How to use my sliding scale

I use sliding scale pricing to make my offerings as accessible as possible while still allowing me to earn a sustainable wage. The middle of the range is the “actual cost” of the offering: this is what I would charge for it if I wasn’t using a sliding scale. The high end of the scale is the “pay it forward” price, which makes it possible for me to offer a “supported” price at the low end of the scale.

Each of my offerings are priced differently - scroll down to the offerings section at the bottom of this page to see the cost of each offering. If you already have a sense of what you can afford, great! If not, below are some factors to consider.

Consider paying less on the scale if you:

  • have significant debt

  • are unemployed or underemployed not by your own choice

  • have medical expenses not covered by insurance

  • are eligible for public assistance

  • have immigration-related expenses

  • are an elder with limited financial support

  • are an unpaid community organizer

  • have been denied work due to incarceration history

  • are indigenous or are descended from enslaved people

  • are supporting children or have other dependents

Consider paying more on the scale if you:

  • own the home you live in or rent a higher-end property

  • have investments, retirement accounts, or inherited money

  • can afford to take vacation or travel a few times a year without that causing a financial burden

  • have access to family money and resources in times of need

  • can usually or always afford to buy new things

  • work part time or are unemployed by choice, including unemployment due to full-time school in a degree-earning program

If you fit most of the bullet points about the lower end of the scale, consider paying the lowest, supported price. If you fit most of the bullets about the high end of the scale, consider paying the pay-it-forward price. If you’re somewhere in the middle, consider paying somewhere in the middle of my scale.

All that said, money is complicated and of course this list can’t capture every situation. If you’re not sure what makes sense for you, let’s talk about it!

Thank you to Little Red Bird Botanicals for the (lightly edited) list of factors to consider when determining where you fall on the scale, and to Alex J Cummingworth for a blog post that helped me think about how to structure a sliding scale.