gives clients the budget certainty they want while protecting you from unlimited revisions and feature creep. You might quote $5,000 for a mobile app design including 20 screens and two rounds of revisions. Any work beyond that—additional screens, extra revision rounds, or new features—gets billed at your hourly rate.
The beauty of this model is that it encourages clients to be thoughtful about their requests. When they know additional work will cost extra, they're more likely to consolidate feedback and prioritize what really matters. This leads to more efficient projects and happier clients who feel in control of their budget.
To make this work, your project agreement needs crystal-clear definitions. Specify exactly what's included in the project fee and what constitutes additional work. Define what counts as a "round of revisions" and how many design concepts are included. The clearer your boundaries, the smoother the project will run.
Retainer for Access, Project Fees for New Work
A client pays a monthly fee to have you on-call for small tasks and advice, while new, larger projects are quoted separately. This model is common for strategic consulting roles.
This sophisticated model works well once you've established yourself as more than just a designer—you're a strategic partner. The retainer might cover things like design reviews, team consultations, small updates, and maintaining existing design systems. When the client needs a major new initiative—like a complete rebrand or new product design—that's quoted as a separate project.
For example, a client might pay $2,000 monthly for up to 10 hours of your time for consultations, minor updates, and design system maintenance. When they decide to launch a new product line needing comprehensive design work, you quote that as a $15,000 project on top of the retainer. This gives you steady baseline income while still capturing the full value of larger projects.
This model positions you as an invaluable resource rather than just a service provider. Clients appreciate having expert design guidance on tap, while you benefit from predictable income and the opportunity for additional project revenue. It's particularly effective with clients who value strategic thinking as much as design execution.
Making the right choice about pricing models can transform your freelance career. While hourly billing offers simplicity and protection for undefined projects, project-based pricing rewards efficiency and provides client certainty. Retainers, though harder to secure, deliver the stability every freelancer dreams of. And hybrid models? They let you customize your approach for maximum benefit.
The best pricing model is the one that aligns with your goals, your clients' needs, and the type of work you do. Don't be afraid to experiment and evolve your approach as your business grows. Start where you're comfortable, but stay open to trying new models as opportunities arise. Your future self—and your bank account—will thank you for taking the time to get this right.
References
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Posted Jul 6, 2025
Confused about whether to charge hourly, per-project, or on retainer? This guide breaks down the pros and cons of each model for Figma designers.
