Rates help you plan accurately, forecast revenue, and understand project profitability in real time. At Float, you can set up two types of rates: cost rates and bill rates:
Cost rates — what it costs your business to employ your team.
Bill rates — what you charge clients for your team’s time.
While both are optional, together they move you beyond scheduling and into real financial visibility—giving you a complete picture of how profitable your work actually is.
Understanding rate types
Cost rates
Cost rates represent what it costs your business to employ people, including salary and overhead costs. These rates are used to calculate the actual cost of delivering projects.
Bill rates
Bill rates represent what you charge clients for your team’s time. These rates are used to calculate project revenue.
The difference between these rates determines your project’s profit margin.
Setting up rates
Cost rates
Role-level cost rates
Role cost rates are set up and managed by the Account Owner and Admins in Data studio > Roles.
To add a new role and set its cost rate:
1) Navigate to Data studio > Roles
2) Click the (+) plus button
3) Enter the role's name
4) Add cost rate
5) Click Save role
To add a role cost rate to the existing role:
1) Navigate to Data studio > Roles
2) Click the role's name
3) Click +Add a rate
4) Enter the role rate and click Confirm
By default, the rate will apply to anyone with that role assigned, both to all past and future dates. The new role cost rate does not affect a custom personal cost rate (if set).
To update the existing cost role rate from a specific date:
1) Navigate to Data studio > Roles
2) Click the role's name
3) Click +Add a rate,
4) Enter the role rate and set the effective date
5) Save with Confirm
The Cost rate activity shows the full history of changes for that role's rates.
Cost rate effective date on role level
When you update a role cost rate, Flot shows an Apply to field where you can set when the new rate takes effect - in the past (for accurate historical reporting), today, or in the future (for a planned promotion or upcoming rate change).
The default effective date is today. If you save a rate with a past effective date but a future rate is already saved, the future rate still takes precedence over the current rate.
For example:
Set the cost rate to $70, effective April 1, and save
Then set the cost rate to $50, effective June 1, and save
Float will apply the rates as follows:
$70 from April 1 to May 31
$50 from June 1 onward
Therefore, if you check the cost rate on May 1, it will show $70. On July 1, it will show $50.
To view the change history, click the role name and review the Cost rate activity section. You can delete any intermediate or current rates from the action menu. If you delete the oldest rate, the next available rate applies "from the start."
Person-level cost rates
Person cost rates are set in the Info tab of each person's profile. If a person has a role assigned, they inherit that role's cost rate by default. You can override it at any time.
To set or update personal cost rate:
1) Open the person's profile and go to the Info tab
2) Enter the cost rate in the Cost rate field
3) In the Appy to field, set the effective date: apply the rate to all past and future days or from a specific date onward.
4) Save with Update person
Changes will affect costs in past and current projects if the effective dates overlap existing allocations.
Once a person has a personal rate set, the role rate is strikethrough to indicate it has been overwritten.
Cost rate effective date on the personal level
As with the role-level cost rate, you can set a person cost rate's effective date to a past, current, or future date. You can also apply the rate to all past and future dates. The default is today. To view the person's rate change history and delete intermediate rates, click View changes below the Cost rate field.
Bill rates
Role-level bill rates
Role bill rates are managed in Data studio > Rate cards. Only Account Owners and Admins can access and manage rate cards.
Role bill rates migration
Previously, role bill rates were set and managed in Team settings > Roles & rates. With the update of Float's navigation, and the introduction of Data studio, role bill rates are now managed in Data studio > Rate cards.
If you were already using role bill rates, they were automatically migrated to a default rate card. To help you adjust, until September 9, 2026, role bill rates also stay visible in Data studio > Roles, alongside your role cost rates. From September 9, 2026, Rate cards will be the only place to set and manage role bill rates.
Learn more about setting up rate cards here.
Person-level bill rates
Person bill rates are set in the Info tab of each person's profile. If a person has a role assigned, they inherit the role bill rate by default, but it can be overwritten as needed.
To set or update personal bill rate:
1) Open the person's profile and go to the Info tab
2) Enter the bill rate in the Bill rate field
3) Save with Update person
New bill rates will apply only to new projects or phases and will not replace rates in existing ones.
