I work for a software consulting company. Our rates range from $95-150 / hr.
I would expect someone working alone (as in, not a company with a built reputation) to charge half that or less. ($40-70 ish / hour)
To be fair to both parties, choose an hourly rate, find out how much the tools you are going to use cost, and how long it will take you to set it up.
I.E., already done solutions cost $150 total, will take 12 hours to set up @ $65 / hour comes out to $930.
You may also consider giving them a choice of a cost (it will cost $2000 for this no matter how many hours I spend on it) vs. an hourly rate + materials (it will cost $65 an hour, I would estimate at least 12 hours, plus at least $150 in materials).
The first way puts the risk in your court -- how much you make per hour depends on how long it takes you. The other way puts it in their court -- they could potentially get a result for $600, but it might also be $3000. No risk for you, you get paid the same hourly rate anyway.
A fixed amount helps companies budget for the project. You overestimate a bit to cover yourself in case you run into unexpected problems. Most small projects we do here are a fixed amount like this. Bigger projects ($50k+) are typically done on a time + materials quote.
Just some thoughts 🙂
I've estimated lots of projects. Feel free to PM me if you have questions.
