Detailed comparison of a real offer
Enter the permanent package and the contract offer you are weighing up. Everything is calculated in this browser using 2026/27 New Zealand tax, ACC and KiwiSaver settings. Contract figures exclude GST.
per year
per year
Student loan repayments
Repaid at 12% above $24,128
GST-exclusive
Linked at 8 hours per day
Shorter contracts are annualised for comparison
Break-even contract rate
$110.80/hour
Equivalent daily rate $886.41
This rate is estimated to provide the same total annual value as the permanent package under the details entered.
Offered rate
$135.00/hr
$1,080.00/day
Difference from break-even
+$24.20/hr
+21.8% above break-even
Annual value difference
+$25,980
Total financial value, annualised
Monthly take-home difference
+$2,371
Cash in hand each month
Break-even compares total financial value. It does not assign a monetary value to job security, flexibility, career progression or personal preference.
Money in hand after tax, ACC, student loan and retirement contributions.
Permanent
Contract
Take-home cash plus retirement contributions and employer-funded benefits.
Permanent
Contract
Read-only. Select an item to jump back to the field that sets it.
- Base salary
- $180,000
- Paid time off
- 31 days
- Offered rate
- $135.00/hr
- Billable weeks
- 44 of 52
- Business expenses
- $7,500
- ACC estimate
- 2.0%
None of these figures are after tax — they show the rate before and after business costs only. All amounts exclude GST.
Advertised rate
$135.00/hr
Client billing rate for billable work
Annualised earning rate
$114.23/hr
Contract revenue divided by a full standard working year of hours
Post-expense earning rate
$110.63/hr
Revenue less business expenses over full working-year hours
Expected gross contract revenue
$237,600
Expected billable hours
1,760
Billable weeks (annualised)
44.0 of 52
Expected non-billable time
- Non-billable time (leave, holidays, downtime)8.0 weeks (40 days)
This time is already reflected in your billable weeks, so it is not deducted again as an expense.
Both sides cover the same annualised 12-month period. Gross salary and gross contract revenue are different measures and are shown side by side for context only.
Cash amounts only. Non-billable time is shown as time, not as an expense, so nothing is counted twice.
How the break-even rate moves if you bill more or fewer weeks. Viewing this does not change your offer inputs.
| Billable weeks | Break-even rate | Annual difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | $121.88/hr | +$12,804 | |
| 42 | $116.08/hr | +$19,392 | |
| 44current | $110.80/hr | +$25,980 | |
| 46 | $105.98/hr | +$32,568 | |
| 48 | $101.57/hr | +$39,156 |
Break-even for this package is $110.80/hour ($886.41/day). A sensible target range that leaves room for downtime and rate risk is $115–$130/hour.
| Contract rate | Monthly take-home | Annual difference |
|---|---|---|
| $110.80/hrExact break-even | $10,470 | +$0 |
| $120.00/hrModest buffer | $11,246 | +$9,876 |
| $125.00/hr10% above break-even | $11,667 | +$15,244 |
| $135.00/hr20% above break-even | $12,511 | +$25,980 |
All rates are GST-exclusive. Differences compare total financial value over 12 months.
This contract rate is likely to generate approximately $26,000 more annual take-home value than the comparable permanent role, after leave, downtime, expenses and KiwiSaver.
Permanent total value
$132,202
Contract total value
$158,182
Total value = net take-home plus retirement contributions and employer-funded benefits.
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