Project-level bill rates
For projects with a Time & materials or Fixed fee budget type, bill rates can be set in the project's Team tab. They apply to that project and its phases (unless phase-specific rates are set separately).
For those projects, there are three ways to set bill rates for a project team:
Use a rate card — the default option. Select a rate card from your available cards (standard or client-specific). Float populates bill rates for the entire project team on both the project and phase levels (if phases exist).
Set manually — set different bill rates for specific people and phases. By default, bill rates are inherited from the role or person level, but can be overridden in the Bill rate field as needed.
Same rate for everyone — set the same bill rate for the whole project team.
Phase-level bill rates
When a rate card is applied at the project level, the same bill rates carry through to all phases by default.
To set phase-specific rates, switch the project to Set manually or Same for everyone in the project Team tab. You can then edit rates at the phase level. Phase bill rates apply to that phase only.
📝Note: Project and phase rates only apply to bill rates, not cost rates. Any changes to these bill rates at the project or phase level will apply to past and future time on that project or phase. Cost rates remain consistent across all projects.
Rate hierarchy
Each rate type has its own hierarchy. When rates are set at multiple levels, the most specific level takes precedence.
Cost rates hierarchy
Cost rates follow a simple structure: Role cost rate → Person cost rate.
Role cost rate - Default rate for that role
Person cost rate - Overrides the role cost rate
📝 Note: Unlike bill rates, cost rates do not vary by project or phase. They represent the consistent cost of employing someone, regardless of what project they’re working on.
Bill rates hierarchy
Bill rates follow this structure: Role bill rate → Person bill rate → Project bill rate → Phase bill rate.
Role bill rate - the default rate assigned to a role
Person bill rate - overrides the role bill rate
Project bill rate - overrides the person bill rate, for that project only
Phase bill rate - overrides the project bill rate, for that phase only
You can manage bill rates at whichever level fits your billing model. If a team member's rate differs from their role default, because of location, experience, or specialization, you can set a person-level bill rate. If a specific project or phase is billed at a different rate again, you can override it at that level too.
As an example:
Role bill rate
Amy is a Designer. The role-level bill rate for Designers is $90/hr. Since Amy is assigned this role, her default bill rate is $90/hr. It applies to all work scheduled for Amy, unless a different rate is set at the person, project, or phase level.Person bill rate
Because Amy has advanced UI expertise, her rate is higher than that of other Designers. You set her person-level bill rate to $100/hr, which overrides the Designer role rate. This new rate applies to all work scheduled for Amy, unless a project or phase-specific rate has been set.Project bill rate
For a new client project, Website Redesign, your team negotiated a higher rate. Since this applies only to that project, you set a project-level bill rate of $110/hr for Amy. This overrides her person-level rate, but only for this project. Project phases inherit the project’s bill rate unless a phase-specific rate is defined.Phase bill rate
Within the Website Redesign project, the UI Design phase requires even more specialized work. You set a phase-level bill rate of $130/hr for Amy. This overrides the project rate and applies only to work scheduled within that specific phase.
Rate-level | Rate | Applies to |
Role (Designer) | $90/hr | All work by default |
Person (Amy) | $100/hr | All Amy's work (overrides role) |
Project (Website Redesign) | $110/hr | Amy on that project only |
Phase (UI Design) | $130/hr | Amy on that phase only |
Role updates, effective dates, and changes history
Role assignment
When you first assign a role to a person, it applies from their start date. If no start date is set, the role applies to all points in time. The default cost rate and bill rate are inherited from the selected role (unless a custom rate is applied).
Changing role with inherited role-rates
When role-rates are in use, and you change a person’s role, you will be prompted to select the effective date:
Apply the role change from A specific date onward, or
Apply the role change to all points-in-time with All past and future days
Once you select the effective date, click Update person to save the changes.
Each role update:
Updates the person’s current role
Updates the cost and bill rates if the person inherits them from the new role. New rates do not affect custom person, project, or phase rates.
Is tracked under View changes
Changing role when person-level rates are set
When changing the role of a person who already has custom person rates set, you will also be asked to:
Keep the existing person rate, or
Use the new role's default rates
If you choose to use the existing person rates, they will be preserved and applied from the selected effective date, while the role itself will be changed.
