Freelance Systems Engineer Hourly Rates
Median hourly rate
$80/hr
Typical range
$65–$140
25th–75th percentile
Submissions
77
Latest record: February 2026
Highest country median
—
Hourly rates by country
| Location | Median / hr | Middle 50% | n |
|---|---|---|---|
| United StatesSmall sample | $140 | $75–$220 | 19 |
| BelgiumSmall sample | $68 | $65–$79 | 17 |
| United KingdomSmall sample | $95 | $61–$129 | 12 |
| AustraliaSmall sample | $165 | $165–$195 | 7 |
| CanadaSmall sample | $74 | $74–$94 | 6 |
| GermanySmall sample | $80 | $80–$150 | 5 |
Hourly rates by experience
| Experience | Median / hr | Middle 50% | n |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 yearsSmall sample | $50 | $50–$80 | 7 |
| 3–5 yearsSmall sample | $65 | $58–$73 | 14 |
| 6–10 yearsSmall sample | $118 | $74–$168 | 24 |
| 11–15 yearsSmall sample | $85 | $72–$125 | 17 |
| 16+ yearsSmall sample | $165 | $80–$180 | 15 |
USD per hour. Groups below 5 records are omitted; groups below 25 are marked as small samples. These are separate comparisons: country and experience figures must not be combined to infer a rate. The rate planner can look up the actual matching group.
What should you quote?
The median of $80/hr equals $640 for 8 billable hours. That conversion is not a separately observed day rate. Account for your non-billable time and costs before choosing a price.
Records added 2022–2026. Dates reflect when records entered the database, including imports; they do not establish when the work was performed. Methodology & limitations
Recent rate records
| Role / location | USD / hour |
|---|---|
| Systems Engineer · Honolulu, HI, USA | $200 |
| Systems Engineer · New Brunswick, NJ, USA | $135 |
| Systems Engineer · Austin, TX, USA | $100 |
| Systems Engineer · Roman, Romania | $50 |
| Systems Engineer · Ostende, Belgium | $68 |
| Systems Engineer · Washington D.C., DC, USA | $72 |
| Systems Engineer · Minneapolis, MN, USA | $220 |
| Systems Engineer · Melbourne VIC, Australia | $165 |
| Systems Engineer · Antwerp, Belgium | $85 |
| Systems Engineer · Dublin, Ireland | $80 |
| Systems Engineer · Antwerp, Belgium | $55 |
| Systems Engineer · Brussels, Belgium | $79 |
| Systems Engineer · Toronto, ON, Canada | $74 |
| Systems Engineer · Berlin, Germany | $80 |
| Systems Engineer · Melbourne VIC, Australia | $165 |
| Systems Engineer · Brisbane QLD, Australia | $195 |
| Systems Engineer · New Haven, CT, USA | $249 |
| Systems Engineer · Toronto, ON, Canada | $74 |
| Systems Engineer · Toronto, ON, Canada | $74 |
| Systems Engineer · Melbourne VIC, Australia | $165 |
Similar roles
Freelance Systems Engineer rate distribution
Rate distribution
Rate by experience level
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Frequently asked questions
- How much do freelance Systems Engineers charge per hour?
- Based on 77 crowdsourced submissions, freelance Systems Engineers charge an average of $105 per hour, with the middle 50% of rates between $65 and $140. Latest record added February 2026.
- What do top-earning freelance Systems Engineers make?
- The top 10% of Systems Engineer submissions report $195 per hour or more. These are self-reported hourly charges, not take-home pay or guaranteed earnings.
- Which skills are most commonly reported with Systems Engineer rates?
- The most common skills in Systems Engineer submissions are Linux, Active Directory, and EDR. Submission frequency does not measure hiring demand or prove a skill causes a higher rate.
- Where does this Systems Engineer rate data come from?
- These are public, self-reported rate records. We do not independently verify earnings or count unique people. The dataset includes historical records; see our methodology for currency assumptions, sample thresholds, and date limitations.
Charged by the project instead? Browse project-based rates.