Ask HN: How to estimate your hourly rate as a consultant?

I'm starting out as an independent consultant mainly focusing on backend (Python) and iOS development. I need help evaluating my rate, as I never charged per hour before. I just had full-time jobs in different countries and the salary varied significantly, so an approach of just dividing my previous salary won't work plus I didn't have a job for over a year and worked on my startup, so my worth as a consultant is different now.

Also, some clients make an argument that a developer residing in India or Vietnam doesn't deserve to make as much money as devs in the Bay area, as the living costs are much lower, what do you think about it?

Some clients are asking me to install some time tracking software, is that considered to be a good practice?

It's very difficult to negotiate price as clients always try to belittle you, so it's extremely important to know your self-worth rate-wise.