Extra hours already have a floor
A change-order post will tell you to paste “20% of the original quote” into the SOW and call it a day. That number is not a law, not a tax table, and not what this card computes. They asked for more hours. Those hours have a floor — the same hourly floor you already set on the hub.
Extra charge = extra hours they just asked for × hourly floor. New project total = original quote + extra hours × floor. The original quote already priced the old scope. The new hours are new money. That extra is why this page exists.
Extra 4 hours is not a vibe. It is $360.
Preset: extra 4 hours. Floor $90. Original quote $2,000. 4 × $90 = $360 extra. New total $2,360.
You do not invent a bonus percent on top of hours you can already count. You do not start the extra round before the dollars have a name. Paste the sentence. Start after they confirm.
They ate the week
Preset: extra 12 hours. That is not a tweak. 12 × $90 = $1,080. New total $3,080. The original $2,000 was a different job. If the brief actually changed shape, stop adding hours and rebuild on quote a project. This card is for extra hours on the same job, named before you work them.
If they already walked, that is not a change order. Hours already worked vs the deposit is the keep / unpaid gap. Different ping, different card.
If they did not add hours — they just moved Friday up — that is not this card. Same hours, shorter calendar is the rush-job compression, not extra hours × floor.
The small tweak you were going to eat
Preset: extra 2 hours. Floor $90 → $180. You were going to “just fix the header.” Two hours still left the calendar. Two hours × the floor is the charge. Eating it does not make you easy to work with. It trains the next ping.
If the look was never even a job — free kickoff, unpaid audit — that time is unpaid discovery, not a change order. Price the look, or walk. Do not launder a free teardown into “one small tweak.”
The rush % / change % box is a planning example. You can clear it.
Some people want to see a percent of the original quote next to the hours math. Fine. Type a rush % or a change %. The card will show that product and label it a planning example. It does not replace extra hours × floor. It does not become the sentence. It is not added to the extra or to the new total. There is no official 20% or 25% freelance change-order fee on this page.
Example: original quote $2,000, you type 15% → $300 planning example. Extra still 4 × $90 = $360. New total still $2,360. The percent line is a comparison you asked for, not a rule we invented.
Send the sentence tonight
Do not write a speech about scope creep. Name the extra hours. Name the dollars. Name the new total. Copy from the card so the dollars match.
- Extra 4 hours. The extra 4 hours at my $90.00/hr floor is $360.00. New project total is $2,000.00 + $360.00 = $2,360.00. Please confirm that change before I start the extra work.
- They ate the week. The extra 12 hours at my $90.00/hr floor is $1,080.00. New project total is $2,000.00 + $1,080.00 = $3,080.00. Please confirm that change before I start the extra work.
- Small tweak. The extra 2 hours at my $90.00/hr floor is $180.00. That is not a free tweak. New project total is $2,000.00 + $180.00 = $2,180.00. Please confirm that change before I start the extra work.
Skip guilt, fake scarcity, and “industry standard change order.” Those lines turn a calendar fact into a fight. If they will not confirm, do not start the extra hours. The original quote still stands. If the extra is actually a new project, cut it on the quote guide and take a fresh deposit before you block another week.
This is planning math, not a contract
Educational only — not legal, tax, or collections advice. We do not invent a required change-order percent, a statutory extra-hours fee, marketplace change fees, or a 50-state tax engine. Confirm live terms in whatever agreement you already use. If you need an enforceable change clause, a lawyer in your jurisdiction writes it before extra work starts. Typing numbers here does not create one.
The math is: extra hours you type, hourly floor, original quote, extra charge, new project total, optional planning % of original quote, one email-sized sentence.
Rate calculator Quote a project If they cancelled instead Same hours, they need it Friday Take a deposit on the new total Unpaid discovery
Rebuild the floor on the hub if billable weeks moved. Extra hours on a live job get a name on this card. If they only wanted a look, price paid discovery instead of another free teardown. If they already walked, use the kill-fee keep / gap.
FAQ
How do I charge a freelance change order for extra hours?
Extra charge is extra hours they just asked for × your hourly floor. New project total is the original quote plus that product. Planning math, not a contract.
Is a freelance change order 20% or 25% of the original quote?
Not on this page. There is no official 20% or 25% change-order fee here. A rush % or change % can appear only as an optional planning example you type against the original quote, labeled as an example, not a rule. It never replaces extra hours × floor and is not added to the extra or the new total.
What is the new project total after they ask for extra hours?
New project total = original quote + extra hours × hourly floor. The original quote already priced the old scope. The extra hours are new money. Rebuild the whole quote only if the brief actually changed shape.
What if they asked for a small tweak I was going to do for free?
A small tweak is still hours. Two hours at a $90 floor is $180. Eating it does not make you easy to work with; it trains the next ping. Name extra hours × floor before you start them.
Is this change-order math a contract or legal advice?
No. Educational planning only — not legal, tax, or collections advice. A lawyer in your jurisdiction writes an enforceable change clause before extra work starts. Typing numbers here does not create one.