There are 5 levers that impact how much you can earn:
Location: As I mentioned earlier, an analyst's earnings in Ohio or Alabama differ from those of someone in California or New York. Same title, different market dynamics. If you can work remotely, that also impacts your earnings.
Tools: This isn't a “master tools” suggestion. Whatever tool you use — SQL, Python, Power BI, Excel — focus on specializing in one area. Depth beats breadth.
It’s good to know how to use all these tools, but if you’re not an expert in any of them, clients and businesses will look for specialists.
Learning SQL is valuable. Adding Python or Power BI? Even better.
Become proficient in automation using tools such as Power Query, dbt, or Airflow. When clients say, “We didn’t know this was even possible,” it’s a sign to consider increasing your rate. Yes, they’re willing to pay for that.
3. Methods: Most data professionals can create a chart with Excel, Tableau, Alteryx, etc.
Understanding methods like statistical modeling, time series forecasting, or experiment design changes how you’re seen — from “report builder” to “someone we can trust to advise us with our data.”
When you develop scalable methods, reduce cost or save the business money, and bring value to a company automatically, your rate should reflect that. Increase your rate!
4. Ideas: You can bill for tasks or for thinking.
Suggest a better approach, package it, and own the result. When you start pitching solutions, you’re delivering what’s asked and more; you compete beyond price alone.
An idea that saves $10k/year is leverage. These are solutions you can bill for that analysis alone won’t get you.
I slightly hinted that I missed out on a contract because I was stuck with my analysis, and while I wished the client had given more details of what they wanted, I know I should have offered more.
And that’s why consultants make major coins.
5. Soft skills: I believe that communication, storytelling, and domain knowledge have earned me more recognition than my spreadsheets or code. They are multipliers.
My dad used to say: “Work it like a skirt, short enough to keep them hooked, long enough to cover every point necessary.”
Be the go-to person for codes and simplifying things. That’s brilliance.
→ Broader scope, higher rate, repeat work.
My simple pricing heuristic
For freelance/contract work, I use:
Rate floor = (Target monthly gross ÷ 100 billable hrs) × risk factor (1.2–1.6).
It’s a simple format that stops me from undercharging when the scope is fuzzy or risky.
So… How much should you be making?
Enough to reflect the problems you solve, not just the tasks you complete.
If you want to push your earning potential:
Pick a tool you excel at and master it: Whether it’s through AI, YouTube, or certification — become a master of something.
Add a skill/method that feels “above your level”: If you’ve read my series, Achieving Data Maturity, I listed some ways you can demonstrate maturity in how you handle analysis or models. Forecasting and experimental design, or causal analysis, are some methods that can move the needle in how much you earn.
Achieving data maturity (a mini-series)
Start bringing ideas to the table. Be more than a task runner; bring ideas to the table.
Suggest dynamic ways to solve problems, debug code, improve pipelines, or automate the boring tasks. That’s how you rate your work.
Communicate like your paycheck depends on it. Keep it simple, not simplistic.
🔗 Biz and whimsy: https://linktr.ee/amyusifoh
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Data analyst ⬩ Spreadsheet advocate ⬩ Freelancer ⬩ Turning data into useful insights
