Benefits Package Value Calculator — Total Comp

Salary plus everything else with a dollar value: employer health contributions, retirement match, PTO, and perks. The calculator sums the four benefit lines into a benefits total and adds it to salary. Things it does not price: job security, career optionality, equity (too variable), and the psychic value of a steady paycheck — all real, none arithmetical.

Because a work year has ~260 weekdays, so each paid day off is worth 1/260th of salary. Twenty days at $90k = $6,923. It is the standard valuation because it is literally what the employer pays you not to work. Freelancers should internalize this: every unpaid vacation day "costs" the daily freelance rate.

The full matched amount, every year, compounding — but the calculator counts only the annual contribution. A 4% match on $90k is $3,600/yr of free money; over a career with growth it is six figures. The match cap matters: "4% match" with a $3,000 cap on a $150k salary is effectively a 2% match. Enter both numbers.

It converts employee total comp into the freelance hourly rate that matches it, covering costs employees never see. 1.3× decomposes roughly: ~1.15× for self-employment tax, ~1.08× for unpaid time off, and the rest for income volatility, self-funded benefits, and admin. It is a middle estimate — use 1.2 in low-tax stable niches, 1.5 where income is lumpy.

Bonuses: yes, if reliable — add them to salary. Equity: only at a conservative present value you can defend; startup options are lottery tickets, not compensation, until a liquidity event. RSUs at public companies are closer to cash — add the annual vest value to salary. When in doubt, value equity at zero for the comparison and treat any payout as a windfall.

Ask HR for the "employer share" of the premium — they disclose it. US employers typically pay 70–80% of premiums, $8k–$15k/yr for family coverage. The alternative valuation: price the equivalent plan on healthcare.gov or via COBRA (usually 102% of full premium) — that is what replacing it costs you as a freelancer.

The arithmetic is universal; the benefit lines vary by country. In the UK, employer pension contributions and 28 days statutory leave play the same role; in the EU, generous statutory leave and social charges shift the mix. Rename the inputs mentally — "health" becomes whatever the employer funds — and the total-comp logic holds everywhere.

25–40% of salary is typical for US professional roles; under 20% is thin, over 35% is rich. The calculator flags both extremes. Government and union jobs often exceed 40% (pensions are expensive); early startups often sit under 15% (salary is the whole offer). Use the flag when negotiating: thin packages have room to grow.

Yes — and it is often easier than negotiating salary. Extra PTO days, a training budget, remote-work stipends, and signing bonuses frequently come from different budget lines than salary, with different approvers. A $5,000 training budget costs the employer $5,000 but can be worth far more to you in future earnings.

That tool compares contract income against salary with taxes modeled; this one values the benefits package itself. Use this calculator first to find the true total comp of an offer, then feed total comp (not salary) into the contract-vs-salary comparison. Comparing a $100/hr contract against a $90k salary without the benefits math is the classic error both tools exist to prevent.

To price your freedom correctly and to evaluate offers without romance. Knowing your freelance rate equals a $115k package tells you which job offers are real alternatives and which are pay cuts. It also reframes your rate to clients: $72/hr is not expensive — it is the exact economic equivalent of a mid-level salary.

Real, valuable, and deliberately excluded — because it cannot be computed from inputs. A steady paycheck has option value (mortgages, visas, sleep) that no multiplier captures. The calculator gives you the financial equivalence; you supply the personal premium for stability. Name it explicitly in your decision: "I value stability at $X/yr" beats vague anxiety.