How to Set a Doula Fee

I’m seeing a lot of buzz recently from newer doulas who are wondering what to charge for services. While they’re beginning to recognize that their work in the world has value (yay!), there seems to still be a lot of mystery around where to even begin when deciding a fair price to charge. So, with that in mind, I suggest the following guideline.

1) Determine your expenses. Doulas have a fair amount of expenses incurred as with any other small business.

How much do you pay for your on-call cell phone? Divide that number by the number of clients you have (or wish to have) per month.

What do you pay for internet? (If it’s a home account shared by your business, determine the portion of your internet expense that is used for your business). Divide that by your clients per month.

How about printer ink? Books for your lending library? Figure that into your per month/per client number, too.

What do you spend per month on scrubs, “work clothes”, good work shoes, etc?

What percentage of your automobile use is for work? Figure in that much per month of your automobile insurance.

How much do you drive, or are you willing to drive, for client appointments and births? The current IRS allowance is 55 cents per mile. If, for instance, you drive 20 miles one way to a client’s home, and you offer two home visits, support in labor, and a postpartum visit, that’s 160 miles you’ve driven for one client, for an expense of $66.00

Remember to also calculate any miles you may travel to doula meetings, or birth support groups, and divide that up per client/per month.

What do you spend per year on trainings, continuing education, or resources to continue your own learning and growing? Divide that into a “per month” amount, and divide that number by your number of births per month. Don’t forget to include your costs for certification, professional organization membership dues, or liability insurance you may carry.

Remember that you may need to pay for tolls or parking at the hospital, as well.

Do you have children of your own? How much do you spend per month on child care for appointments and birthing times?

If you’re at a birth for any amount of time, you’re likely to need to pay for at least one meal, so figure that in, too.

Consider also any fees you pay to have legal documents created, such as your contract.

Include any fees you pay for business cards, advertising, or web design.

Are you paying for your own health insurance? That’s an expense for you, as well – one that is incurred by those who are self-employed. Divide that by your number of clients per month.

When you start looking at the numbers, you may be surprised to learn how much each birth is really costing you out-of-pocket!

2) Consider the value of your time.

How many hours, on average, do you spend with each client on the phone, or offering support by text or email?

How many hours do you offer in prenatal visits, including your time driving to and from these appointments?

How many hours on average do you anticipate spending with each client at her birth? (Some doulas include a specific “up to 12 hours face-to-face support” clause in their contracts, while others average out the number of hours they’ve spent at births already attended. For me, average is 16 hours, including drive time.)

Now, how much do you think is a fair hourly wage? Multiply that number by the total number of hours you’re working for your client.

Now double it. That’s right – double it, because self-employed small business owners actually pay about half of what they earn (after deducting expenses) in taxes.

Now that you’ve considered your expenses and your time, take your “expenses” number, and add it to your “fair hourly wage” number, and that’s what you should be charging, minimum, for every birth you take on.

This is not including numbers that would need to be considered for paying for backup support. It also is based on a doula taking on her full client anticipated load every month, without taking weeks off. These are expenses that would also need to be considered, if this is work you wish to do full time.

Are you charging what you’re worth?

See What’s In a Fee? and No Free Births! for more!

Like this post? Come “like” Jodi the Doula on Facebook, too!

3 Comments (+add yours?)

  1. Trackback: Ellen Derby
  2. Trackback: Knitted in the Womb
  3. Trackback: Ashley

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *