Finance · Income
Hourly to Salary Calculator
Turn your hourly wage into an annual salary in seconds — or work backward from a salary to an hourly rate. See the monthly, weekly and daily breakdown too. Free, no sign-up.
How the hourly-to-salary calculator works
The math is simple — your annual salary is your hourly rate multiplied by the hours you work each week and the number of weeks you work per year:
- Annual salary = hourly rate × hours per week × weeks per year
- Monthly pay = annual salary ÷ 12
- Weekly pay = hourly rate × hours per week
- Daily pay = hourly rate × (hours per week ÷ 5), assuming a 5-day work week
- Hourly (reverse) = annual salary ÷ (hours per week × weeks per year)
For a standard full-time schedule of 40 hours a week and 52 weeks a year, that's 2,080 working hours per year. So $25 per hour works out to exactly $52,000 per year.
Quick reference: hourly rate to annual salary (40h/week, 52 weeks)
| Hourly rate | Annual salary |
|---|---|
| $15.00 | $31,200 |
| $20.00 | $41,600 |
| $25.00 | $52,000 |
| $30.00 | $62,400 |
| $40.00 | $83,200 |
| $50.00 | $104,000 |
| $75.00 | $156,000 |
Things to keep in mind
This is gross pay, not take-home pay
The salary shown here is your gross income — before federal tax, state tax, Social Security and Medicare are taken out. Your actual take-home pay will be lower. To see net pay after deductions, use a paycheck calculator.
Adjust weeks per year for unpaid time off
Full-time salaried workers are usually paid for all 52 weeks, including vacation. But if you're hourly and take two unpaid weeks off, set weeks per year to 50, giving you 2,000 working hours instead of 2,080. Part-time, seasonal and contract workers should set hours and weeks to match their real schedule.
Overtime isn't included
This converter assumes a flat rate for every hour. If you're paid time-and-a-half for hours over 40 per week, your real earnings will be higher than the straight-line estimate here.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert hourly wage to annual salary?
Multiply your hourly rate by hours per week, then by weeks per year. For example, $25/hr × 40 hours × 52 weeks = $52,000 per year. Standard full-time is 40 hours and 52 weeks.
How many work hours are in a year?
A standard full-time year is 40 hours × 52 weeks = 2,080 hours. If you take two unpaid weeks off, use 50 weeks, or 2,000 hours. Adjust the weeks field to match your schedule.
How do I convert salary to an hourly rate?
Divide your annual salary by total hours worked per year. With 2,080 hours, a $52,000 salary equals $25/hr. Switch to "Salary → Hourly" mode to do it automatically.
Is this gross or net pay?
It's gross pay — before tax, Social Security and Medicare. Your take-home pay will be lower. Use a paycheck calculator to estimate net pay after deductions.
What if I work overtime or variable hours?
This tool assumes a consistent schedule. If your hours vary, enter an average. Overtime at 1.5x isn't modeled — use an overtime calculator for time-and-a-half pay.
Why full-time is 2,080 hours a year
The standard US benchmark for a full-time salary is built on a simple assumption: 40 hours a week, every week of the year. Multiply 40 hours by 52 weeks and you get 2,080 working hours per year. This is the figure the federal government, most payroll systems, and HR departments use to translate an annual salary into an hourly rate and back again.
That's why a salaried employee earning $52,000 a year is often quoted as a "$25 an hour" job — $52,000 divided by 2,080 hours equals exactly $25. The 2,080-hour standard makes it easy to compare an hourly job offer against a salaried one on equal footing. Keep in mind, though, that it assumes you're paid for all 52 weeks, including any vacation. Hourly workers who take unpaid time off actually work fewer hours, which changes the math.
How paid time off changes the comparison
Salaried employees are typically paid the same amount whether they take their two weeks of vacation or not — their pay is spread across all 52 weeks. Hourly workers are usually only paid for the hours they actually work. If you're hourly and take two unpaid weeks off, your real working year is closer to 2,000 hours (50 weeks × 40 hours), not 2,080. Set the "weeks per year" field to match your real situation: use 52 if you're paid for vacation, or 50 if your time off is unpaid.
Standard, overtime, and variable hours
Overtime pay (time-and-a-half)
Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), most hourly employees are entitled to overtime pay of at least 1.5 times their regular rate for hours worked beyond 40 in a single workweek. This calculator does not model overtime — it applies a flat rate to every hour. If you regularly work overtime, your real annual earnings will be higher than the straight-line estimate. To picture it: at $25 an hour, your overtime rate would be $37.50, so even a few extra hours each week can add up meaningfully over a year.
