How the salary calculator works
The salary calculator turns pay in any period into every other period: hourly, daily, weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly, quarterly and annual. You enter one amount, and the calculator works out your yearly pay first, then divides it back out.
Two numbers describe your working year:
- Hours per year = hours per week × paid weeks per year. A standard full-time year is 40 × 52 = 2,080 hours.
- Working days per year = days per week × paid weeks. A five-day week gives 5 × 52 = 260 days.
Hourly rate = annual pay ÷ (hours per week × paid weeks)
Monthly = annual ÷ 12 · Semimonthly = annual ÷ 24 · Biweekly = annual ÷ 26 · Weekly = annual ÷ 52 · Quarterly = annual ÷ 4
Daily = annual ÷ working days
Hourly and daily figures are rates for the time you work. Weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly, quarterly and annual figures are your pay spread evenly over the calendar year.
Unadjusted vs adjusted for holidays and vacation
The calculator shows two columns, because days off change the answer in different ways for different jobs.
- Unadjusted assumes you are paid for every working day of every paid week. This is the number most job ads and quick conversions use.
- Adjusted takes your holidays and vacation days out of the working year.
- If you start from an hourly or daily rate, those days are treated as unpaid, as in most hourly jobs. Your yearly pay goes down.
- If you start from a salary, your pay already covers those days. Your salary stays the same, but you earn more for each hour and day you actually work.
The default is 10 holidays and 15 vacation days. US federal employees get 11 paid holidays in 2026. Private employers set their own policies, so check your contract or handbook and put in your own numbers under More options.
Worked example 1: $25 an hour to salary
You earn $25 an hour and work 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year. These are the calculator’s defaults.
- Annual: $25 × 40 × 52 = $52,000
- Monthly: $52,000 ÷ 12 = $4,333.33
- Semimonthly: $52,000 ÷ 24 = $2,166.67
- Biweekly: $52,000 ÷ 26 = $2,000
- Weekly: $25 × 40 = $1,000
- Daily (8-hour day): $200
Now say your 10 holidays and 15 vacation days are unpaid. You work 260 − 25 = 235 days, or 1,880 hours. Your adjusted yearly pay is $25 × 1,880 = $47,000, or $3,916.67 a month. That $5,000 gap is why hourly workers should count days off when comparing an hourly job with a salaried one.
Worked example 2: $75,000 salary to hourly
You are offered $75,000 a year for a 40-hour week.
- Hourly: $75,000 ÷ 2,080 = $36.06
- Daily: $75,000 ÷ 260 = $288.46
- Weekly: $75,000 ÷ 52 = $1,442.31
- Biweekly paycheck: $75,000 ÷ 26 = $2,884.62
- Semimonthly paycheck: $75,000 ÷ 24 = $3,125
- Monthly: $75,000 ÷ 12 = $6,250
With 10 paid holidays and 15 paid vacation days, you actually work 1,880 hours. So you earn $75,000 ÷ 1,880 = $39.89 for each hour worked, and $319.15 for each day worked. If a contract job pays $38 an hour with no paid time off, the salaried job pays more per hour worked, before even counting benefits.
Worked example 3: part-time, term-time work
You work 24 hours a week over 3 days, for 48 paid weeks a year, at $18 an hour. Set hours to 24, then under More options set days per week to 3, paid weeks to 48, and holidays and vacation to 0 (the unpaid weeks already cover your time off).
- Annual: $18 × 24 × 48 = $20,736
- Monthly average: $20,736 ÷ 12 = $1,728
- Weekly average over the whole year: $20,736 ÷ 52 = $398.77. In a week you work, you earn $18 × 24 = $432.
