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Salary to hourly calculator

Divide a salary into an hourly figure, then see the real number once the hours you actually work are counted rather than the ones in your contract.

On paper (contracted hours)
Hours actually worked per year
Unpaid hours per year
Value of your paid time off
True hourly rate

Estimate only. Figures update as you type. Not tax advice — see the note at the bottom of this page.

The gap between contracted and actual

Salaried pay is fixed, so every additional hour worked lowers the effective rate. Someone on a nominal 40-hour week who consistently works 48 is donating a fifth of their labour, and the paycheck never registers it. Seeing the two numbers next to each other is often the clearest argument for either a raise or a boundary.

Paid time off is real compensation

Paid leave is genuine value that hourly and contract workers don't receive, and it belongs in any comparison between a salary and a freelance rate. Four weeks of paid leave on a typical salary is worth thousands of dollars that a contractor has to fund from their own rate.

Using this to evaluate a freelance move

The true hourly figure is a useful floor, not a target. A freelancer needs to charge substantially more than an employee's true hourly rate to end up in the same financial position, because of payroll tax, self-funded benefits, and unbillable hours. The freelance rate calculator works out how much more.

Common questions

What hourly rate is a $100,000 salary?

About $48 an hour at a standard 2,080-hour year. At 48 actual hours a week with four weeks off it drops closer to $43, which is the number that reflects reality.

Should overtime count if I'm salaried?

For understanding your real rate, yes. Exempt salaried roles typically don't pay extra for those hours, which is exactly why they lower the effective rate.

Is this before or after tax?

Before tax. It's a gross figure, useful for comparing offers rather than for budgeting take-home pay.

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