Variable or part-time schedules
If your hours change week to week, enter your average weekly hours for a realistic estimate. Part-time and seasonal workers should set both the hours-per-week and weeks-per-year fields to match their actual schedule. A worker doing 25 hours a week for 48 weeks has a very different annual figure than the full-time default.
Example: how the same $25/hour plays out
| Schedule | Annual gross |
|---|---|
| 40 hrs/week × 52 weeks (full-time) | $52,000 |
| 40 hrs/week × 50 weeks (2 unpaid weeks) | $50,000 |
| 30 hrs/week × 52 weeks (part-time) | $39,000 |
| 20 hrs/week × 48 weeks (seasonal) | $24,000 |
The same hourly wage can translate into very different annual incomes depending on how many hours and weeks you actually work. That's why this tool lets you adjust both fields instead of locking you into the 2,080-hour default.
Contractor vs. employee: the hidden value of benefits
When you compare an hourly contract rate to a salaried job, the headline numbers can be misleading. A W-2 employee receives benefits that never appear in their wage, while a 1099 independent contractor has to cover those costs themselves out of a higher headline rate.
- Payroll taxes — employees split FICA with their employer (the company pays half). Self-employed contractors pay the full self-employment tax themselves.
- Health insurance — employees often get subsidized premiums; contractors buy their own coverage at full price.
- Retirement matching — many employers match 401(k) contributions, effectively free money a contractor doesn't receive.
- Paid time off — vacation, sick days, and holidays are paid for salaried employees but unpaid gaps for most contractors.
- Other benefits — life and disability insurance, training budgets, and equipment are commonly employer-provided.
A common rule of thumb is that an independent contractor needs to charge roughly 25% to 50% more per hour than an equivalent salaried rate just to break even on the benefits and taxes they now shoulder alone. So a $25/hour salaried role might require a contractor rate closer to $32–$38/hour to deliver the same real value. Use this converter to find the salaried baseline first, then layer those extra costs on top.
Common misconceptions
- "My annual salary is my take-home pay." No — the figure here is gross pay. Federal tax, state tax, Social Security, and Medicare all come out before you see your net pay.
- "A higher hourly rate always means more money." Not if you work fewer hours or weeks. Annual income depends on rate, hours, and weeks together.
- "Contractor and employee pay are directly comparable." They aren't — contractors must cover benefits and the full payroll tax that employers normally split.
- "There are exactly 2,000 work hours in a year." The full-time standard is 2,080 hours (paid for all 52 weeks). The 2,000-hour figure only applies if you take two unpaid weeks off.
Smart ways to use this converter
- Translate a job offer's hourly rate into an annual figure to compare it with salaried roles.
- Set a target salary, switch to "Salary → Hourly" mode, and find the hourly rate you need to charge.
- Adjust hours and weeks to model part-time, seasonal, or freelance schedules accurately.
- Once you have the gross figure, run it through a paycheck calculator to estimate take-home pay.
More questions about converting pay
Why is the full-time year 2,080 hours instead of 2,000?
Because the standard assumes you're paid for all 52 weeks, including vacation: 40 × 52 = 2,080. The 2,000-hour figure (50 weeks) only applies if you take two unpaid weeks off, which is common for hourly workers but not salaried ones.
How much more should a contractor charge than a salaried rate?
A common guideline is 25% to 50% more per hour. Contractors must pay the full self-employment tax, buy their own health insurance, and forgo employer 401(k) matching and paid time off — costs a salaried employee doesn't shoulder alone.
Does this include overtime pay?
No. The converter applies a flat rate to every hour. Under the FLSA, most hourly employees earn at least 1.5x their rate for hours over 40 per week, so real earnings can be higher. Use a dedicated overtime calculator to model time-and-a-half.
How do I figure out the hourly rate I need for a target salary?
Switch to "Salary → Hourly" mode and enter your target annual figure. The tool divides it by your hours and weeks. For a $60,000 target at full-time hours, that's about $28.85 an hour.
Should I set weeks per year to 50 or 52?
Use 52 if you're a salaried worker paid for vacation, or an hourly worker with paid time off. Use 50 if you're hourly and your two weeks of time off are unpaid, which gives you 2,000 working hours instead of 2,080.
Is the result gross or net pay?
Gross — the amount before any tax or withholding. Your take-home pay will be lower after federal tax, state tax, Social Security, and Medicare. Use a paycheck calculator to estimate your net pay.