Business plan writing tops freelance pay in Australia
Wed, 20th May 2026 (Today)
Honcho has released research showing that business plan writing is the highest-paid freelance skill in Australia. The study analysed nearly 100,000 job listings.
Using a March snapshot of Freelancer.com listings, the research found that business plan writing commanded an average hourly rate of AUD $31.19. That put it ahead of packaging design at AUD $30.62, recruitment assistance at AUD $30.53, Mac application development at AUD $30.40, and contract writing at AUD $30.09.
Logo creation ranked just outside the top five at AUD $29.98 an hour, meaning business, legal, and design work made up most of the highest-paying freelance tasks in the sample. The figures suggest specialist commercial work is attracting stronger rates than many broader digital categories.
Honcho Chief Operating Officer Miralda Ishkhanian said the findings challenged common assumptions about the freelance market.
"Despite tech and design being some of the most in-demand roles, this data shows that business acumen, including writing plans, drafting contracts, and helping companies hire, is genuinely where the premium rates are sitting right now," Ishkhanian said.
"For anyone considering freelancing, or looking to upskill into higher-value work, this is a strong signal about where the market is placing its dollars," she said.
Industry rankings
At the industry level, Business, Accounting & Legal recorded the highest average hourly rate at AUD $29.22 across 2,182 listings. Product Sourcing & Manufacturing followed at AUD $27.73 from 486 listings, while Mobile ranked third at AUD $27.28 from 2,749 listings.
Sales & Marketing came next at AUD $27.12 across 6,586 listings, ahead of Trades & Services at AUD $26.92 from 2,080 listings. Design, despite generating by far the most listings in the dataset at 36,441, placed sixth with an average hourly rate of AUD $26.74.
Writing ranked seventh at AUD $26.30 from 15,916 listings, while Websites IT & Software came eighth at AUD $26.22 from 18,476 listings. Within those sectors, the highest-paying roles varied sharply, with Mac application development leading software listings and packaging design topping design work.
The results also point to a gap between volume and pricing. Design had the largest pool of opportunities, but its average rates lagged behind business-focused work, indicating that a crowded market may be limiting what freelancers can charge.
Trades & Services also featured strongly, placing fifth overall. That suggests freelance work in practical, in-person tasks remains competitive on pay with several digital categories.
In the breakdown of individual job requests, business-related services appeared repeatedly near the top of the table. Alongside business plan writing, recruitment support and contract drafting also featured in the top five, giving the Business, Accounting & Legal category a notable concentration of higher-paying tasks.
Software work, by contrast, appeared more mixed. Mac application development was the only software-related role to make the top five individual skills, suggesting platform-specific work may draw better rates than more general development assignments.
The study covered 99,550 freelance job listings and grouped them by job type and industry category before calculating average hourly rates. All rates were expressed in Australian dollars.
Ishkhanian said another pattern in the data was the durability of commercial support work.
"What stands out is the consistency of business and legal skills at the top. These aren't flash-in-the-pan gigs, they're foundational services that businesses always need, which likely explains the rate stability," she said.
She also pointed to design as an example of a category where demand does not automatically translate into higher pay.
"The sheer volume of design listings tells an interesting story. It's one of the most competitive freelance categories, and that competition appears to be keeping average rates lower than the skill level might otherwise command. For designers looking to earn more, niching into higher-value work, like packaging, could make a real difference," she said.