Hourly to salary table
At 40 hours a week and 52 weeks a year, before tax:
| Hourly wage | Weekly | Monthly | Annual salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| $7.25 (federal minimum) | $290 | $1,256.67 | $15,080 |
| $15 | $600 | $2,600 | $31,200 |
| $20 | $800 | $3,466.67 | $41,600 |
| $25 | $1,000 | $4,333.33 | $52,000 |
| $30 | $1,200 | $5,200 | $62,400 |
| $35 | $1,400 | $6,066.67 | $72,800 |
| $40 | $1,600 | $6,933.33 | $83,200 |
| $50 | $2,000 | $8,666.67 | $104,000 |
| $75 | $3,000 | $13,000 | $156,000 |
| $100 | $4,000 | $17,333.33 | $208,000 |
The calculator shows the same table for your own hours and weeks. Click any wage in it to load that rate.
Salary to hourly table
At 2,080 hours a year:
| Annual salary | Hourly rate | Biweekly paycheck |
|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $14.42 | $1,153.85 |
| $40,000 | $19.23 | $1,538.46 |
| $50,000 | $24.04 | $1,923.08 |
| $60,000 | $28.85 | $2,307.69 |
| $70,000 | $33.65 | $2,692.31 |
| $80,000 | $38.46 | $3,076.92 |
| $100,000 | $48.08 | $3,846.15 |
| $120,000 | $57.69 | $4,615.38 |
| $150,000 | $72.12 | $5,769.23 |
| $200,000 | $96.15 | $7,692.31 |
Working hours in a year
| Schedule | Hours a year |
|---|---|
| 40 hours × 52 weeks | 2,080 |
| 37.5 hours × 52 weeks | 1,950 |
| 35 hours × 52 weeks | 1,820 |
| 30 hours × 52 weeks | 1,560 |
| 20 hours × 52 weeks | 1,040 |
| 40 hours, minus 11 holidays and 15 vacation days | 1,872 |
Quick mental shortcuts
- Hourly to annual: double the hourly wage and add three zeros. $30 an hour ≈ $60,000. The exact figure is $62,400, so the shortcut assumes about 2,000 paid hours.
- Annual to hourly: halve the salary and drop three zeros. $80,000 ≈ $40 an hour. The exact figure is $38.46.
- Monthly to annual: multiply by 12. Biweekly to annual: multiply by 26, not 24.
Biweekly vs semimonthly pay
These two get mixed up all the time.
- Biweekly means every two weeks: 26 paychecks a year. Twice a year, a month has three paydays.
- Semimonthly means twice a month, often on the 15th and the last day: 24 paychecks a year.
On a $60,000 salary, a biweekly check is $2,307.69 and a semimonthly check is $2,500. The yearly total is the same. If you budget monthly on a biweekly schedule, plan on two paychecks a month and treat the two “extra” paychecks as a bonus for savings.
Overtime
Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, most hourly (non-exempt) workers must get at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours over 40 in a workweek. The calculator treats all hours at one rate, so work overtime out separately:
At $20 an hour and 45 hours a week, that is $20 × 40 + $30 × 5 = $950 a week, or $49,400 a year over 52 weeks. Entering 45 hours at $20 would give only $46,800. Some states have stricter overtime rules, such as daily overtime in California.
Tips for comparing job offers
- Compare per hour worked. Put each offer’s real hours and paid days off into the calculator and compare the adjusted hourly rate.
- Add the value of benefits. Employer health insurance, a 401(k) match and paid leave can be worth thousands a year. A contract rate needs to be noticeably higher than a salaried rate to match them.
- Think in take-home pay. Gross pay is not what reaches your bank. The paycheck calculator shows each paycheck after federal tax, Social Security, Medicare and state tax, and the income tax calculator works out your yearly federal tax and effective rate.
- Track your real hours. If you often stay late, your salary per hour is lower than it looks. The time card calculator adds up a week of shifts.
- Check raises against inflation. A 3% raise in a year of 3% inflation leaves you where you started. The inflation calculator shows what your pay is worth in today’s money.
Working in the UK? The UK salary calculator works out take-home pay after income tax and National Insurance.