If you choose to apply the new role rates from a specific date onward, historical personal rates will be maintained.
If you choose to apply the new role rates to all past and future days, any historical personal rates will be removed.
The role and rate changes, along with their effective dates, are saved and can be reviewed and edited under View changes.
Cost rates changes
To review the role level cost rate history:
1) Navigate to Data studio > Roles
2) Click the role's name
3) Review Cost rate activity
To review the person-level cost rate history:
1) Open the person's profile
2) Navigate to the Info tab
3) Click View changes below the Cost rate field.
📝Note: Role-level changes are listed in the history as well, but they cannot be removed from the personal level. To modify them, navigate to Data studio > Roles.
Bill rates changes
Personal bill rates do not have an effective date. When you update personal bill rates, they take effect immediately for new projects or phases you create after the change. Existing or historical projects and phases are not updated when bill rates are modified.
Roles and rates history
The Account Owner and Admins can review any roles and rate changes in Company settings > Admin > Activity.
Rate visibility and access
Rate visibility depends on access rights:
Account Owner and Admins can see and edit all bill and cost rates
Members cannot see rates
Managers can be granted permission (in the Access tab of their profile) to:
View bill rates and budgets
View cost rates
View project profitability (in the Single Project Report).
💡 Here's a tip: Cost rates often contain sensitive salary information. Make sure you only grant access to users who need this information. By default, Managers do not have view and/or edit access to cost or bill rates. You can enable this manually at any time.
Bulk editing role cost rates
You can update role rates for multiple people at once using the bulk edit feature:
Go to Data studio > Roles
Select the roles you want to update
Click Edit
Choose Cost rate
Enter the new cost rate
Set an Effective date
Click Update
Bulk editing person rates
You can update rates for multiple people at once using the bulk edit feature on the People page.
Bulk editing cost rates
Go to the People page
Select the people you want to update
Click Edit
Choose Cost rate
Select the rate type between Set custom rate or Inherit role rate
If you want to Set custom rate, enter the new cost rate and set its effective date
If you want to Inherit role rate, set the effective date
Click Update
Updating cost rates applies the new custom rate for the selected people. The change is applied from the selected effective date. Updating cost rates does not affect bill rates for current projects.
Bulk editing bill rates
Go to the People page
Select the people you want to update
Click Edit
Choose Bill rate
Select the rate type between Set custom rate or Inherit role rate
If you want to Set custom rate, enter the new bill rate
If you want to Inherit role rate, the role bill rates will automatically apply
Click Update
The updated bill rates will apply to selected individuals on the person level and will be applied to new projects and phases. They will not affect the current project or phase bill rates.
Profitability reporting
With both bill and cost rates set up, Float calculates profit metrics automatically. See these articles to learn more: Project view, Single Project Report, Projects Report, and Project finance dashboard.
Additional notes
You can use our CSV import option on the People page to upload your people's cost and bill rates.
You can use the CSV import option in Data studio > Rate cards to import your rate cards.
By default, Managers do not have view and/or edit access to cost or bill rates. You can enable this manually at any time.
When using rate cards, both project and phase-level bill rates are set and cannot be adjusted on the project or phase level.
For the Set manually and Same for everyone rates settings, project phases inherit the rates set at the project level only if those rates are in place before a person is added to a phase. If the project rates are set after the phase was created and team members were added, the rates do not carry over.
To change the effective date of a role (without changing the role itself), delete the entry under View changes and re-add it with the new date.
Float doesn’t support applying a percentage discount to project rates. To apply a discount, create a discounted version of your standard rate card and assign it to the client or project.
Currently, there is no limit to the number of records shown under View changes.
If a person who doesn’t have a bill rate set is allocated or logs time against a project they haven’t been added to (as a Team), their time doesn't burn the project budget. Currently, if a bill rate is later set for that person or their role, our reporting logic retroactively applies that rate to previous work—meaning all historical projects will reflect the new rate. We’re working on a solution that will automatically copy the role or person’s bill rate into any project or phase they’re on that’s missing one. If those rates are manually set, they won’t be impacted. Stay tuned!