If you get paid weekly (once per week), you have 52 pay periods per year. If you get paid semimonthly (twice per month), you have 24 pay periods per year. If you get paid monthly (once per month), you have 12 pay periods per year. [3] X Trustworthy Source US Bureau of Labor Statistics U. S. government agency that collects and reports labor-related information Go to source
If you don’t have fixed working hours, use an approximation for the average number of hours you work per day. For instance, if you often work 8-10 hours per day, you can use 9 hours per day as an approximation.
This calculation doesn’t account for overtime, bonus pay, sick pay, vacation pay, or other variables. For example, some jobs may offer overtime pay that is above the equivalent hourly rate for your base salary. [6] X Trustworthy Source US Bureau of Labor Statistics U. S. government agency that collects and reports labor-related information Go to source For instance, say you have a base salary of $40,000, but your job offers $25/hour for overtime pay. If you work a lot of overtime, then your average hourly rate might be higher than it would be if you didn’t earn overtime pay. To approximate your net hourly rate (or, what you max after taxes and deductions), divide your net pay on your most recent paystub by the number of hours you worked during that time period. For example, if your paystub says your net pay was $1330 and you worked 70 hours, your net hourly rate after taxes and benefits is $1330 divided by 70, or $19/hour.
For example, imagine that you’re a landscaper and you made $8,000 in August. However, you also spent $2000 on equipment, hired labor, and other costs. Therefore, your income for the month of August was $8,000 minus $2,000, or $6,000. This calculation doesn’t account for taxes, which can vary a lot depending on your country or city. If you’re self-employed in the United States, you’ll have to pay 15. 3% in federal taxes, plus state and local taxes—but the exact amounts change from person to person. [Calculate-Self-Employment-Tax-in-the-U. S. |Calculate your self-employment tax]] or talk to an accountant in your area to get expert help. [8] X Trustworthy Source Internal Revenue Service U. S. government agency in charge of managing the Federal Tax Code Go to source
For example, imagine that you’re self-employed as a landscaper and charge customers $100/hour for labor. In addition to those paid hours, you spend many hours per month doing bookkeeping, shopping for tools, or completing other tasks for your business. All of this counts as work, even if a lot of it is technically unpaid.
To calculate your average hourly wage for a whole year, keep track of all the hours you work for that year, including unpaid work. Then divide your income (total money you make, minus expenses) by the number of hours you worked. If you make roughly the same amount of money every month, and work roughly the same number of hours, you can calculate your hourly rate for an average month. This will give you an approximate hourly wage for the year.
For example, say you’re a waiter who makes $200 in tips on busy Saturday nights, but only makes $50 on other nights. You might prefer to calculate your average wage from tips over a whole month, since your income on Saturdays doesn’t reflect your typical income.
This amount doesn’t include your hourly paycheck, which is separate from cash tips.
To calculate your salary for the year, multiply your total hourly wage by the number of hours you work in a week. Then multiply that number by 52. For example, if you make $28/hour and work 30 hours per week, your approximate annual salary equals $28 x 30 x 52, or $43,680 per year. This calculation doesn’t account for taxes on tips. Technically, you’re required to report tips on your federal and state tax returns if the total amount of tips exceeds $20 per month. If you report tips on your tax return, you’ll receive a tax bill from the IRS and your state after filing. Your exact tax bill will depend on how much you made and the state where you’re employed. [14] X Trustworthy Source Internal Revenue Service U. S. government agency in charge of managing the Federal Tax Code Go to source