One job posts "$28/hour," another posts "$58,000/year," and a third posts "$4,833/month." Comparing them at a glance is nearly impossible — until you convert them all to the same unit. Here's how salary conversion actually works, and the one distinction that matters more than any of the math.

The Standard Work Year

Most salary conversions start from a standard work year: 52 weeks × 40 hours = 2,080 hours per year for a typical full-time role. From there:

  • Hourly → Annual: hourly rate × hours per week × weeks per year
  • Annual → Hourly: annual salary ÷ 2,080 (adjust if your hours per week differ)
  • Annual → Monthly: annual salary ÷ 12
  • Annual → Weekly: annual salary ÷ 52
  • Annual → Bi-weekly: annual salary ÷ 26
Watch the hours: not every job is 40 hours a week. A role listed as $25/hour at 30 hours/week works out to a very different annual number than the same rate at 40 hours — always check the assumed hours before comparing offers.

Gross vs Net Pay: The Distinction That Actually Matters

Every conversion above works with gross pay — your salary before anything is taken out. What actually lands in your bank account is net pay (take-home pay), after:

  • Federal income tax
  • State and local income tax (where applicable)
  • Social Security (6.2% in the US, up to a wage cap)
  • Medicare (1.45% in the US)
  • Any retirement contributions, health insurance premiums or other deductions

Two people with the same gross salary can have noticeably different take-home pay depending on their state, filing status, and benefit elections — which is why comparing two job offers by gross salary alone can be misleading.

Why This Matters When Comparing Job Offers

A higher hourly rate with fewer guaranteed hours, or a salaried role with unpaid overtime expectations, can end up paying less in practice than a lower headline number with better structure. Converting every offer to the same period — and then thinking about gross vs. net — gives you an honest, apples-to-apples comparison.

Step-by-Step: Convert Your Salary

  1. Enter your salary amount and select what period it's quoted for (year, month, week, day or hour)
  2. Enter your actual hours per week and days per week
  3. Instantly see the equivalent hourly, daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly and annual gross figures
  4. Remember to mentally account for taxes and deductions to estimate your real take-home pay

Try It Yourself

Use our free Salary Calculator — convert between any pay period instantly

Open Salary Calculator →

📢 Share this article