Hourly to Salary Calculator
Convert your hourly wage to annual, monthly, weekly and daily salary instantly. Accurate USA pay calculations for 2026.
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What This Calculator Does
This calculator converts between hourly wage and annual salary in both directions — hourly to annual and annual to hourly — using standard work year assumptions (40 hours/week, 52 weeks, 2,080 hours annually). It also shows per-period pay at common pay frequencies and estimates take-home pay after federal and state income tax and FICA.
It's most useful when comparing a salaried offer against current hourly work, evaluating a contractor rate versus employment salary, or understanding what your annual salary actually means in hourly terms.
The Standard Work Year
2,080 hours (52 weeks × 40 hours) is the baseline for hourly-to-salary conversion and is the standard used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most employers, and IRS compensation tables. Some calculators use 2,000 hours (50 weeks, accounting for 2 weeks off) — clarify which assumption is being used when comparing numbers across sources.
Hourly Rates at Common Annual Salaries
| Annual Salary | Hourly Equivalent (2,080 hrs) | Approx. Monthly Net (Single, TX) |
|---|---|---|
| $30,000 | $14.42/hr | ~$2,200 |
| $45,000 | $21.63/hr | ~$3,100 |
| $60,000 | $28.85/hr | ~$4,050 |
| $75,000 | $36.06/hr | ~$4,900 |
| $100,000 | $48.08/hr | ~$6,400 |
Salary vs. Hourly: The Hidden Differences
Benefits
Salaried positions typically include employer-paid health insurance, retirement matching, paid time off, and other benefits that aren't reflected in the base salary number. The total compensation value can be $10,000–$20,000+ above the stated salary. Converting a salary offer to hourly without accounting for benefits understates the salaried job's true value.
Overtime
Hourly workers (non-exempt under FLSA) must receive 1.5× their regular rate for hours above 40/week. Exempt salaried employees receive no additional compensation for overtime. For roles where significant overtime is expected, this distinction has a major real-world income impact.
Schedule Flexibility
Many salaried roles involve implicit expectations of work beyond 40 hours. A $70,000 salary for someone regularly working 50 hours/week is actually $33.65/hour — below the stated hourly equivalent for 40-hour work.
Contractor vs. Employee Conversion
Converting an hourly employee wage to a contractor rate requires a markup because contractors pay both sides of FICA (additional 7.65%), fund their own benefits, and have no employer contributions. The standard rule of thumb: multiply your desired employee-equivalent hourly rate by 1.25–1.4 to arrive at an appropriate contractor rate that covers self-employment tax and benefits gap.
Example: You want to match a $40/hour W-2 job as a contractor. Including SE tax and benefits gap: contractor rate of $50–$56/hour is typically needed to achieve equivalent total compensation.
Tips and Best Practices
- Always compare total compensation, not just hourly or salary — two offers with different pay structures require benefit value, overtime potential, and expected hours to compare accurately.
- Account for unpaid time off in hourly calculations — if hourly work has 2 weeks of unpaid downtime per year (no paid vacation), effective annual income is based on 2,000 hours, not 2,080.
Related Calculators
- Salary Calculator — detailed annual salary breakdown with taxes.
- Paycheck Calculator — per-check net pay at any hourly rate.
- Self-Employment Tax Calculator — contractor rate tax burden.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is $20/hour annually?
$20 × 2,080 hours = $41,600/year gross. After federal income tax and FICA (single, no pre-tax deductions, Texas): approximately $33,000–$34,000 take-home annually, or about $2,750–$2,850/month.
How much do I need to earn hourly to live comfortably?
It depends entirely on location and personal circumstances. MIT's Living Wage Calculator provides location-specific estimates of the wage needed to cover basic expenses. As a rough benchmark, covering rent in most mid-sized US cities without spending more than 30% of income typically requires $18–$25/hour for a single person. Major coastal cities require significantly more.
Is 15 dollars an hour enough to live on?
In most US cities, $15/hour (~$31,200/year gross, ~$25,000–$26,000 net) is challenging as a sole income source. It can cover basic expenses in lower-cost rural areas or with roommates; it's insufficient for most urban markets without housing assistance, a second income, or additional assistance programs.
Key Takeaways
Converting between hourly and salary is simple arithmetic — $X per hour × 2,080 hours = annual salary. The harder comparisons are total compensation comparisons that account for benefits, overtime, expected hours, and for contractors, self-employment tax burden. When evaluating job offers, the take-home pay in your bank account after taxes — not the gross hourly or salary figure — is the number that determines what your life actually costs and what you can save.