How to Set Your Virtual Assistant Rates (Without Guessing)

Most virtual assistants set their first rate by copying someone else's, then wonder why they are either broke or losing clients. Pricing is not a guess. It is three numbers: what the market pays, what you need to survive, and what your results justify. Here is how to find all three.

Start with market benchmarks

African VAs working with global clients typically earn $4 to $15 per hour depending on skill and niche. General admin sits around $4 to $8. Specialised work like executive assistance, ecommerce operations, or bookkeeping support commands $10 to $15 and sometimes above. For context, US based VAs charge $25 to $40 for the same tasks, which is why global clients save 40 to 60 percent and why demand keeps growing.

Within those bands, proof moves you more than location. A VA in Nairobi with three case studies and verified reviews will out-earn a VA anywhere with neither.

Calculate your cost-plus floor

Your floor is the rate below which working costs you money. Add up monthly essentials: your share of rent, food, internet, power backup, equipment savings, and taxes. Divide by realistic billable hours, which is usually 100 to 120 per month, not 160, because admin, marketing, and gaps between clients eat the rest.

Example: $600 in monthly costs divided by 110 billable hours is about $5.50 per hour. That is not your rate. That is your floor, and any quote below it means you are paying to work.

Hourly, packages, or retainers

Hourly is fine for starting out, but it punishes you for getting faster: the more skilled you become, the less each task pays. Packages fix that. "Inbox management, 20 scheduled posts, and a weekly report for $400 per month" sells an outcome, and if experience lets you deliver it in 25 hours instead of 40, your effective rate jumps without a negotiation.

Monthly retainers are the end goal: predictable income for you, guaranteed availability for the client. Most established VAs run two or three retainers plus one project slot for variety and upside.

Raise rates with proof, not hope

Rate raises are easiest to win with numbers. Track what you affect: response time cut from 8 hours to 1, 15 hours per week returned to the founder, recovered cart emails that brought back $2,000 in orders. Put the results in a short monthly report so the record builds itself.

Then raise with notice: "From October my rate moves from $7 to $9 per hour. Your current rate is locked until then, and here is what we accomplished this quarter." Existing clients rarely leave over a 20 to 30 percent increase when the value is documented, and new clients simply meet you at the new number.

Underpricing traps to avoid

• Racing to the lowest bid. Clients who choose purely on price are usually the hardest to work with.
• Quoting hourly for work you have become fast at. Package it instead.
• Ignoring invisible costs like data, power backup, and unpaid admin time.
• Never adjusting rates for long-term clients. A yearly increase should be normal.
• Treating a full calendar at a low rate as success. Fully booked and underpaid is a trap, not a milestone.

Your rate is not a measure of your worth. It is a filter for the clients you attract, and low rates filter in the wrong ones.

Charge properly on DevDey

Clear pricing works best in front of clients who value it. DevDey connects vetted African virtual assistants with global businesses, with verified reviews, direct payments, and no middlemen taking a cut of your rate. Create your free profile and see how it works. If you are earlier in the journey, start with How to Become a Virtual Assistant in 2026.