How-to

How to convert salary to an hourly rate

Converting a yearly salary to an hourly rate is simple once you know how many hours you work in a year. This helps you compare a salaried job with contract or freelance work, and reveals which offer truly pays more for your time.

The formula

Hourly rate = annual salary ÷ (hours per week × weeks per year). A standard full-time schedule is 40 hours a week across 52 weeks, which equals 2,080 hours a year. So the quick version is: salary ÷ 2,080.

Examples

• $40,000 ÷ 2,080 = about $19.23 per hour
• $60,000 ÷ 2,080 = about $28.85 per hour
• $100,000 ÷ 2,080 = about $48.08 per hour

If you take unpaid time off, use fewer weeks. At 48 weeks, a $60,000 salary is worth about $31.25 an hour, because you earn the same money in less time.

Hourly to salary

To go the other way, multiply your hourly rate by hours per week and then by weeks per year. For example, $30 an hour at 40 hours across 52 weeks is $62,400 a year. Freelancers can use this to set a rate that hits a target annual income — just remember to add a margin for unpaid admin time, gaps between clients, and self-employment taxes.

Comparing job offers fairly

Two roles paying $70,000 are not equal if one demands 50 hours a week and the other 37. Convert both to an hourly rate and the better deal becomes obvious. Do the conversion in any currency with our salary to hourly calculator, then check what you would actually keep after tax with the take-home pay calculator.

Frequently asked questions