True Hourly Wage (Gig & Side Hustle)
true_hourly_wageWhat a gig actually pays per hour — after vehicle costs, waiting time, and self-employment tax. Turns gross gig or side-hustle earnings into the real hourly wage: counting every hour worked (including waiting and driving between jobs), the full per-mile cost of the vehicle (not just gas), and the tax that no employer is withholding. Then compares the result to minimum wage — and is honest when the answer is "stay home."
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| gross | No | Gross earnings / week What the app(s) paid you, before anything. | |
| hours | No | Total hours / week Include waiting, driving between jobs, and returning empty — research finds unpaid "deadhead" time is about a third of gig working time. | |
| miles | No | Miles driven / week All of them, including empty miles. 0 if the hustle has no vehicle. | |
| taxPct | No | Tax on profit (%) US self-employment tax alone is ~14% of profit; add your income-tax bracket for the fully-taxed number. Set 0 to see pre-tax. | |
| minWage | No | Local minimum wage The benchmark an employer would legally have to beat. US federal is $7.25; many states/cities are $15+. | |
| costPerMile | No | Vehicle cost / mile Gas alone is ~$0.12–0.18/mi. The IRS all-in rate (fuel + maintenance + depreciation + insurance) is ~$0.70/mi. Most drivers’ true cost is $0.25–0.45. |