57% of Agencies Lose $1K-$5K Monthly to Scope Creep. Here's Why It Keeps Happening.

After researching scope creep for the past month, I found data that explains why half the freelancers I talk to are struggling financially despite being fully booked. 57% of agencies lose $1,000-$5,000 per month to unbilled scope creep. (Ignition, 2025) 30% lose more than $5,000 per month. Only 1% successfully bill for all out-of-scope work. That's not a typo. 99% of agencies are hemorrhaging money from work they can't bill for. The Math That Breaks Freelancers Let me show you what this actually means: Average agency with 5 team members: Each person spends 2 hours/week on unbilled client requests That's 100+ hours per person annually At $100/hour: $50,000/year per person in lost revenue $250,000/year for a 5-person team For solo freelancers: 2 hours/week unbilled work = 104 hours/year At $75/hour: $7,800/year lost At $150/hour: $15,600/year lost This is why freelancers work 43 hours/week but struggle to hit income goals. The work is there. They're just not getting paid for it. Why This