Free Paycheck / Salary Calculator

How to calculate salary pay

If you're paid a salary, your gross pay for one pay period is simply your annual salary divided by the number of pay periods in a year:

1. Weekly (52 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 52
2. Every 2 weeks / biweekly (26 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 26
3. Twice a month / semimonthly (24 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 24
4. Monthly (12 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 12
5. Quarterly (4 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 4
6. Twice a year / semiannual (2 pay periods a year) — annual salary ÷ 2

How to calculate hourly pay

If you're paid by the hour, your gross pay for a pay period is your hourly rate multiplied by the hours you actually worked:

1. Regular pay = hourly rate × regular hours worked
2. Overtime pay = (hourly rate × 1.5) × overtime hours — under federal law, this generally applies to hours worked beyond 40 in a single week
3. Gross pay for the period = regular pay + overtime pay + any bonuses, commissions or tips

How to convert between pay frequencies

To turn any pay figure into an annual number, multiply it by how many times a year you're paid — then divide that annual number by a different frequency to convert again. For example:

1. Hourly rate to annual salary — hourly rate × hours per week × 52 weeks
2. Weekly pay to annual salary — weekly pay × 52
3. Monthly pay to annual salary — monthly pay × 12
4. Annual salary to any other frequency — annual salary ÷ that frequency's pay periods per year (see the list above)

How to calculate your net (take-home) pay

Net pay is what's left after gross pay passes through deductions and withholding, in this order:

1. Start with gross pay for the period (from salary or hours, as above).
2. Subtract pre-tax deductions — 401(k)/retirement contributions, health/dental/vision premiums, HSA contributions — to get your taxable wages.
3. Apply federal income tax withholding, based on your taxable wages and the filing status, dependents and adjustments on your W-4.
4. Apply Social Security (6.2%) and Medicare (1.45%) on their own taxable wage bases — these aren't reduced by most pre-tax deductions the same way federal income tax is.
5. Apply state income tax withholding, if the state you work in has one.
6. Subtract any post-tax deductions — what's left is your net, take-home pay.

Why your paycheck is never your full salary or hourly rate

Your gross pay — your salary divided by your pay periods, or your hours times your rate — is only the starting number. Before it ever reaches your bank account, it passes through a set of mandatory and voluntary deductions:

1. Federal income tax — withheld based on the filing status, dependents and adjustments you listed on your W-4.
2. Social Security — a flat 6.2% of most wages, up to the annual wage base.
3. Medicare — a flat 1.45% of virtually all wages, with an extra 0.9% on very high earners.
4. State income tax — withheld if the state you work in taxes wages (nine states don't).
5. Anything you've elected — 401(k) or other retirement contributions, health/dental/vision premiums, HSA contributions, and any other deductions your employer has on file.

How to check your own paycheck, step by step

1. Start with gross pay. Multiply your hourly rate by your hours (including overtime at 1.5x) or divide your annual salary by your pay frequency, and compare that to the gross pay line on your actual stub.
2. Check FICA. Multiply gross pay by 6.2% and 1.45% — those two numbers should match your Social Security and Medicare lines almost exactly, since there's no discretion in how they're calculated.
3. Check federal withholding against your W-4. If you haven't updated your W-4 in a while — after a raise, a second job, or a life change like marriage or a new dependent — that's the most common reason federal withholding looks off.
4. Check state withholding, if your state has an income tax. Some states also use their own withholding certificate, separate from the federal W-4.
5. Add up your deductions. Retirement contributions, insurance premiums and HSA amounts should match what you signed up for during open enrollment or onboarding — not always what you remember signing up for.
6. Compare year-to-date totals across a few stubs. If gross pay is climbing correctly but net pay isn't, the difference is almost always a deduction that changed.

If the numbers still don't match

A calculator like this one gives you a close estimate, not a guarantee — payroll software, benefit timing and local taxes can all shift the exact number by a few dollars. If your real paycheck is meaningfully different from what you expected:

1. Ask your payroll or HR contact for a breakdown of exactly what was withheld and why — you're entitled to this.
2. Double-check the W-4 your employer actually has on file; it may not match what you think you filed, especially after switching jobs or updating it online.
3. Look for a recent change — a raise, a new benefit election, a change in filing status, or a new local/city tax — that lines up with when the paycheck changed.

How we calculate your estimate

This calculator runs on the same tax engine as our pay stub generator: federal withholding follows the IRS's Publication 15-T percentage method, Social Security and Medicare use the current year's statutory rates, and all 50 states are supported, including the nine with no state income tax. It's meant to help you understand and double-check your own pay — not to replace your employer's payroll records.