Understanding the base rate value
The base rate is the only column in the rates table that is shown automatically and cannot be removed or changed. In nearly all situations the base rate is synonymous with the pay rate, but there are stages and situations where it can be used differently.
Base Rate Uses
- The most common use of the base rate is as the employees pay rate. This will often be added to an overhead or similar rate to calculate the final billing rate or loaded rate.
- For detailed financial tracking some companies will use the base rate as the wage rate (pay minus benefits) and add a separate column to represent benefit rates.
- Although this is not common in the professional services industry, if your employees are paid a small salary and larger bonus (similar to service industry staff) the base rate can represent that base salary and a separate column could represent the bonus rate.
- For early project estimation or when only less financial detail is needed, the base rate will often be input as the loaded rate. This still supports dashboards and invoices when additional details aren't needed.
Please see the rates examples article for additional examples of how rates can be used.