Q&A How much should a remote coder get paid?

[Dena]

I work full time in an office as a coder. But I have been asked to do some remote coding by another employer. I'm just not sure what to charge.

Thanks, Dena

 

[Alicia Scott]

I think I would start negotiations around $18 and hour. It depends a lot on how they want to pay. Do they want to pay per hour or chart?

 

[Lori Woods]

http://news.aapc.com/index.php/2012/09/salary-survey-2012-trends-show-growth-and-diversification/

 

[Carolyn Heath]

When I did remote coding in January to February 2013, I was earning $14 per hour.

 

[Alicia Scott]

So many factors to consider. Remote is different then in an office.

 

[Carolyn Heath]

Alicia is right; remote coding is different from being in an office. In an office, you have cubicles and people around you. If you have a question, you can ask your coworkers to help you. In remote coding, you are by yourself--no cubicles, no coworkers. If you have a question, you have to email your supervisor or use Google to find your answers. The good thing about remote coding is that you set your hours and you get more work done than you would in an office.

 

[Alicia Scott]

You can take your lunch any time. You can watch a movie in the middle of the day. You can go to a scheduled appointment with out having to ask off from work. You can play a computer game to give yourself a break. On and on but the down side is that your time can get away from you very fast. It is nothing for me to be working on a project and look up and half the day is gone and I didn't get my coding done so I need to stay up late or work on Saturday. If you have children, you can't work with them in the room and sometimes not even in the house. Accuracy is very important in remote coding. 95% is the standard and some require 98% accuracy rating. Nothing to mess around with. There can be more distractions in your home then at work.

It takes a lot of diligence to work from home.

 

[Carolyn Heath]

The only distraction I had (and I welcomed it) when I was doing remote coding was my cat coming into my room wanting some attention from her "momma." If I was offered another remote coding position, I would definitely do it. As I often said it so many times, remote coding is my dream job and that is what I would like to do with my medical coding.

 

[Alicia Scott]

Our cats now have decided it was alright to walk on my desk. They locked out my mouse pad on my personal lap top the other day. Go figure. I don't like them on my desk even if they are cute.