Sounds like I’m in the same boat you were this past January. A little bit of context: I went to a private art school, racked up student loans and couldn’t get work anywhere as a Graphic Designer. I didn’t let that discourage me and continued self education (you could say I’m self taught). Work at Apple Retail and was given the opportunity to work in Cupertino with Retail Marketing on some internal projects (mostly UI and iconography). I decided to go part time at Apple Retail and full time as a UX Designer to pursue a career. My only professional experience was Apple Inc., which looks great on a resume, but wan’t enough to a lot of potential clients. I needed a company that would take me in and give me an opportunity. Because of that, I’m currently charging $28 an hour as a UX Designer. Yes: that might seem relatively cheap to a lot of you out there, but again, I needed a company that would take me in and allow me to continue building my portfolio. Located in the mid-west, if that makes a difference rate-waise.

My contract with my current company comes up at the end of January, and I'm considering bumping up my price. I've been with said company for almost a year now. This is my second contract that will run out. I didn't raise my hourly rate when it was time to re-sign due to fear that they might let me go. You could say that the first time they offered to resign me validated my work. If they offer me a third contract, would it be insane to charge more? How much more? It’s something that I struggle with as time goes by. Another question: what’s considered work experience? Time you’ve worked for a major company? Time you’ve freelance? Am I technically one year in or 7 years in: the time since leaving school in 2008 and doing work here and there.

Anyways, it’s nice to see people share their salaries on a sites like hellobonsai.com and Designer News. Helps someone like myself get a better picture of what people are charging.