Salary to hourly
Useful for comparing a salaried role against contract work — and for seeing what long hours do to an apparently good salary.
Result
- Hourly rate
- $25.00
- Monthly
- $4,333.33
- Weekly
- $1,000.00
- Total hours per year
- 2,080
Worked examples
The real rate on long hours
$52,000 salary but a 50-hour week.
- 50 × 52 = 2,600 hours
- 52,000 ÷ 2,600 = 20.00
$20.00/hour, not $25.
The hours you actually work
A salary divided by contracted hours flatters most jobs. Dividing by the hours you genuinely work is the number that lets you compare roles honestly, and it is often a good deal lower.
Ten extra hours a week on a 40-hour salary is a 20% pay cut in real terms. Seeing that as an hourly figure tends to be more persuasive than seeing it as a time cost.
Comparing employment with contracting
A contract rate has to cover more than a salary does: unpaid holiday, sick leave, pension, equipment, insurance, accounting, and the gaps between contracts. A common rule of thumb is that a contract rate needs to be substantially above the equivalent salaried hourly rate before it is genuinely comparable.
Run the salary figure first, then decide what premium the missing benefits are worth to you.
Formula
hourly = salary ÷ (hours per week × weeks per year)
Worth knowing
- Working 50 hours on a 40-hour salary cuts the real hourly rate by a fifth.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert a salary to an hourly rate?
Divide the annual salary by the total hours worked per year. $52,000 over 2,080 hours (40 × 52) is $25.00 an hour.
How many working hours are there in a year?
2,080 for a standard 40-hour week across 52 weeks. Subtract unpaid leave if it applies to you.
Why does my real hourly rate look so low?
Because unpaid overtime divides the same salary across more hours. A 50-hour week on a 40-hour salary cuts the effective rate by a fifth.
What contract rate matches my salary?
Start with the salaried hourly figure, then add a premium for unpaid holiday, sick leave, pension and gaps between contracts — those are benefits a contract rate has to fund itself.